The nominees for the 2026 Men’s Six Nations Player of the Championship have been revealed, with Louis Bielle-Biarrey, Tommaso Menoncello, Kyle Steyn and Stuart McCloskey included on the four-man shortlist.
The four men received the highest number of votes during the selection for the Six Nations Team of the Championship which will once again go down to a public vote to decide the winner of the award. Voting can be conducted here.
Of the group, Italy centre Menoncello scooped the gong in 2022, while Bielle-Biarrey also took home the prize last year. This is the first time that either Steyn or McCloskey have been nominated for the award, though.
Six Nations Player of the Championship nominees revealed
Winger Bielle-Biarrey took a starring role as Les Bleus secured their third title in five years, ending the Championship as top try-scorer with nine efforts across five Tests – setting a Six Nations record in the process. Within that, he became the first player to score in each round in consecutive years, following his effort of eight in five from the 2025 edition.
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Should he be crowned the winner, he would also follow France teammate Antoine Dupont in winning the award in consecutive seasons, and become just the fourth player to do so since 2004, with Brian O’Driscoll and Stuart Hogg winning the 2006 and 2007 and 2016 and 2017 awards respectively.
It would also make him a two-time winner, again joining an exclusive list alongside the aforementioned cohort to win it more than once. Dupont and O’Driscoll are tied on three apiece.
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But, Menoncello could also join that exclusive list if he were to come out on top, and the Azzurri back would also be a deserving winner. The centre, who finds himself on the shortlist for the third year in a row, played a pivotal role in Italy’s fourth-placed finish, finishing joint-second for defenders beaten (20), fourth for metres gained (363) and fourth for linebreaks (11).
Fellow centre McCloskey was arguably the surprise package of the Championship, quickly becoming Ireland’s go-to man at inside centre despite the return of Bundee Aki from suspension towards the backend of the campaign. His attacking exploits again came to the fore, notching six assists in his five outings, while also matching Menoncello’s tally of 20 defenders beaten. He also finished ninth in the tackle charts, making 66, and placed the highest of any back in that department.
Scotland winger Steyn again found himself ahead of a British and Irish Lions tourist this Championship, usurping Duhan van der Merwe into Gregor Townsend’s side, and he enjoyed a really strong campaign in the process. The Glasgow back finished as his side’s chief metre-maker with 316 to his name – the sixth-highest across the Championship – while also grabbing three tries in the process.
Voting for the Player of the Championship award closes on Thursday, 26th March at 09:00 GMT (10:00 CEST).