Italy to face Scotland at Stadio Olimpico in Rome.

Italy will play the second of two home games in the 2024 edition of the Six Nations rugby union championship when the Azzuri face Scotland on Saturday 9 March.

The Italian team narrowly lost to England in Rome on 3 February (24-27) before being hammered by Ireland in Dublin on 11 February (36-0) and coming very close to beating France in Paris on 25 February (13-13).

The annual 15-match rugby tournament – contested by England, France, Ireland, Italy, Scotland and Wales – began on 3 February and will end on 16 March.

All sides will try to avoid being handed the dreaded "wooden spoon" or cucchiaio di legno in Italian – for finishing in last place – which last year went to Italy.

Argentine Gonzalo Quesada recently took over from New Zealander Kieran Crowley as the head coach of the Azzurri whose captain is 25-year-old Michele Lamaro.

For full details of the 2024 tournament, including tickets, see the websites of the Six Nations and the Federazione Italiana Rugby (FIR).

Capitoline Museums free for Six Nations ticket holders

Rome's Capitoline Museums will offer free admission to Six Nations Rugby ticket holders on the weekends that the two Italy games in the 2024 tournament are being played in the capital.

The offer grants free entry to two people for each ticket holder, with rugby fans entering the Capitoline Museums for free simply by showing their Six Nations tickets.

The initiative is the result of a collaboration between the city and Italy's rugby federation in an effort to promote Rome's rich cultural heritage to visiting rugby fans.

The Capitoline Museums offer is available to Six Nations ticket holders from 8-10 March.

MND fundraiser in aid of My Name’5 Doddie

On Friday 8 March, Rome will welcome more than 100 cyclists from various European cities, including Edinburgh, as they arrive in Piazza Navona at 17.00.

The bike ride fundraiser has been organised by Scottish charity association My Name'5 Doddie in conjunction with this weekend's Six Nations rugby match between Italy and Scotland.

My Name’5 Doddie was founded by Scottish rugby legend Doddie Weir, who died in 2022 after a five-year battle with motor neuron disease (MND).

How to get to the Stadio Olimpico in Rome

Public transport: From Termini station, take the Metro A line in the direction of Battistini, getting out at Ottaviano (6 stops away, in the Vatican area). From there take the No. 32 bus to Piazzale della Farnesina and make the short walk to the stadium.

Alternatively take the Metro A line in the direction of Battistini and get out at Flaminio (4 stops) then take the No. 2 tram to its terminus at Piazza Mancini (7 stops). From there cross over the Ponte Duca d'Aosta bridge to the stadium.

Walking: The stadium is located around six km from the centre of Rome, or about four km from the Ottaviano area. It is roughly a 40-minute walk from Flaminio, a popular option for many.

Taxi: Visitors to Rome who wish to reach the stadium by taxi are advised to give themselves plenty of time and not leave it until the last minute as traffic can be heavy on match days. The city's main taxi companies are 063570 and 060609. Rome taxi cooperative Samarcanda (065551) is known for its excellent customer service.

Sustainable transport: Other options include car-sharing companies such as Enjoy, electric motorcycle sharing outfits like Cooltra or electric scooter and bicycle sharing operators Bird, Dott and Lime. The stadium has nearby parking facilities for bicycles.

Useful apps: Handy transport apps in Rome include journey-planners Moovit and MooneyGo!. The city's public transport company is ATAC, with updated traffic news (in Italian) available on the municipal mobility website.

Best pubs in Rome to watch Six Nations

For the biggest screens, party atmosphere and commentary in English, it is hard to beat Scholars Lounge (Via del Plebiscito 101/b) just off the central Piazza Venezia – Rome's largest Irish pub and past winner of the world's Irish Pub of the Year.

Italian rugby fans cram into the rugby-mad The Shamrock (Via del Colosseo 1/c) or Camden Town (Via Ostilia 30) – two Irish pubs on opposite sides of the Colosseum – with a lively atmosphere guaranteed in both places.

The Fiddler’s Elbow (Via dell’Olmata 43) and the Druid’s Den (Via di S. Martino Ai Monti 28) – Rome's oldest and third-oldest Irish pub respectively – screen the games to their customers who are generally a mix of Italian and foreign.

Finnegans (Via Leonina 66), in the heart of the Monti quarter, also screens the Six Nations and attracts a large English-speaking crowd, mainly from the UK and Ireland.

Other popular centrally-located pubs showing the rugby games include the Abbey Theatre (Via del Governo Vecchio 51) near Piazza Navona, The Highlander  in the historic centre (Vicolo di S. Biagio 9) and The Nag's Head (Via IV November 138/b) near Piazza Venezia.

Photo credit: Marco Iacobucci Epp / Shutterstock.com.