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TG4 Confirms 36 Live BKT URC Games and Grand Final for 2026/27 Season
25.09.26
TG4 is delighted to confirm an extensive season of live BKT United Rugby Championship action on Rugbaí Beo, with 36 live regular-season matches already confirmed for the 2026/27 campaign, including 30 games featuring the Irish provinces and six major South African derby fixtures.
The season will culminate with the Grand Final on Saturday, 19 June, live and exclusive free-to-air on TG4 across the island of Ireland, giving viewers the opportunity to follow the competition from the opening weekend all the way through to its showpiece decider.
Rugbaí Beo begins its new season on Friday, 25 September, when Connacht welcome DHL Stormers to Dexcom Stadium at 19:45. Reigning champions Leinster will then begin their title defence on TG4 the following day when they travel to Johannesburg to take on the Lions at Ellis Park. The opening weeks will also see Munster host Vodacom Bulls at Thomond Park on Saturday, 3 October, Connacht face trips to Benetton and Glasgow Warriors, while Leinster return home after two seasons in the Aviva and welcome Cardiff to the newly redeveloped Laya Arena.
Christmas Interpro takes centre stage
One of the highlights of the Christmas sporting calendar will come on Sunday, 27 December, when Munster host Leinster at Thomond Park at 19:45, live on TG4.
The traditional festive meeting between two of Irish rugby’s great rivals will once again take centre stage on Rugbaí Beo, with Thomond Park providing the setting for one of the most eagerly anticipated fixtures of the Championship season.
Irish interprovincial clashes will feature throughout TG4’s coverage. Connacht host Leinster at Dexcom Stadium on 30 October, before Connacht and Munster meet twice in January – first in Galway on 2 January and then at Thomond Park on 23 January. Connacht will also host Ulster on 30 January, while Munster v Ulster at Thomond Park on 8 May will be among the major fixtures during the closing stages of the regular season.
South African derbies live on TG4
Alongside its extensive coverage of the Irish provinces, Rugbaí Beo will showcase some of the biggest rivalries from elsewhere in the Championship, with six South African derby fixtures already confirmed live on TG4.
The first South African double-header comes on Saturday, 10 October, when Vodacom Bulls face Lions at 12:30, followed by DHL Stormers v Hollywoodbets Sharks at 15:00.
A further Christmas double-header will be shown on Saturday, 19 December, with DHL Stormers v Lions at 14:00 followed by Hollywoodbets Sharks v Vodacom Bulls at 16:30.
TG4 will also show Hollywoodbets Sharks v Lions on 2 January and the return meeting between Lions and Hollywoodbets Sharks on 20 February, bringing viewers some of the fiercest rivalries in South African club rugby as part of the international scope of the BKT URC.
The Irish provinces will themselves feature prominently in South Africa during the season. Munster travel to Johannesburg to face the Lions on 17 April before meeting DHL Stormers in Cape Town on 24 April, while Connacht travel to Durban to face Hollywoodbets Sharks on 8 May and Pretoria to take on Vodacom Bulls on 15 May.
Leinster begin defence of back-to-back titles
The new campaign begins with Leinster as back-to-back BKT URC champions, having retained the title with an emphatic 36-7 victory over Vodacom Bulls at Croke Park in June. The victory secured a tenth league championship for the province across the competition’s various iterations.
Leinster had finished second in the regular-season standings before defeating the Lions and DHL Stormers in the play-offs on their way to another meeting with the Bulls in the Grand Final.
There was strong Irish representation in last season’s knockout stages, with three of the four provinces reaching the Quarter-Finals. Munster finished fifth in the regular season before their campaign ended against the Bulls in Pretoria, while Connacht secured the eighth and final play-off position before travelling to face regular-season table-toppers Glasgow Warriors at Scotstoun. Ulster narrowly missed out, finishing ninth.
Connacht pushed Glasgow in an entertaining Quarter-Final before going down 33-21, while Munster’s campaign ended with a 45-14 defeat to the Bulls at Loftus Versfeld.
With Leinster now seeking a third successive championship and Munster, Connacht and Ulster beginning new campaigns of their own, Rugbaí Beo will once again provide extensive free-to-air coverage of the Irish provinces throughout the season.
Gemma Ní Chionnaith and Cuán Ó Flatharta will lead TG4’s Rugbaí Beo coverage alongside a panel of expert analysts, commentators and reporters.
Coverage of Rugbaí Beo will once again be produced by IRIS Productions, whose work on the programme has received industry recognition at the RTS Ireland Awards, including winning the Live Sport Coverage award for Rugbaí Beo: Munster v Leinster, Christmas Interpro in 2025. IRIS Productions was also nominated in the same category in 2026 for its coverage of the URC Final between Leinster and Vodacom Bulls.
Rugbaí Beo coverage of the 2026/27 BKT United Rugby Championship begins on Friday, 25 September, with Connacht v DHL Stormers live from Dexcom Stadium at 19:45.
Follow Spórt TG4 on social media throughout the season for live clips, highlights, interviews and behind-the-scenes coverage from the BKT United Rugby Championship.