# 2023 Rugby Europe Championship

The 2023 Rugby Europe Championship was the seventh Rugby Europe Championship, the annual rugby union for the top European national teams outside the Six Nations Championship, and the 53rd edition of the competition (including all its previous incarnations as the FIRA Tournament, Rugby Union European Cup, FIRA Nations Cup, FIRA Trophy and European Nations Cup).
Eight teams took part in the 2023 Championship, up from six in previous tournaments, due to a reorganisation of the various flights of European international competition. The Championship was contested by Belgium, Georgia, Germany, Poland, the Netherlands, Portugal, Romania and Spain.
Russia, who competed in the 2022 Championship were relegated as a result of suspension due to their country's 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine. The remaining five teams (Georgia, the Netherlands, Portugal, Romania, and Spain) were joined by the top three teams from the 2021–22 Rugby Europe Trophy, which Belgium won.
Georgia entered the tournament as defending champions. They topped the table in the 2022 tournament, claiming their 14th title. The serpentine system was applied to allocate each team to their respective groups. Each team played a total of five games (three round robin group matches to determine the team's path and two play-off matches). Seeding (for a group) and relegation are calculated over a two-year cycle, as is the promotion from the Trophy competition.

## Participants

| Nation | Stadium | Stadium | Stadium | Head coach | Captain |
| Nation | Home stadium | Capacity | Location | Head coach | Captain |
| Belgium | Stade Nelson Mandela | 2,100 | Brussels | Mike Ford | Jens Torfs |
| Georgia | Avchala Stadium | 3,500 | Tbilisi | Levan Maisashvili | Merab Sharikadze |
| Germany | Fritz-Grunebaum-Sportpark | 5,000 | Heidelberg | Mark Kuhlmann | Jörn Schröder |
| Netherlands | NRCA Stadium | 7,000 | Amsterdam | Lyn Jones | Hugo Langelaan |
| Poland | Narodowy Stadion Rugby | 2,425 | Gdynia | Christian Hitt | Piotr Zeszutek |
| Portugal | Estádio Nacional Estádio do Restelo | 37,593 19,856 | Oeiras Lisbon | Patrice Lagisquet | Tomás Appleton |
| Romania | Stadionul Arcul de Triumf | 8,207 | Bucharest | Eugen Apjok | Mihai Macovei |
| Spain | Estadio El Malecón Estadio Nacional Complutense Estadio Nuevo Vivero | 6,007 12,400 14,898 | Torrelavega Madrid Badajoz | Santiago Santos | Jon Zabala |

## Tables and Fixtures
### Pool A

* Advances to the Grand Finals Semi-Finals
* Advances to the Ranking Finals Semi-Finals
| Pos. | Team | Games | Games | Games | Games | Points | Points | Points | Tries | Tries | Tries | TBP | LBP | Table points |
| Pos. | Team | Played | Won | Drawn | Lost | For | Against | Diff | For | Against | Diff | TBP | LBP | Table points |
| 1 | Georgia | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 156 | 23 | +133 | 24 | 3 | +21 | 3 | 0 | 15 |
| 2 | Spain | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 63 | 75 | -12 | 8 | 10 | -2 | 1 | 0 | 9 |
| 3 | Netherlands | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 61 | 97 | -36 | 6 | 12 | -6 | 0 | 0 | 4 |
| 4 | Germany | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 55 | 140 | -85 | 6 | 19 | -13 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Source - Points were awarded to the teams as follows: Win – 4 points | Draw – 2 points | At least 3 more tries than opponent – 1 point | Loss within 7 points – 1 point |

#### Week 1

* 5 February 2023 13:00 GET (UTC+4)
| (1 TBP) Georgia | 75–12 | Germany |
| Try: Lashkhi 4' c Tabutsadze (3) 9' c, 23' c, 32' c Mikautadze 36' c Jalaghonia 40' c Tsutskiridze (3) 53' c, 71' m, 80' c Alania 58' c Matkava 67' c Con: Matkava (10/11) 5', 10', 24', 33', 37', 40+1', 54', 59', 68', 80' | Report | Try: Lammers 48' m Stella 63' c Con: Stella (1/2) 64' |
* Achvala Stadium, Tbilisi Attendance: 2,960 Referee: Cristian Şerban (Romania)
* 5 February 2023 12:45 CET (UTC+1)
| Spain | 28–20 | Netherlands |
| Try: Ferrer 4' c Ramiro 40' c Foulds 44' m Con: Vinuesa (2/3) 23', 41' Pen: Vinuesa (3/3) 13', 32', 61' | Report | Try: Van Dijk 50' c Raymond 76' c Con: Weersma (2/2) 51', 77' Pen: Fortuin (1/1) 13' Weersma (1/1) 27' |
* Estadio Nacional Complutense, Madrid Attendance: 4,500 Referee: Paulo Duarte (Portugal)

