In the history of the six-team women’s Six Nations only once has a side other than England or France won the title, and that was back in 2013, when Ireland broke the duopoly.
England have won the past five tournaments but this year is their first Six Nations under new coach John Mitchell. The Red Roses, who are heavy favourites to lift the trophy, are hoping for a record-breaking crowd when they play Ireland at Twickenham in the fourth round.
John Mitchell will have to reshuffle his back row for Wales as Sarah Beckett has banned for three weeks following her red card against Italy.
Scroll down to read five things you should know about this year’s tournament. You can also read Sarah Bern’s verdict on every member of the England women’s squad, plus our team-by-team guide to the competition, including predictions.
How to watch the 2024 Women’s Six Nations on TV
Fixtures this year will continue to be shown on the BBC. Every match of the tournament will be streamed live on BBC iPlayer and BBC Sport online, with the vast majority also on BBC television. Six of the games are being shown on either BBC One or BBC Two – see below for details.
The BBC’s presenting team is led by Gabby Logan, Sonja McLaughlan, and Lee McKenzie.
2024 Women’s Six Nations fixtures
Round one
Sat, March 23: France 38 Ireland 17 (Stade Marie-Marvingt)
Sat, March 23: Wales 18 Scotland 20 (Cardiff Arms Park)
Sun, March 24: Italy 0 England 48 (Stadio Sergio Lanfranchi)
Round two
Sat, March 30: Scotland v France (2.15pm, Hive Stadium) – BBC Scotland
Sat, March 30: England v Wales (4.45pm, Ashton Gate) – BBC Two
Sun, March 31: Ireland v Italy (3pm, RDS Arena) – BBC iPlayer
Round three
Sat, April 13: Scotland v England (2.15pm, Hive Stadium) – BBC One
Sat, April 13: Ireland v Wales (4.45pm, Virgin Media Park) – BBC iPlayer
Sun, April 14: France v Italy (12.30pm, Stade Jean Bouin) – BBC iPlayer
Round four
Sat, April 20: England v Ireland (2.15pm, Twickenham) – BBC One
Sat, April 20: Italy v Scotland (4.45pm, Stadio Sergio Lanfranchi) – BBC Scotland
Sun, April 21: Wales v France (3.15pm, Cardiff Arms Park) – BBC Wales
Round five
Sat, April 27: Wales v Italy (12.15pm, Principality Stadium) – BBC Wales
Sat, April 27: Ireland v Scotland (2.30pm, Kingspan Stadium) – BBC NI
Sat, April 27: France v England (4.45pm, Stade Chaban-Delmas) – BBC Two