About 2026 Nations Championship
This year’s Nations Championship marks an exciting evolution in elite international rugby, but it also presents one of the most complex travel challenges in professional sport. With matches likely across multiple continents, time zones and recovery windows, the competition will test not only skill and strategy but the physiological resilience of players.
So what does the scientific research actually tell us about how long-distance travel affects sleep, physical output and cognitive performance? And what can teams do to prepare for the unique demands of this tournament? Below we explore the evidence, drawing on elite professional rugby studies that offer insights directly relevant to teams heading into the 2026 Nations Championship.
Understanding Travel Demands in Elite Rugby
Not all rugby competitions are equal when it comes to travel. Domestic league play, such as Super Rugby or national leagues, involves regular flights and time zone changes, but the travel schedule of the Nations Championship is expected to surpass even that level of intensity. Teams may face multiple long-haul flights, varying jet lag exposures and tightly scheduled match turnarounds, all of which have documented impacts on athlete recovery and performance.
Super Rugby: A Case Study in Extreme Travel
To understand what players might face in the Nations Championship, it’s useful to look at research on one of the most travel-intensive rugby competitions in the world – Super Rugby. This largely Southern Hemisphere-based rugby union competition has undergone many iterations; currently, it includes teams from Australia, New Zealand, Fiji, and other Pacific Islands (Moana Pasifika). However, previous iterations had teams from more countries; the 2016-2019 seasons included teams from Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, Argentina and Japan.
In 2017, Dr Ian Dunican, Head of Scientific Development at Phaze, and I tracked sleep behaviour in the Perth-based Western Force, then the most travelled professional sporting team on record. During one stretch of matches, the team travelled:
Perth → Durban → Buenos Aires → Perth,
crossing 24 time zones and covering 36,000 km in just 22 days.
Unsurprisingly, players experienced significant disruptions in sleep, findings which we published in the Journal of Sports Sciences in 2021. (For full details, see https://doi.org/10.1080/02640414.2021.1947617). Most notably:
- Rugby players sleep less following matches; next morning training or travel can further reduce the sleep obtained, and hence, the recovery capacity following the match.
- Total sleep obtained was impacted in the three days following travel for all trips.
- Bed times and wake times may be impacted even six days following travel, including on the night before matches!
How Travel Affects Performance Metrics
Measuring the real-world impact of long haul travel on athletic performance is challenging, especially when travel coincides with competition preparation and unfamiliar environments. However, Kanon Uchiyama and colleagues did exactly that in a two-part study with the Western Force, published in 2025 in the International Journal of Sports Physiology and Performance; this can be found at https://doi.org/10.1123/ijspp.2024-0328.
The study tested both physical and cognitive performance immediately before and after long-distance travel.
1. Perth → Sydney → Tokyo
Players completed jumping tests before travel and on each of the first three days after arrival. Key findings:
- Jump height was lower on all post-travel days.
- Reactive strength index declined on multiple days after travel.
2. Perth → Sydney → Johannesburg
Cognitive performance was assessed using the Psychomotor Vigilance Task (PVT):
- Reaction time worsened during the flight.
- After arrival, no significant performance decline was measured.
- Players self-reported feelings of greater mental fatigue and reduced readiness during the flight itself.
Key Travel Takeaways for Nations Championship Teams
Based on existing research, we can draw several lessons that are directly relevant to teams competing in the Nations Championship:
- Physical performance can remain suppressed for days after long-distance travel, even after arrival.
- Cognitive sharpness declines during the flight itself, an important consideration for pre-match preparation, review sessions and tactical briefings.
- Sleep disruption is a predictable consequence of trans-meridian travel, and requires active management to avoid cumulative fatigue.
Where Phaze Can Help
A key limitation of the published studies is that athletes were not provided with structured travel adaptation strategies beyond basic hydration and compression, yet in real competition settings, evidence-based travel management can significantly accelerate adaptation.
That’s where Phaze makes a difference.
Built on decades of laboratory and field research, including studies like those above, Phaze provides personalised, science-based recommendations for:
- Optimising sleep timing
- Targeted light exposure protocols
- Behavioural strategies tailored to flight and match schedules
These recommendations help athletes adapt faster and perform better after long haul travel, whether they arrive three days before a match or just hours before kick-off. In fact, 92% of elite high performance users report that Phaze helped them overcome the challenges of long-distance travel more quickly.
Practical Insights for Coaches Ahead of the Nations Championship
Here are evidence-backed considerations for managing travel:
- Anticipate physical performance dips for up to three or more days post-travel.
- Avoid positioning high-cognitive-load activities (tactical meetings, video review, critical decision work) mid-flight.
- Integrate structured, personalised travel strategies into routine preparation, not just generic sleep tips.
References and Further Reading
- Smithies, T. D., Eastwood, P. R., Walsh, J., Murray, K., Markwick, W., & Dunican, I. C. (2021). Around the world in 16 days: the effect of long-distance transmeridian travel on the sleep habits and behaviours of a professional Super Rugby team. Journal of Sports Sciences, 39(22), 2596–2602. https://doi.org/10.1080/02640414.2021.1947617
- Uchiyama, K., Peeling, P., Halson, S. L., Reid, M., Wallman, K., Walsh, J., Russell, S., Thomas, S., & Girard, O. (2025). Immediate Effects of Overnight Long-Haul Travel on Physical and Cognitive Performance and Sleep in Professional Male Rugby Union Players (a 2-Part Study). International Journal of Sports Physiology and Performance, 20(4), 530-539. https://doi.org/10.1123/ijspp.2024-0328