Pablo Bouza

ROLE Head Coach

TEAM Spain

IN CHARGE SINCE Oct 2023

AGE 53

NATIONALITY Argentine

MATCHES 18

Pablo Bouza is the head coach of Spain, the Argentine who ended a 26-year wait by qualifying Los Leones for the 2027 Rugby World Cup.

AS A PLAYER Back-row and lock. 37 caps for Argentina between 1996 and 2007, scoring four tries at the 2003 Rugby World Cup. Played for Duendes, NEC Harlequins and Leeds Carnegie.

Tenure record

as of 18 Jul 2026

18PLAYED

9WON

1DRAWN

8LOST

50.0%WIN RATE

601 points scored · 578 conceded · +23 difference

RECENT LUSA22–29 WTonga32–19 DCanada42–42 WRomania29–23 LPortugal7–26 LGeorgia30–42

By competition

Rugby Europe Championship 10P · 6W · 0D · 4L

OPPONENT H/A SCORE RESULT

Romania 15 Mar 2026 A 29–23 W Portugal 8 Mar 2026 A 7–26 L Georgia 21 Feb 2026 A 30–42 L Switzerland 14 Feb 2026 H 53–14 W Netherlands 7 Feb 2026 A 51–33 W Georgia 16 Mar 2025 A 28–46 L Portugal 1 Mar 2025 A 42–31 W Georgia 16 Feb 2025 H 32–62 L Switzerland 9 Feb 2025 A 43–13 W Netherlands 2 Feb 2025 H 53–24 W

Int. Friendly Games 5P · 2W · 0D · 3L

OPPONENT H/A SCORE RESULT

Fiji 22 Nov 2025 H 33–41 L England A 15 Nov 2025 H 25–29 L Ireland A 8 Nov 2025 H 24–61 L Canada 19 Jul 2025 A 24–23 W USA 12 Jul 2025 A 31–20 W

Nations Cup 3P · 1W · 1D · 1L

OPPONENT H/A SCORE RESULT

USA 18 Jul 2026 A 22–29 L Tonga 11 Jul 2026 A 32–19 W Canada 5 Jul 2026 A 42–42 D

DATA NOTES

Pablo Bouza has overseen 18 completed Spain matches in our database since February 2025 — 9 won, 1 drawn, 8 lost. That is a 50.0% win rate, with 601 points scored and 578 conceded.

Records are computed from the WeTalkRugby match database and cover matches we hold data for within this tenure. They are not an official all-time record.

Latest Spain news

All news →

News

CONFIRMED: Rugby World Cup 2027 Pools Revealed as Hosts Handed Historic All Blacks Showdown

December 3, 2025

Coaching career

2023- Spain Head Coach

Honours

2023 Super Rugby Americas (Penarol)
2022 Super Rugby Americas (Penarol)
2016 Americas Rugby Championship (Argentina XV)

Players under Pablo Bouza

Full squad →

Alberto Carmona Back Kerman Aurrekoetxea Back Lucien Richardis Back Samuel Ezeala Back Alvaro Garcia Forward Ekain Imaz Forward Hugo Pirlet Forward Ignacio Pineiro Forward Joel Merkler Perez Forward Jon Zabala Arrieta Forward Luca Tabarot Forward Manex Ariceta Forward

About Pablo Bouza

Pablo Bouza is the head coach of Spain, appointed in October 2023 on a four-year contract with one explicit target: qualification for the 2027 Rugby World Cup. He delivered it in March 2025, Spain’s first appearance since 1999.

Born in Rosario in May 1973, he was a back-row and lock who won 37 caps for Argentina between 1996 and 2007, scoring four tries at the 2003 World Cup. He spent most of his career at Duendes in Rosario, with professional spells at NEC Harlequins and Leeds Carnegie.

Coaching

Bouza was assistant to Daniel Hourcade with Los Pumas from 2013 to 2018 and head coach of Argentina XV, winning the Americas Rugby Championship in 2016. He worked as a High Performance adviser for Sudamerica Rugby and World Rugby, was part of Uruguay’s setup at the 2023 World Cup, and coached Penarol Rugby from 2020, winning back-to-back Super Rugby Americas titles in 2022 and 2023.

Spain

He inherited a programme that had twice qualified for a World Cup on the field and twice been ruled out over eligibility breaches. Rebuilding trust in the process mattered as much as results, and the 2027 qualification settled it.

Style

A forwards and set-piece coach by grounding, Bouza is a high-performance systems specialist known for detail, for player relationships, and for a track record of professionalising emerging-nation programmes.