The final round of the Rugby Europe Men’s Championship 2025 starts and finishes with two huge games as the Netherlands and Belgium compete to keep their Rugby World Cup qualification hopes alive and Georgia and Spain compete for the title.
Amsterdam will host the weekend's opening match at 13:00 local time (GMT+1) on Saturday, with the winner of the fifth-place play-off between the Netherlands and Belgium advancing to the Final Qualification Tournament for Men’s Rugby World Cup 2027, while in the first of Sunday's two games the Lelos will attempt to lift the Rugby Europe Men's Championship trophy for the eighth consecutive year.
Georgia, Spain, Portugal and Romania, who face each other in the bronze final in the concluding match of the tournament, have already booked their place having reached the Rugby Europe Men’s Championship 2025 semi-finals. But Europe could still have another qualifier from the region in Australia, as the winner of the Final Qualification Tournament, which will take place during the November window, will claim the 24th and final ticket to the game’s marquee event.
So while the Netherlands are no strangers to winning the fifth place play-off, having done so in 2023 and 2024, this year’s game has much more riding on it than normal. It’s a high stakes encounter that the Netherlands will be favourites to win given they have home advantage and have beaten their closest rivals each of the last two times they have met.
Expectation brings pressure but there isn’t much that Dutch head coach Lyn Jones hasn’t seen or experienced in his coaching career and the Welshman will have his side focused solely on the challenge immediately in front of them.
“Pressure? What pressure?” he said. “We are turning up to play as best as we can against a much improved Belgian side. The challenge is big enough, without outsiders talking about pressure.
"The World Cup has not been discussed by us. Saturday will bring out the best and worst in both sides and we need to be on top of our game."
Belgium have ambitions of their own, and have recent history when it comes to pulling off shock results. At the start of last year’s tournament they beat a Portugal team fresh from a successful Rugby World Cup 2023, 10-6 in Mons, despite entering the game 16 places and 18.20 rating points below Os Lobos in the World Rugby Men's Rankings.
The Black Devils are much improved in the last 18 months under head coach Laurent Dossat and will present the Dutch with a formidable challenge, especially up front, where their mauling game is particularly strong.
While happy to have got this far, knowing that whatever the result Belgium will achieve their best finish since the competition was played under the current format, back-row forward Toon Deceuninck, is well aware that there is an even bigger prize is within touching distance.
“We’re very proud and happy to be able to play the fifth-place play-off and have a chance to battle for a spot in the World Cup qualifying tournament. It would mean the world to this group to get that ticket and keep on dreaming of a World Cup qualification.”
While it is all to play for between the Netherlands and Belgium, Germany and Switzerland will compete for seventh place in Saturday's other fixture (kick-off, 15:45 local, GMT+1).
On Sunday, Portugal will come up against Romania (kick-off 15:00 GMT), a side led by their former assistant coach David Gerard, in the battle for third place in Lisbon, while at 16:00 local time in Tbilisi (GMT+4), Spain will attempt to do what no other side has achieved since Romania in March 2007 – beat the Lelos in this competition.
Georgia won 62-32 when the teams met in the pool stage in Madrid, but veteran loose forward Matt Foulds refuses to accept the final is a foregone conclusion.
“They might think it is going to be even easier for them this weekend. Hopefully, that is the case and we’ll take them by surprise and be that banana skin for them," Foulds said.
“I don’t think we did ourselves justice in Madrid, especially in ‘D’, so we’ll try and tighten things up and give it a good crack."
In terms of the rankings, a first-ever title for Spain would see them climb at least one place, lifting them above their Iberian rivals Portugal into 16th regardless of Os Lobos’ result against Romania in the battle for third place.
Photo Credit: Rugby Europe / Dennis van de Sande