#### Week 2

* 11 February 2023 13:15 CET (UTC+1)
| Netherlands | 8–40 | Georgia (1 TBP) |
| Try: Bloemen 62' m Pen: Weersma (1/1) 14' | Report | Try: Niniashvili 10' c Chachanidze 19' m Chkoidze (2) 44' c, 52' c Gachechiladze (2) 67' c, 75' c Con: Abzhandadze (3/4) 11', 44', 53' Matkava (2/2) 68', 76 |
* NRCA Stadium, Amsterdam Attendance: 2,500 Referee: Ludovic Cayre (France)
* 12 February 2023 14:30 CET (UTC+1)
| Germany | 14–32 | Spain (1 TBP) |
| Try: Paine 24' m Con: Stella (0/1) Pen: Stella (3/3) 20', 40', 65' | Report | Try: Bell 8' c, 12' c del Hoyo 22' m Polkowska 67' m Iriberri 80' m Con: Guemes (2/5) 8', 12' Pen: Guemes (1/1) 59' |
* Fritz-Grunebaum-Sportpark, Heidelberg Attendance: 2,500 Referee: Clara Munarini (Italy)

#### Week 3

* 18 February 2023 13:15 CET (UTC+1)
| (1 LBP) Germany | 29–33 | Netherlands |
| Try: Lammers 18' m Paine 34' c Wolf 52' m Con: Stella (1/3) 35' Pen: Stella (4/4) 24', 60', 68', 70' | Report | Try: Weersma 11' c van Dijk 27' c Penalty try 48' Con: Weersma (2/2) 12', 28' Pen: Weersma (4/4) 3', 7', 32', 40' Fortuin (0/1) |
* Stadion Pichterich, Neckarsulm Attendance: 1,350 Referee: Alexandru Ionescu (Romania)
* 18 February 2023 19:00 CET (UTC+1)
| Spain | 3–41 | Georgia (1 TBP) |
| Pen: Vinuesa (1/1) 7' | Report | Try: Tabutsadze (2) 4' m, 8' m Gigashvili 25' m Abzhandadze 38' c Sharikadze 48' c Todua 65' m Niniashvili 68' c Con: Abzhandadze (2/5) 39', 49' Matkava (1/2) 69' |
* Estadio El Malecón, Torrelavega Attendance: 4,500 Referee: Eoghan Cross (Ireland)

### Pool B

* Advances to the Grand Finals Semi-Finals
* Advances to the Ranking Finals Semi-Finals
| Pos. | Team | Games | Games | Games | Games | Points | Points | Points | Tries | Tries | Tries | TBP | LBP | Table points |
| Pos. | Team | Played | Won | Drawn | Lost | For | Against | Diff | For | Against | Diff | TBP | LBP | Table points |
| 1 | Portugal | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 157 | 40 | +117 | 24 | 4 | +20 | 3 | 0 | 15 |
| 2 | Romania | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 143 | 70 | +73 | 21 | 9 | +12 | 2 | 0 | 10 |
| 3 | Poland | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 51 | 147 | -96 | 5 | 24 | -19 | 0 | 0 | 4 |
| 4 | Belgium | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 37 | 131 | -94 | 5 | 18 | -13 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Source - Points were awarded to the teams as follows: Win – 4 points | Draw – 2 points | At least 3 more tries than opponent – 1 point | Loss within 7 points – 1 point |

