The 2026 Super Rugby Pacific final, stylised as the 2026 Super Rugby Pacific Grand Final, was the final match of the 2026 Super Rugby Pacific season and the decider of the Finals Series, the 31st season of the Southern Hemisphere's premier rugby union competition organised by SANZAAR. The 31st Super Rugby final, and the ninth all-New Zealand final, it was played on 20 June 2026 at .

The Hurricanes won their second Super Rugby title after defeating the Chiefs 60–5, a record margin in a Grand Final. The final score surpassed the Bulls 61–17 result against the Chiefs in the 2009 final. Alongside the record-breaking victory in the final, tries from the Hurricanes' Fehi Fineanganofo and Josh Moorby saw both players equal the Super Rugby try-scoring record in a season, finishing the campaign with 17 tries apiece.

Background The Hurricanes secured their fourth Super Rugby final appearance with a commanding 57–21 victory over arch-rivals the Blues in the semi-final. It marks their first appearance in the championship decider since the 2016 season, a campaign that, like 2026, saw them finish atop the regular season ladder. During their run to the final, the Hurricanes became the first side in Super Rugby history to score more than 100 tries in a single season, while their tally of 685 points also established a new competition record. Head coach Clark Laidlaw was seeking his first championship title with the Hurricanes. He had previously served as an assistant coach during the club's 2015 season, when the Hurricanes reached the final but suffered a home defeat to the Highlanders. Ahead of the match, Laidlaw remarked that despite finishing atop the league standings and earning home-ground advantage, his side entered the contest as underdogs, citing the Chiefs' three consecutive appearances in the Super Rugby final as evidence of their quality in the competition's knockout matches.

The Chiefs secured their seventh Super Rugby final appearance, following their Semi-final victory against the Crusaders. Going into the semi-final, the Chiefs had lost their last three matches against the Crusaders, including a 33–43 defeat at home earlier in the season, and lost their last five finals encounters against the Christchurch-based team. However, they had been in strong form in the lead up to the match, and had won nine of their last ten fixtures, scoring more than 45 points in each of their previous two games. With this victory, they moved into second place for all-time final appearances in the competition, trailing only the Crusaders and overtaking both the Auckland-based Blues and Canberra-based Brumbies, who had previously shared the mark with six appearances each. This also doubled as their fourth consecutive Super Rugby final, a streak only beaten by the Crusaders' seven. They previously won two finals (2012, 2013) and lost four (2009, 2023, 2024, 2025). Coach Jono Gibbes achieved his first Super Rugby final appearance as coach of the Chiefs in his first season in the role (a feat most recently achieved by Vern Cotter in 2024).

In Super Rugby, the Chiefs have won seven of their last ten matches against the Hurricanes, including a 22–17 extra-time victory in Round 10 earlier in the season, and a 30–19 win in the 2024 Super Rugby semi-final. The final will also be the fifth finals meeting between the Hurricanes and Chiefs; the previous four finals encounters were split evenly at two wins each. Despite this, it is the first time they have met in a Super Rugby Grand Final.

+ Team Wins Hurricanes 24 50 Chiefs 22 45.83 Draws 2 4.17 Total 48

Venue

The Grand Final was hosted by (Wellington Regional Stadium), the home ground of the Hurricanes. Having finished atop the standings, the Hurricanes earned the right to host the final. It marked Wellington's first Super Rugby final since 2016, when the Hurricanes last hosted the decider against the Lions of Johannesburg.

The Super Rugby Finals Series remained consistent between 2025 and 2026, with both seasons featuring a six-team playoff system. The key difference between the two was in how the "lucky loser" was treated. In 2025, the team dropped only one seeding, meaning it could still retain relatively favourable positioning and, home advantage in later rounds. As in last season's grand final, the Chiefs, whom finished first on the season ladder, were not designated hosts as they had lost their Qualifying final to the sixth-placed Blues, thus losing one seeding rank going into the Semi-finals.

