The Rugby Championship
| Current season or competition: 2025 Rugby Championship | |
| Sport | Rugby union |
|---|---|
| Formerly known as | Tri Nations Series (1996–2011) |
| Inaugural season | 1996 |
| Number of teams | 4 |
| Countries | |
| Holders | South Africa (2025) |
| Most titles | New Zealand (20) |
| Website | super.rugby |
| Broadcast partner | See full broadcasting rights:
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The Rugby Championship, formerly known as the Tri Nations Series (1996–2011), is an international rugby union competition contested by Argentina, Australia, New Zealand, and South Africa. These are traditionally the four highest-ranked national teams in the Southern Hemisphere.
The competition is administered by SANZAAR, a consortium consisting of four national governing bodies: the South African Rugby Union (SARU), New Zealand Rugby (NZR), Rugby Australia (RA) and the Argentine Rugby Union (UAR). The inaugural Tri Nations Series tournament was in 1996, and was won by New Zealand. South Africa won their first title in 1998, and Australia their first in 2000. Following the last Tri Nations Series tournament in 2011, New Zealand had won ten championships, with South Africa and Australia on three titles each. The first Rugby Championship was won by New Zealand, who won all six of their matches.