#### Week 1

* 4 February 2023 14:00 EET (UTC+2)
| (1 TBP) Romania | 67–27 | Poland |
| Try: Simionescu 1' m Chirică (2) 5' c, 17' c Butnariu 14' m Gajion 27' c Gontineac (2) 32' c, 53' c Vaovasa 42' c Macovei 45' m Irimescu 63' m Penalty try 71' m Con: Septar (1/2) 54' Popoaia (5/7) 6', 18', 28', 33', 44' Melinte (0/2) | Report | Try: Hudson-Kowalewicz 20' c Fidler 52' c Pozniak 78' c Con: Banaszek (2/2) 21', 53' Piotrowicz (1/1) 79' Pen: Banaszek (2/2) 39', 61' |
* Arcul de Triumph, Bucharest Attendance: 2,136 Referee: Saba Abulashvili (Georgia)
* 4 February 2023 19:00 WET (UTC+0)
| (1 TBP) Portugal | 54–17 | Belgium |
| Try: V. Pinto 5' c Marta 10' c Martins 15' c Lima 20' m Belo 45' c Sousa Guedes 48' c Lucas 60' c Campergue 62' c Con: Sousa Guedes (7/8) 6', 11', 21', 46', 49', 61', 63' | Report | Try: Cornez 37' c Pazgrat 69' c Con: Remue (2/2) 38', 70' Pen: Remue (1/1) 31' |
* Estádio Nacional, Oeiras Attendance: 3,723 Referee: Hollie Davidson (Scotland)

#### Week 2

* 11 February 2023 11:45 CET (UTC+1)
| Poland | 3–65 | Portugal (1 TBP) |
| Pen: Piotrowicz (1/1) 10' | Report | Try: Marques 2' c Marta (4) 13' m, 41' m, 46' c, 80' c Pinto (3) 19' c, 67' m, 71' m Portela 29' m Tadjer 39' m Lima 48' c Con: Marques (4/4) 2', 19', 47', 48' Portela (1/1) 80' |
* Narodowy Stadion Rugby, Gdynia Attendance: 2,000 Referee: Andrew Cole (Ireland)
* 11 February 2023 18:30 CET (UTC+1)
| Belgium | 5–56 | Romania (1 TBP) |
| Try: Godsmark 37' m | Report | Try: Penalty try 7' Gontineac (3) 13' c, 43' c, 47' c Savin 33' c Cojocaru 55' c Chirică 61' c Tomane 80' c Con: Melinte (7/7) 15', 34', 44', 47', 56', 63', 80' |
* Stade Nelson Mandela, Brussels Attendance: 2,100 Referee: Mike English (Wales)

#### Week 3

* 18 February 2023 21:15 CET (UTC+1)
| Poland | 21–15 | Belgium (1 LBP) |
| Try: Szwagrzak 9' m Zeszutek 49' c Con: Piotrowicz (1/2) 50' Pen: Piotrowicz (3/3) 4', 58', 79' | Report | Try: Cornez 74' m Andre 80' c Con: Remue (1/2) 80' Pen: Williams (1/1) 12' |
* Narodowy Stadion, Gdynia Attendance: 2,000 Referee: Inigo Atorrasagasti (Spain)
* 19 February 2023 15:00 WET (UTC+0)
| (1 TBP) Portugal | 38–20 | Romania |
| Try: Bettencourt (2) 5' c, 12' c Madeira 51' c Lucas 59' c Diniz 79' c Con: Sousa Guedes (5/5) 6', 13', 52', 59', 80' Pen: Sousa Guedes (1/1) 15' | Report | Try: Gontineac 1' c Chirică 64' c Con: Popoaia (1/1) 2' Melinte (1/1) 64' Pen: Popoaia (2/2) 9', 45' |
* Estádio do Restelo, Lisbon Attendance: 4,250 Referee: Nika Amashukeli (Georgia)

## Ranking finals

| Semi-finals | Semi-finals | Fifth-place Final | Fifth-place Final |
| 4 March – NRCA Stadium, Amsterdam | 4 March – NRCA Stadium, Amsterdam |
| Netherlands | 31 |
| Netherlands | 31 | 19 March – NRCA Stadium, Amsterdam | 19 March – NRCA Stadium, Amsterdam |
| Belgium | 19 | 19 March – NRCA Stadium, Amsterdam | 19 March – NRCA Stadium, Amsterdam |
| Belgium | 19 | Netherlands | 50 |
| 5 March – Narodowy Stadion, Gdynia | 5 March – Narodowy Stadion, Gdynia | | Netherlands | 50 |
| 5 March – Narodowy Stadion, Gdynia | 5 March – Narodowy Stadion, Gdynia | Germany | 28 |
| Poland | 18 | Germany | 28 |
| Germany | 23 | | |
| Germany | 23 | Seventh-place Final | Seventh-place Final |
| | | 19 March – NRCA Stadium, Amsterdam | 19 March – NRCA Stadium, Amsterdam |
| | | Belgium | 18 |
| | | Poland | 17 |

