World No. 4 New Zealand Takes on No. 11 Italy, Undefeated in Pool Play, This Friday at 3 p.m. ET Live Exclusively on Peacock
More Than 100 Hours of Live Rugby World Cup Coverage Features Every Match Streaming Live on Peacock for Only $5.99/Month; Select Matches Live on CNBC
Knockout Round Begins Sat., Oct. 14; 2023 Rugby World Cup Final Presented Live on Saturday, October 28, at 3 p.m. ET on Peacock and CNBC; NBC to Present Encore Coverage on Sunday, October 29
STAMFORD, Conn. – Sept. 27, 2023 – NBC Sports’ presentation of the 2023 Rugby World Cup from France - featuring every match live on Peacock - continues this weekend, highlighted by the All Blacks of New Zealand (1-1) facing off against undefeated Italy (2-0) this Friday, Sept. 29, at 3 p.m. ET live exclusively on Peacock.
Friday’s match will be the first time New Zealand and Italy will face each other in the Rugby World Cup since 2007, when the All Blacks defeated Italy, 76-14, in pool play. New Zealand, which lost to host-nation France in the opening match of the tournament before beating Namibia in its second contest, needs to beat Italy to keep their hopes of advancing to the knockout round alive.
In total, seven matches will be presented live this weekend with two additional top-five teams in action, as World No. 5 Scotland (1-1) takes on Romania (0-2) this Saturday, Sept. 30, at 3 p.m. ET live on Peacock, while World No. 3 and defending champion South Africa (2-1) face off against Tonga (0-2) on Sunday, Oct. 1, at 3 p.m. ET live on Peacock.
Peacock is streaming all 48 matches of the 2023 Rugby World Cup live from Sept. 8-Oct. 28, presenting more than 100 hours of live coverage from France, with full replays available of each match. To learn more about the 2023 Rugby World Cup on Peacock, which is available for $5.99/month, click here.
In addition, CNBC is presenting 15 matches live over the course of the tournament, and NBC will air encores of four matches (including two quarterfinal matches and the final). NBC Sports’ remaining 2023 Rugby World Cup match schedule is below.
Next Saturday, Oct. 7, World No. 1 Ireland (3-0) faces a steep test against Scotland in a battle of heavyweights in each country’s final game before the knockout round begins on Oct. 14. Live coverage begins at 3 p.m. ET that day with an encore presentation on NBC at Noon ET on Sunday, Oct. 8. Additionally, World No. 6 England (3-0), one of only four countries to ever win the Rugby World Cup, squares off against Samoa (1-1) on Sat., Oct. 7, at 11:30 a.m. ET on Peacock and CNBC.
This year’s tournament is hosted by France, as the country prepares to host the 2024 Olympics in July of next year in its capital city of Paris. All Rugby World Cup matches are being held throughout the country at Stade de France, Stade de Toulouse, Stade de Marseille, OL Stadium, Stade Pierre-Mauroy, Stade de Bordeaux, Stade Geoffroy-Guichard, Stade de Nice, and Stade de la Beaujoire.
Group stage play, which began with the opening match on Sept. 8 and runs through Oct. 8, consists of four pools of five with each team playing the other four teams in their pool. The two top teams in each pool will qualify for the quarterfinals, which will be played on Oct. 14 and 15. The four quarterfinal winners will then advance to the semifinals (Oct. 20 and 21), with the two winners advancing to the final to be held on Saturday, Oct. 28, from Stade de France.
Participating teams in this year’s Rugby World Cup include: New Zealand, France, Italy, Uruguay, Namibia (Pool A); South Africa, Ireland, Scotland, Tonga, Romania (Pool B); Wales, Australia, Fiji, Georgia, Portugal (Pool C); and England, Japan, Argentina, Samoa, and Chile (Pool D).
