Luke Pearce to referee New Zealand v France as World Rugby names Nations Championship officials

England’s Luke Pearce will referee New Zealand v France in Christchurch on 4 July, World Rugby confirmed on Tuesday, handing him the marquee opening fixture of the inaugural Nations Championship. The new biennial competition, created through a joint venture between Six Nations Rugby and SANZAAR, brings together 12 leading international teams in a northern versus southern hemisphere format.

Pearce will be assisted by fellow English official Christophe Ridley and Japan’s Katsuki Furuse, with South Africa’s Marius van der Westhuizen as TMO. The same opening day features New Zealand’s Ben O’Keeffe taking charge of Australia v Ireland in Sydney, James Doleman appointed to South Africa v England in Johannesburg, Georgia’s Nika Amashukeli overseeing Argentina v Scotland in Córdoba, Australia’s Nic Berry refereeing Japan v Italy in Tokyo, and Ireland’s Eoghan Cross in the middle for Fiji v Wales in Cardiff.

A total of 16 referees from eight nations will oversee the 18 matches scheduled across the July window, with a broader group of 35 match officials from 11 unions involved across the full competition. O’Keeffe and Berry are the only referees appointed to two matches in this opening phase.

One of the standout milestones comes on 11 July in Liverpool, where Scotland’s Hollie Davidson will become the first Scottish referee to take charge of 50 Test matches when she oversees Fiji v England at Hill Dickinson Stadium. Davidson will be only the third female official to reach that landmark and the 19th overall in Test history, joining England’s Matthew Carley and South Africa’s Aimee Barrett-Theron in reaching the milestone during 2026.

The second round of July fixtures also sees Karl Dickson referee Australia v France in Brisbane, Luc Ramos take charge of New Zealand v Italy in Wellington, Pierre Brousset appointed to South Africa v Scotland in Pretoria, Paul Williams officiating Argentina v Wales in San Juan, and Andrea Piardi overseeing Japan v Ireland.

The July window concludes on 18 July with Angus Gardner refereeing Argentina v England in Santiago del Estero, Berry taking charge of New Zealand v Ireland at Eden Park, Andrew Brace officiating South Africa v Wales in Durban, and O’Keeffe appointed to Japan v France in Tokyo. Christophe Ridley handles Australia v Italy in Perth, while Matthew Carley takes charge of Fiji v Scotland in Edinburgh to close out the first block of fixtures. The tournament’s fixtures continue in the November window before a finals weekend in London later this year.