### Semi-finals

* 4 March 2023 12:15 CET (UTC+1)
| Netherlands | 31–19 | Belgium |
| Try: Bennie-Coulson (3) 7' c, 43' c, 73' c Raymond 39' c Con: Weersma (4/4) 8', 40', 44', 74' Pen: Weersma (1/1) 80' | Report | Try: Remue 35' c Mortier 52' m Baudry 59' c Con: Remue (2/3) 36', 60' |
* NRCA Stadium, Amsterdam Attendance: 1,250 Referee: Michael Todd (Scotland)
* 5 March 2023 20:00 CET (UTC+1)
| Poland | 18–23 | Germany |
| Try: Halaifuana 14' c Wójtowicz 76' m Con: Piotrowicz (1/2) 16' Pen: Piotrowicz (2/2) 43', 49' | Report | Try: Wolf 25' c Rodwell 66' c Con: Stella (2/2) 26', 67' Pen: Stella (3/6) 3', 57', 62' |
* Narodowy Stadion, Gdynia Attendance: 1,200 Referee: Gert Visser (Netherlands)

### Seventh-place final

* 19 March 2023 12:30 CET (UTC+1)
| Belgium | 18–17 | Poland |
| Try: Cornez 1' m Remue 63' c Con: Remue (1/2) 64' Pen: Remue (2/2) 10', 28' | Report | Try: Zeszutek 5' c Taufui Halaifuana 78' c Con: Piotrowicz (2/2) 6', 79' Pen: Piotrowicz (0/2) Szczepański (1/1) 25' |
* NRCA Stadium, Amsterdam Attendance: 2,000 Referee: Cristian Şerban (Romania)

### Fifth-place final

* 19 March 2023 15:00 CET (UTC+1)
| Netherlands | 50–28 | Germany |
| Try: van der Avoird 1' c du Plessis 5' c Langelaan 14' c Bennie-Coulson (2) 35' c, 48' m Raymond 56' c Darlington (2) 69' m, 79' m Con: Weersma (5/7) 1', 6', 15', 36', 57' Darlington (0/1) Pen: Weersma (0/1) | Report | Try: Rinklin 41' c L. Wolf 58' c Penalty try 63' Lammers 72' c Con: Stella (3/3) 42', 59', 72' |
* NRCA Stadium, Amsterdam Attendance: 2,750 Referee: Shota Tevzadze (Georgia)

## Grand finals

| Semi-finals | Semi-finals | Cup Final | Cup Final |
| 5 March – Achvala Stadium, Tbilisi | 5 March – Achvala Stadium, Tbilisi |
| Georgia | 31 |
| Georgia | 31 | 19 March – Estadio Nuevo Vivero, Badajoz | 19 March – Estadio Nuevo Vivero, Badajoz |
| Romania | 7 | 19 March – Estadio Nuevo Vivero, Badajoz | 19 March – Estadio Nuevo Vivero, Badajoz |
| Romania | 7 | Georgia | 38 |
| 4 March – Estádio do Restelo, Lisbon | 4 March – Estádio do Restelo, Lisbon | | Georgia | 38 |
| 4 March – Estádio do Restelo, Lisbon | 4 March – Estádio do Restelo, Lisbon | Portugal | 11 |
| Portugal | 27 | Portugal | 11 |
| Spain | 10 | | |
| Spain | 10 | Bronze Final | Bronze Final |
| | | 19 March – Estadio Nuevo Vivero, Badajoz | 19 March – Estadio Nuevo Vivero, Badajoz |
| | | Romania | 31 |
| | | Spain | 25 |

### Semi-finals

* 4 March 2023 17:00 WET (UTC+0)
| Portugal | 27–10 | Spain |
| Try: Marta 28' c Diniz 68' c Marques 71' c Con: Marques (3/3) 29', 69', 72' Pen: Marques (2/3) 52', 55' | Report | Try: Peters 18' c Con: Vinuesa (1/1) 19' Pen: Vinuesa (1/2) 2' |
* Estádio do Restelo, Lisbon Attendance: 5,000 Referee: Thomas Charabas (France)
* 5 March 2023 16:00 GET (UTC+4)
| Georgia | 31–7 | Romania |
| Try: Sharikadze 10' c Todua 34' c Penalty try 54' Tabutsadze 80' c Con: Abzhandadze (2/2) 11', 35' Matkava (1/1) 80' Pen: Abzhandadze (1/1) 2' | Report | Try: Capatina 59' c Con: Melinte (1/1) 60' |
* Achvala Stadium, Tbilisi Attendance: 2,600 Referee: Federico Vedovelli (Italy)

