The international weekend delivered fireworks across the globe, shaking up the World Rugby rankings with shock upsets, dominant performances, and dramatic tumbles.

While some teams soared, others crashed hard—and few fanbases will be as thrilled as England’s after a defining statement in Buenos Aires.

🔝 Top 25 – Full World Rugby Rankings

#▲▼TeamPointsChange 1 – South Africa 92.78 – 2 New Zealand 90.98 +0.62 3 Ireland 89.83 – 4 – France 88.90 -0.62 5 ▲6 England 86.72 +1.99 6 ▼5 Argentina 82.98 -1.99 7 – Scotland 82.36 – 8 – Australia 81.52 – 9 – Fiji 80.07 – 10 – Italy 77.77 – 11 – Georgia 74.69 – 12 ▲13 Japan 73.70 +0.74 13 ▲14 Samoa 72.68 +1.02 14 ▼12 Wales 72.65 -0.74 15 – USA 70.02 – 16 – Spain 67.34 – 17 – Uruguay 67.06 – 18 – Portugal 66.44 – 19 – Tonga 65.46 – 20 ▲1 Chile 63.20 +1.48 21 ▼1 Romania 63.13 -1.48 22 ▲1 Hong Kong China 59.98 +0.49 23 ▼1 Belgium 59.98 – 24 – Canada 59.18 – 25 – Namibia 57.87 –

🏉 Talking Points from the Rankings

🔥 England on Fire
The biggest gainers of the week, England roared back to form with a clinical 35–12 away win over Argentina. The result not only handed them +1.99 points, but also catapulted Steve Borthwick’s side one places up to 5th in the world—a major confidence boost heading into the summer series.

❌ French & Argentine Falls
France dropped out of the top three after their narrow defeat to New Zealand, losing 0.62 points and holding 4th place by a thread. 

📉 Wales Collapse
Wales’ nightmare continues, with a shock 24–19 defeat to Japan (their 18th in a row)in Tokyo. The loss sees them plummet down 14th—their lowest position in recent memory.

🔒 Stable Giants
While chaos unfolded below them, South Africa, Ireland, Scotland, and Australia all held firm in the top 10. The Springboks’ 42–24 win over Italy keeps them securely at the summit, while Ireland’s 34–5 win in Georgia cements their 3rd-place status.

EDITORS PICKS:

“Test dreams in tatters” – 5 Lions flops who’ve fallen flat on tour

Four matches in, and the Lions tour is already separating the contenders from the pretenders. While some players are pushing hard for a place in the Test XV, others have gone missing when it mattered most.

Whether it’s rust, nerves, or just being outplayed, these five Lions have done themselves no favours – and could be heading home with regret.

Fin Smith – Under pressure, underwhelming

All eyes were on Fin Smith to make a statement with Owen Farrell still looming over the fly-half conversation. But instead of stepping up, he produced a performance that did little to settle nerves.

Smith failed to make a major impression in the tour opener against Argentina, looking tentative and overly conservative in key moments.

Things didn’t improve much in his second outing against the Waratahs, where he tried to force the issue in the second half—only for the mistakes to pile up and the game to slip further away from him.

🦁 Test chances: Fading fast. He’s no longer a clear bench option, and others are circling.

CONTINUES ON PAGE TWO

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