Americas Rugby News Rugby news from across the Americas!
A prominent match in the World Rugby Nations Cup will be played in Lisbon this Saturday as Portugal hosts Chile at the Estádio do Restelo in a captivating clash of styles between two of the sport’s fastest-rising, top-20 nations. Both programs enter on a remarkable upward trajectory, routinely upending traditional rugby hierarchies and making major waves on the global stage when compared to other continental regions.
Their rise is anchored in recent history, having captured global hearts at the 2023 Rugby World Cup in France, which marked a historic tournament debut for Chile and a stellar return for Portugal. Now, both sides have officially secured their places as qualified contenders for the expanded 2027 Rugby World Cup, cementing their status as permanent elite fixtures on the international circuit.
This sustained success is the direct result of rapid modernization, driven by accelerating domestic professionalism and high-performance center infrastructures. These structures have allowed both Os Lobos and Los Cóndores to actively work on narrowing the gap by developing elite athletes who possess both the tactical maturity and physical conditioning required for the modern international game.
| FORM GUIDE |
Current World Ranking: 14 (69.39 points)
| Date | Opponent | Result | Score | Venue |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sat 7 Feb | Belgium | Win | 47–17 | Stade Charles Tondreau, Mons (BEL) |
| Sat 14 Feb | Germany | Win | 68–12 | Paul Greifzu Stadium, Dessau (GER) |
| Sun 22 Feb | Romania | Win | 44–7 | Estadio Nacional do Jamor, Lisbon (POR) |
| Sun 8 Mar | Spain | Win | 26–7 | Estádio do Restelo, Lisbon (POR) |
| Sun 15 Mar | Georgia | Win | 19–17 | Estadio Ontime Butarque, Madrid (ESP) |
| Sat 4 July | USA | Loss | 29–30 | Mile High Regional, Commerce City (USA) |
| Sat 11 July | Canada | Win | 38–14 | Clarke Stadium, Edmonton (CAN) |
| Sat 18 July | Tonga | Win | 32–28 | Winnipeg Stadium, Winnipeg (CAN) |
Current World Ranking: 16 (66.94 points)
| Date | Opponent | Result | Score | Venue |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fri 6 Mar | Italy XV | Loss | 26–33 | Stadio Tommaso Fattori, L’Aquila (ITA) |
| Sun 5 Jul | Paraguay (Chile XV) | Win | 52–19 | CARR, Santiago (CHI) |
| Sat 5 Jul | Romania | Win | 48–31 | Estadio Nacional, Santiago (CHI) |
| Fri 10 Jul | Paraguay (Chile XV) | Loss | 24–43 | CARR, Santiago (CHI) |
| Sun 12 Jul | Hong Kong | Win | 38–17 | Estadio Nacional, Santiago (CHI) |
| Sat 18 Jul | Georgia | Loss | 22–49 | Parque Mahuida, La Reina (CHI) |
| Sat 29 Aug | Uruguay XV (Chile XV) | Win | 33–12 | Estadio CAP Acero, Talcahuano (CHI) |
| Wed 2 Sep | Paraguay (Chile XV) | Win | 54–26 | Estadio La Pintana, Santiago (CHI) |
| Sun 6 Sep | Argentina XV (Chile XV) | Win | 28–27 | Estadio Elías Figueroa, Valparaíso (CHI) |
| STARTING LINEUP CHANGES |
|
IN | OUT |
| 1 | Abel da Cunha | Cody Thomas |
| 2 | Nuno Mascarenhas | Luka Bégic |
| 4 | Duarte Torgal | Martim Belo |
| 5 | Martim Belo | Duarte Torgal |
| 7 | David Wallis | João Granate |
| 13 | Rodrigo Marta | Guilherme Vasconcelos |
| 15 | Manuel Vareiro | Vincent Pinto |
|
IN | OUT |
| 1 | Vittorio Lastra | Javier Carrasco |
| 2 | Augusto Böhme | Diego Escobar |
| 6 | Clemente Saavedra | Martín Sigren |
| 9 | Benjamín Videla | Marcelo Torrealba |
| 11 | Felipe Méndez | Nicolás Saab |
| 12 | Domingo Saavedra | Santiago Videla |
| 13 | Santiago Videla | Domingo Saavedra |
| DEBUT |
– Felipe Méndez, Benjamín Moreno
| NOTABLE ABSENTEES |
– Nicolás Martins (FL), Nuno Sousa Guedes (FB)
– Javier Carrasco (LH), Salvador Lues (LH), Diego Escobar (HK), Emilio Shea (TH), Martín Sigren (FL), Juan Bianchi (SH), Tomás Salas (FH), Cristóbal Game (WI), Luca Strabucchi (FB)
| NOTES |
- Os Lobos of Portugal are undefeated against Chile in international competition.