In 2026, this was tightened significantly. The "lucky loser" was now automatically placed as fourth seed, removing any possibility of hosting a Semi-final or Grand Final. As a result, any team progressing after a first-week defeat must play all remaining Finals matches away from home, reinforcing a clearer separation between winners and losers in the knockout phase. However, none of this was applicable for the 2026 final as both first and second-placed teams in the competition did not lose any finals matches.

On 16 June, tickets formally went on sale for the Super Rugby final at Hnry Stadium. Within 15 minutes, all tickets for the 34,500-capacity stadium were sold.

Previous finals TeamPrevious final appearances (bold indicates winners) Hurricanes3 (2006, 2015, 2016) Chiefs6 (2009, 2012, 2013, 2023, 2024, 2025)

Route to the final

Note: In all results below, the score of the finalist is given first (H: home; A: away). HurricanesRound ChiefsLeagueTeam 1 Hurricanes 14 11 0 3 562 298 +264 86 44 9 2 55 2 Chiefs 14 11 0 3 515 325 +190 75 49 6 1 51 3 Crusaders 14 8 0 6 488 388 +100 73 55 5 4 41 4 Blues 14 8 0 6 456 412 +44 68 60 4 2 38 5 Reds 14 8 0 6 364 386 −22 53 56 3 2 37 6 Brumbies 14 7 0 7 402 373 +29 60 48 2 4 34OpponentResultFinalsOpponentResult Brumbies (H)66–12Qualifying finals Reds (H)46–24 Blues (H)57–21Semi-finals Crusaders (H)49–12

Match

FB 15 Callum Harkin RW 14 Josh MoorbyOC 13 Billy ProctorIC 12 Jordie Barrett (cc) LW 11 Fehi FineanganofoFH 10 Ruben LoveSH 9 Cam Roigard N8 8 Peter LakaiOF 7 Du'Plessis Kirifi (cc)BF 6 Devan Flanders RL 5 Warner Dearns LL 4 Isaia Walker-LeawereTP 3 Pasilio Tosi HK 2 Asafo Aumua LP 1 Xavier Numia Substitutes:HK 16 Jacob Devery PR 17 Siale Lauaki PR 18 Tyrel Lomax LF 19 Brad Shields LF 20 Brayden Iose SH 21 Ere Enari CE 22 Jone Rova WG 23 Kini Naholo Coach:Clark Laidlaw FB 15 Liam Coombes-FablingRW 14 Leroy CarterOC 13 Kyle Brown IC 12 Quinn TupaeaLW 11 Kyren Taumoefolau FH 10 Damian McKenzieSH 9 Cortez Ratima N8 8 Simon Parker OF 7 Luke Jacobson (c)BF 6 Samipeni Finau RL 5 Tupou Vaa'i LL 4 Josh LordTP 3 Sione Ahio HK 2 Samisoni Taukei'aho LP 1 Ollie Norris Substitutes:HK 16 Brodie McAlister PR 17 Jared Proffit PR 18 George Dyer LK 19 Naitoa Ah Kuoi LF 20 Kaylum Boshier SH 21 Xavier Roe FH 22 Josh Jacomb CE 23 Reon Paul Coach:Jono Gibbes Man of the Match: Ruben Love (Hurricanes) Assistant referees: Reuben Keane (Australia) Louis Trisley (Australia) Television match official: Brett Cronan (Australia)

Statistics

+ OverallStatisticHurricanesChiefsTries scored 9 1Possession 57% 43%Territory 59% 41%Kicks 22 16Carries 170 123Metres carried 761 456Tackles 166 193Tackles missed 31 54Tackle success 84% 78%Offloads 22 3Penalties conceded 8 4Lineouts won 3/5 (60%) 4/7 (57%)Scrums won 12 (100%) 7 (100%)

Gallery

See also 2026 United Rugby Championship Grand Final

References

External links

Super Rugby official website