Bragging rights make the Six Nations go round, and there are two types for supporters to savour.

The traditional ones are inherited, and enjoyed when your country wins matches. Then you have the competition’s fantasy game, which allows you to earn additional bragging rights by selecting a side from all the players in action and watching it accrue points.

Insiders expect around 300,000 players to pick a line-up for the first round and tinker with it over the next couple of months. This is a number that represents a rise on last season and offers more evidence that rugby union should lean further into these games.

The sport suits them, because it lends itself well to data-driven insights that highlight the actions of individual players. Whether you are pondering a first foray into fantasy rugby or you are a veteran striving for an edge, hopefully this guide helps you out.

How to assemble a team

Each team must contain 15 players, comprising three back-three players, two centres, one fly-half, one scrum-half, three back-rowers, two locks, two props and a hooker.

You can add a ‘supersub’, who is eligible for triple points if he comes off the bench at some stage during the match in question. If he starts, however, you only pick up half what he scores.

A maximum of four players is permitted from any one Six Nations team, and each option is priced according to a stars system. These values fluctuate according to events during the tournament and you have a total budget of 230 stars.

Ben Earl, Antoine Dupont and Finn Russell, who will all set you back 20 stars currently, are the most expensive. Nicky Smith, Alessandro Izekor and Asher Opoku-Fordjour are among the cheapest, costing seven stars at this stage.

How to score points

The first interesting wrinkle is that a try by a forward (15 points) is worth more than a try by a back (10 points) for the first time. Assists are worth four points, with conversions worth two and penalties three. A drop goal will earn you five. Staying with the boot, a 50:22 is worth seven.

Players gain two points every time they beat a defender and one for every 10 metres they make with ball in hand. An offload that goes to hand adds two points as well, while every attacking scrum won – not including penalties, free-kicks or resets – is worth one point to the forwards on the pitch.

Defensive graft is also rewarded. Tackles are one point each, with breakdown steals bringing five points. Line-out steals are especially valuable, offering up seven points, and discipline is vital. Players will be docked one point for conceding a penalty, with yellow cards minus five points and red cards minus eight points.

…and bag big boosts

As with most fantasy games, there is a captaincy chip that doubles the output of one designated player. The supersub can be a real game-changer for your week if deployed shrewdly. Finally, an official player-of-the-match gong piles on 15 points. There was a nice spread to these in 2024.

Five went to centres and four to back-rowers, with two each to scrum-halves and wings and one each to locks and full-backs. Earl and Italy centre Juan Ignacio Brex (14 stars) were the most prolific with two apiece.

Telegraph Sport’s top tips

Sneak in kickers…

Thomas Ramos (19 stars) would be in a recommended starter pack for anyone. He is listed as a back-three player, which means you can also select a fly-half to accumulate kicking additional points. Ramos was the top points scorer in 2024, with 63, and will be prominent as part of a dashing France attack this campaign. Anticipate tries, assists and running metres.

…and look for other positional wrinkles

Versatile players must be categorised somehow and you might be able to take advantage. Tadhg Beirne (17 stars) and Ollie Chessum (13 stars) are both termed as second rows, for instance. They snared three line-out steals each in 2024 and could well be deployed at blindside flanker in real life. Ted Hill (7 stars) is also among the locks rather than the back-rowers, which is one to bear in mind if he gets a shot.

Jamie Dobie (11 stars) is a scrum-half for the purposes of the fantasy game, yet has started Test matches for Scotland on the wing. He would seem to be an ideal choice for the supersub role.

Big names are worth it…

The total budget is generous, meaning you are likely to run into problems and make serious compromises only if you want to splash out on a supersub. Dupont (20 stars) has looked irresistible for Toulouse. Duhan van der Merwe (19 stars) has plundered six tries in his last four matches against England and should be a shoo-in for round two at Twickenham. Russell (20 stars) has also relished the rivalry with Steve Borthwick’s men.

Dan Sheehan (18 stars) returned from a knee injury for a run-out with Leinster against the Stormers at the weekend. The rampaging hooker proved his fitness in a big boost to Ireland. He was level with Van der Merwe on five tries last season, and would have amassed more fantasy points because of the bonus given to forwards.

…but stay on your toes

Damian Penaud (19 stars) comes into the Six Nations in phenomenal form and was close to the top of many metrics last season. He registered 422m with ball in hand (second of all players) three assists (joint top) and 11 offloads (top). You should pick him to face Wales, right? Wrong.

He is out of round one with a toe injury, according to reports. Théo Attissogbe (11 stars), a 20-year-old from Pau, could be the beneficiary of Penaud’s absence.

The game does its best to flag availability, with icons illustrating whether players are starting, on the bench or overlooked entirely. But it pays to stay on top of the latest news.

Track emerging players

An awareness of domestic and Champions Cup form will serve you well and there is always value in backing players that are establishing (or re-establishing) themselves. Indeed, these are the most satisfying picks when they come off.

France centre Pierre-Louis Barassi (12 stars), for instance, could prove a big coup. He has been part of a dazzling Toulouse back line. Sticking with France, who are coping without Charles Ollivon, 21-year-old back-rower Oscar Jégou, impressive for La Rochelle, only sets you back 10 stars. Manuel Zuliani (10 stars) costs the same amount. He is a tireless breakdown scavenger who started for Italy against the All Blacks at openside flanker in November.

Ben Curry (13 stars) and Cadan Murley (10 stars) have been handed a start in Dublin with Tom Willis (10 stars) on the bench. All three could seize their chance and stick around for the tournament.

Monitor sniping scrum-halves

One of the law changes coming into effect for this Championship should allow scrum-halves more freedom around the breakdown as well as a bit more space at scrums and line-outs.

Clearly, Dupont (20 stars) will be in most teams. Jamison Gibson-Park costs 16 stars and Tomos Williams (15 stars) has been superb for Gloucester, offering less extravagant options if you want to splurge elsewhere. Alex Mitchell is even cheaper at 14 stars.

Nolann le Garrec (12 stars) is an enticing supersub candidate, with the scampering duo of George Horne (10 stars) and Harry Randall (12 stars) both likely to benefit from extra breathing space as well.

Saddle up the workhorses

Jac Morgan (16 stars) sits among the dearest back-rowers for a reason. The Wales captain is mightily industrious, recording huge tackle tallies. Michele Lamaro (15 stars) cut down 103 carriers last season as well.

Roll with the form book and flout convention

Transfers between rounds are unlimited, so be ruthless if you sense a chance to pile on points and use captaincy chips wisely. And do not be too proud to assemble a funky team, either. There are no prizes for balance here. If you want two loosehead props, such as Andrew Porter (15 stars) and Pierre Schoeman (13 stars), go ahead. Fantasy league: the clue is in the name.