- Both teams feature seven starting changes from their previous test matches.
- Santiago Videla takes over the captaincy from Martín Sigren despite Clemente Saavedra also starting. Videla is Chile’s most capped active player with 46 caps.
- Center Rodrigo Marta and winger Manuel Cardoso Pinto will earn their 50th caps for Portugal. Cardoso Pinto is a former Super Rugby Americas player for Peñarol.
- Marta missed out on Portugal’s North American tour in July. Flanker David Wallis is also back for Os Lobos.
- Portugal welcome Diogo Hasse Ferreira back following an injury layoff.
- Both teams concluded the July portion of the World Rugby Nations Cup in 2nd place of their pools.
- Chile and Portugal both picked up 3 yellow cards in July. Portugal also conceded 2 reds against the USA.
- Coaches Simon Mannix and Pablo Lemoine are former players for New Zealand and Uruguay respectively. They played on opposing teams for Gloucester vs Bristol in 2000.
- The Estádio do Restelo is where Os Lobos secured their qualification for Rugby World Cup 2027.
| PREDICTION |
This Saturday’s test match in Lisbon promises a fascinating clash of styles between two entertaining and rising rugby countries. Portugal enters the match as the favorite, with Rugby4cast giving Os Lobos an 82% win probability. Playing at home on a dry, fast surface in Lisbon, Portugal will look to unleash their expansive, high-tempo game plan, relying on quick transitions and potent backs to exploit open space. To counter this, Chile will need to lean heavily into their physical, forward-oriented structures to slow down the ball, puncture the defense, and combine their flair under Pablo Lemoine with a territory battle that can reduce Portugal’s potential in the back-three.
| LINE-UPS |
PORTUGAL
1 Abel da Cunha, 2 Nuno Mascarenhas, 3 António Prim, 4 Duarte Torgal, 5 Martim Bello, 6 José Madeira, 7 David Wallis, 8 José Montero, 9 Samuel Marques, 10 Domingos Cabral, 11 Manuel Cardoso Pinto, 12 Tomás Appleton, 13 Rodrigo Marta, 14 Raffaele Storti, 15 Manuel Vareiro
Replacements: 16 Cody Thomas, 17 Luka Bégic, 18 Diogo Hasse Ferreira, 19 Francisco Almeida, 20 André da Cunha, 21 Hugo Camacho, 22 Simão Bento, 23 Vincent Pinto
CHILE
1 Vittorio Lastra, 2 Augusto Böhme, 3 Iñaki Gurruchaga, 4 Santiago Pedrero, 5 Javier Eissmann, 6 Clemente Saavedra, 7 Raimundo Martínez, 8 Alfonso Escobar, 9 Benjamín Videla, 10 Rodrigo Fernández, 11 Felipe Méndez, 12 Domingo Saavedra, 13 Santiago Videla (capt.), 14 Manuel Bustamante, 15 Matías Garafulic
Replacements: 16 Normán Aguayo, 17 Benjamín Moreno, 18 Matías Dittus, 19 Bruno Sáez, 20 Ernesto Tchimino, 21 Lucas Berti, 22 Iñaki Ayarza, 23 Clemente Armstrong
| MATCH INFO |
Date: Saturday, November 07
Kickoff: 3:00pm (PT); 12:00pm (CL)
Venue: Estadio do Restelo, Lisbon (Portugal)
Broadcasts: Disney + (Latin America), Paramount+ (USA), TSN (Canada)
Weather Forecast: Warm. Low chance of rain. 19°C. Wind SE 7 mph
| MATCH OFFICIALS |
Referee: Nic Berry (Australia)
Assistant Referees: Damon Murphy (Australia); Ben Connor (Wales)
Television Match Official: Aled Griffiths (Wales)
| HISTORY vs (2005-2026) |
November 06, 2005 – Portugal 31-18 Chile (Lisbon, PT)
November 17, 2012 – Chile 22-28 Portugal (Santiago, CL)
November 16, 2019 – Chile 18-23 Portugal (Santiago, CL)
| HEAD TO HEAD vs |
Portugal Wins 3
Chile Wins 0
