News in Italy: Azzurri to face English and Scots in Stadio Olimpico.

The Six Nations rugby tournament returns in 2022, with stadiums welcoming back fans after last year's championship was played behind closed doors due to the covid-19 pandemic.

Italy will host two Six Nations matches at the Olympic Stadium in Rome: England on 13 February in Round 2 and Scotland on 12 March in Round 4.

In the opening round Italy will face France in Paris on 6 February, with other way matches including a trip to Dublin on 27 February to take on the Irish and a match against Wales in Cardiff on 19 March.

Italy has a new captain - Michele Lamaro aged just 23 - and a new head coach - former New Zealand international Kieran Crowley - both of whom will be keen to break the Azzurri's losing streak at the championship.

• Italy gets ready for Rugby Six Nations 2022 in Rome

The Italian team last won a Six Nations match seven years ago, beating Scotland 22-19, and face a tough start in 2022, coming up against France, England and Ireland.

"Italy at the Six Nations has entered a vicious circle, they no longer know how to win" - Crowley said recently to Sky Sport - "If you look carefully at the matches of the last two years, you can see that many times we have come very close in the score up to to the last quarter, only to be overwhelmed in the final stages. This probably happens because the team does not go on the pitch to win, but to avoid losing."

Italy's first game of the 2022 Six Nations tournament kicks off in the Stade de France at 16.00 on Sunday 6 February.