### Bronze Final

* 19 March 2023 17:15 CET (UTC+1)
| Romania | 31–25 | Spain |
| Try: Septar 40' m Chirica 42' c Pop 49' m Rupanu 52' m Con: Popoaia (1/4) 43' Pen: Popoaia (1/1) 36' Popa (2/2) 74', 80' | Report | Try: Dominguez Gatell 8' c Ferrer (2) 54' c, 69' m Con: Vinuesa Garcia (2/2) 9', 55' Guemes (0/1) Pen: Vinuesa Garcia (2/2) 20', 47' |
* Estadio Nuevo Vivero, Badajoz Attendance: 5,300 Referee: Chris Busby (Ireland)

### Cup Final

* 19 March 2023 20:00 CET (UTC+1)
| Georgia | 38–11 | Portugal |
| Try: Tabutsadze 14', 25' c Mamukashvili 43' c Papidze 62' c Tapladze 68' c Chkoidze 76' c Con: Abzhandadze (2/4) 15', 63' Matkava (2/2) 69', 77' | Report | Try: Appleton 7' c Pen: Bento 52', 55' |
* Estadio Nuevo Vivero, Badajoz Attendance: 6,000 Referee: Ludovic Cayre (France)

## Final standings

| Pos. | Team | Points |
| 1 | Georgia | 10 |
| 2 | Portugal | 8 |
| 3 | Romania | 6 |
| 4 | Spain | 5 |
| 5 | Netherlands | 4 |
| 6 | Germany | 3 |
| 7 | Belgium | 2 |
| 8 | Poland | 1 |

## Team of the Tournament

On 6 April 2023 Rugby Europe published its Team of the Tournament Nuno Sousa Guedes was voted the player of the tournament by the fans.
| Pos. | | Player | Club / Province | Competition |
| LP | 1 | Alexandru Savin | Wolves | Super Cup |
| HK | 2 | Shalva Mamukashvili | Black Lion | Super Cup |
| TP | 3 | Joaquín Domínguez | Iberians | Super Cup |
| LL | 4 | José Madeira | Grenoble | Pro D2 |
| RL | 5 | Josh Peters | Newcastle Falcons | Premiership |
| BF | 6 | Giorgi Tsutskiridze | Stade Français | Top 14 |
| OF | 7 | Nicolas Martins | Soyaux Angoulême | Pro D2 |
| N8 | 8 | Cristi Chirica | Carqueiranne | Nationale |
| SH | 9 | Vasil Lobzhanidze | Brive | Top 14 |
| FH | 10 | Tedo Abzhandadze | Montauban | Pro D2 |
| LW | 11 | Aka Tabutsadze | Black Lion | Super Cup |
| IC | 12 | Taylor Gontineac | Rouen | Pro D2 |
| OC | 13 | José Lima | Narbonne | Nationale |
| RW | 14 | Rodrigo Marta | Dax | Nationale |
| FB | 15 | Nuno Sousa Guedes | Lusitanos | Super Cup |

## International broadcasters

| Country | Broadcaster | Summary |
| Belgium | — | Rugby Europe (registration required) |
| Georgia | Rugby TV Imedi TV | Georgia games shown live via Rugby TV and Imedi TV. Also Georgia games are streamed and free on Rugby TV Facebook page |
| Germany | — | Rugby Europe (registration required) |
| Netherlands | Ziggo | Selected games live on Ziggo Sport |
| Poland | TVP Sport | Poland's home games shown live |
| Portugal | Sport TV | Portugal games shown live |
| Romania | — | Rugby Europe (registration required) |
| Spain | Teledeporte | Spain games shown live via Teledeporte |
| France | RugbyZone Archived 2022-02-01 at the Wayback Machine | All games available through streaming via RugbyZone Archived 2022-02-01 at the Wayback Machine |
| North America | FloRugby | All games available through streaming via FloSports |
| Rest of the World | Rugby Europe | All games available through streaming via Rugby Europe (registration required). Some games are streamed and free on Rugby Europe Youtube channel |