Spritz & Scrums - Italian Rugby Podcast

We're back! After the longest break in Spritz and Scrums history, the trio reunites. It's the 2025-2026 Italian rugby season review. We cover everything: the Azzurri's historic first-ever win over England in the Six Nations, a brutal summer tour, Benetton's dismal URC campaign and the arrival of Wayne Pivac, Zebre Parma's closest-ever season with Tommaso Allan heading back to Italy, the Women's Azzurri's strongest Six Nations yet, and the Under 18s demolishing England 46-26. Oh, and there's a Rugby World Cup next year. Yes, really.

00:00 - Welcome Back & Coach's Weight Loss
04:12 - 2025-2026 Season Overview
08:48 - Italy Beat England for the First Time
10:24 - Azzurri: Autumn Tests & Summer Tour
14:54 - Azzurri Season Rating & Rankings
18:45 - Italians in the Premiership & Top 14
25:00 - Women's Italian Rugby
28:00 - Benetton Rugby & Wayne Pivac
36:30 - Coach's Big News: Moving to Florence
46:40 - Zebre Parma & Tommaso Allan
57:00 - Under 20s, Under 18s & Looking Ahead
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Spritz and Scrums is back! It's been a wild final home weekend for both Italian URC clubs. Benetton pull off one of their most memorable results in years, beating a fully-loaded Leinster side with the last kick of the game — their first home win over Leinster since 2010 — in front of a sold-out, record-breaking crowd Meanwhile, Zebre suffered heartbreak, conceding a late try to Dragons in an 18-19 loss that summed up a season of near-misses. We also bid farewell to some huge departures, reflect on the highs and lows of Benetton's wildly inconsistent season, celebrate Tommy Allen's signing for Zebre, and round off with a brilliant Italy Women's Six Nations win over Scotland. All that, with our usual blend of passion, spritz, and mild existential crisis.

00:00 – Intro & Benetton Beat Leinster Reaction
02:28 – The Historic Win: First Home Win vs Leinster Since 2010
05:37 – Match Breakdown & Emotional Atmosphere
08:26 – Farewell
13:14 – Benetton's Season of Inconsistency
17:32 – The Gaslighting Continues: Peaks & Troughs
20:22 – Zebre vs Dragons: Heartbreak in the Final Minute
23:22 – Tommy Allen Signs for Zebre
25:33 – Zebre's Season Review & Departures
27:49 – Italy Women Beat Scotland 41-14
31:14 – South Africa Fixtures & End of Season
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Another week, another painful one for Italian rugby fans. We break down Benetton's 15-45 home defeat to Munster including a bittersweet milestone for Seb Negri on his 100th cap and relive Zebre's heartbreaking 30-31 loss away at Edinburgh, where they were arguably robbed by one of the worst penalty reversals you'll ever see.
We talk about what went wrong, what (little) went right and what to expect in the final home games of the season.

00:00 Intro & Welcome
00:20 Season Check-in: Where Are We?
02:02 Benetton vs Munster Recap
03:51 Seb Negri's 100th Cap
10:31 Zebre vs Edinburgh Recap
17:45 Try of the Season – The 46th Minute Wonder Try
21:15 What Made Coach Mad This Week
24:35 Any Other Business
26:27 Outro & Sign Off

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Both Italian sides are out of Europe EPRC Challenge Cup and the Spritz and Scrums crew are not taking it well. This week, the three Benetton fans process the heartbreak of a 41-point home defeat that still wasn't enough, a referee decision that still stings, a Bilbao fund that never was, and a hangover-induced £100 bet that didn't pay off. They also cover Zebre's flat performance against Dragons, the Italians who shone in Exeter's run, the coaching change that could transform next season, and the worrying state of Benetton's defense heading into the summer.

00:00 Intro
00:38 Benetton vs Exeter
19:50 Looking Ahead
26:39 Italians at Exeter
29:49 Zebre vs Dragons
38:00 Completely Unjustified Hope

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Benetton survive a nervy 38–35 thriller vs Cardiff to reach the EPCR Challenge Cup quarterfinals, while Zebre dominate Pau 31–15 for a historic home quarter-final. We break down the games!

00:00 - Intro & Bilbao Fund
02:30 - Introductions
02:43 - Benetton vs Cardiff Overview
04:51 - The First 13 Minutes Breakdown
07:31 - Benetton's Defensive Woes
22:08 - Zebre vs Pau
32:30 - Potential Semifinals & Bilbao Fund

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