Following are the current World Rugby men’s team rankings:
| 1. | Ireland | 6. | England |
| 2. | France | 7. | Wales |
| 3. | South Africa | 8. | Fiji |
| 4. | New Zealand | 9. | Argentina |
| 5. | Scotland | 10. | Australia |
Former USA Rugby captain Dan Lyle and Alex Corbisiero, who played internationally for England, serve as studio hosts. Lyle was the captain of Team USA in the 1999 Rugby World Cup and was also a member of the team in the 2003 Rugby World Cup. Corbisiero represented England in the 2011 Rugby World Cup.
In addition to all 48 matches of the 2023 Rugby World Cup streaming live, Peacock’s expansive programming offers the most live sports of any streamer in the United States, including live coverage of Sunday Night Football, Olympic Games, Premier League, Notre Dame Football, NASCAR, NTT IndyCar Series, Big Ten football, and much more. Peacock also offers daily sports programming on the NBC Sports channel.
For commercial establishments looking to show the 2023 Rugby World Cup, it is available through Peacock Sports Pass. Peacock Sports Pass offers commercial establishments in the US access to select events from Peacock’s exclusive live sports content library, including the Rugby World Cup, Premier League, Big Ten football and basketball, and much more. To subscribe or to find out more information about Peacock Sports Pass, click here.
How to Watch – Thursday, September 28 – Sunday, October 29 (all times ET):
- Streaming: Peacock (LIVE), NBCSports.com, NBC Sports app
- TV: CNBC (LIVE), NBC
2023 RUGBY WORLD CUP REMAINING SCHEDULE
| Date | Matchup | Time (ET) | Platform |
| Thurs., Sept. 28 | Japan v. Samoa | 3 p.m. | Peacock |
| Fri., Sept. 29 | New Zealand v. Italy | 3 p.m. | Peacock |
| Sat., Sept. 30 | Argentina v. Chile | 9 a.m. | Peacock, CNBC |
| Sat., Sept. 30 | Fiji v. Georgia | 11:30 a.m. | Peacock, CNBC |
| Sat., Sept. 30 | Scotland v. Romania | 3 p.m. | Peacock |
| Sun., Oct. 1 | Australia v. Portugal | 11:30 a.m. | Peacock, CNBC |
| Sun., Oct. 1 | South Africa v. Tonga | 3 p.m. | Peacock |
| Thurs., Oct. 5 | New Zealand v. Uruguay | 3 p.m. | Peacock |
| Fri., Oct. 6 | France v. Italy | 3 p.m. | Peacock |
| Sat., Oct. 7 | Wales v. Georgia | 9 a.m. | Peacock, CNBC |
| Sat., Oct. 7 | England v. Samoa | 11:30 a.m. | Peacock, CNBC |
| Sat., Oct. 7 | Ireland v. Scotland | 3 p.m. | Peacock |
| Sun., Oct. 8 | Japan v. Argentina | 7 a.m. | Peacock, CNBC |
| Sun., Oct. 8 | Tonga v. Romania | 11:30 a.m. | Peacock, CNBC |
| Sun., Oct. 8 | Ireland v. Scotland | Noon | NBC* |
| Sun., Oct. 8 | Fiji v. Portugal | 3 p.m. | Peacock |
| Sat., Oct. 14 | Quarterfinal | 11 a.m. | Peacock |
| Quarterfinal | 1 p.m. | NBC* | |
| Sat., Oct. 14 | Quarterfinal | 3 p.m. | Peacock |
| Sun., Oct. 15 | Quarterfinal | 11 a.m. | Peacock |
| Quarterfinal | Noon | NBC* | |
| Sun., Oct. 15 | Quarterfinal | 3 p.m. | Peacock |
| Fri., Oct. 20 | Semifinal | 3 p.m. | Peacock |
| Sat., Oct. 21 | Semifinal | 3 p.m. | Peacock |
| Fri., Oct. 27 | Third Place Match | 3 p.m. | Peacock |
| Sat., Oct. 28 | Final | 3 p.m. | Peacock, CNBC |
| Sun., Oct. 29 | Final | Noon | NBC* |
*Encore
--NBC SPORTS--