England head coach Steve Borthwick has been backed by the RFU to continue as manager following a “challenging” Six Nations review, the federation has revealed.
England went into the 2026 Championship with 11 Test wins, but despite starting with a win over Wales, they ended up losing four of five, including a record defeat away to Italy and at home to Ireland for the first time in their history.
As a result, Borthwick’s side finished fifth in the Six Nations standings, with just over 18 months until the next Rugby World Cup in Australia in 2027.
On Tuesday, RFU chief executive Bill Sweeney said he backed Borthwick after a review of England’s worst Six Nations performance in history.
“This is a thorough and honest review, and it is clear that improvements will come from addressing several areas, rather than pursuing one simple answer,” Mr Sweeney said.
“Steve has been completely open about this process and has a clear plan in place to address these findings. We are all rooting for Steve and his coaching team as they go into the series of matches leading up to the Nations Championship and the 2027 Rugby World Cup.”
England head coach Borthwick remained in charge despite finishing fifth in the Six Nations with the backing of the RFU.
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England captain Itoje supports Borthwick and insists belief remains in the team
The RFU said its review included interviews with “external independent contributors”, as well as current players, coaches and a wide range of behind-the-scenes team members.
These are described as “one-on-one face-to-face conversations that enable open, constructive, and sometimes challenging discussions.”
The RFU concluded that “England’s overall poor performance in the Six Nations, despite a 12-game winning streak, was not the result of a single failure or problem, but highlighted a number of interconnected areas of performance.”
England secured a disastrous Six Nations with four defeats in five games, their worst performance in the Championship’s history.
“We recognize why our supporters were frustrated and expected more. That disappointment was shared internally and underlined the seriousness of everyone’s commitment to this process.”
Sweeney added: “We’ve all seen what this England team is capable of – most recently with their performance against France and the strong win before that.
“That won’t disappear overnight. The challenge now is to consistently deliver that level, and I’m confident this group can deliver that, supported by the insights and feedback uncovered in this review.”
“This is a young England team that is still growing and developing and we understand that progress in international sport is rarely linear.”
As well as a record home defeat against Ireland, Borthwick also oversaw England’s first-ever defeat against Italy
England will play South Africa, Fiji and Argentina in the first Nations Championship in July, before facing the Springboks and Pumas in Tests, with Fiji at Liverpool.
England will host Australia, Japan and New Zealand in November, while the Nations Championship play-offs and final will also be held at Twickenham.
The 2027 Rugby World Cup will be held from October 1 to November 13, 2027.
England Nations Championship fixtures
Round 1: 4 July – South Africa vs England Round 2: 11 July – Fiji vs England Round 3: 18 July – Argentina vs England Round 4: 8 November – England vs Australia Round 5: 14 November – England vs Japan Round 6: 21 November – England vs New Zealand
