World Rugby, previously called the International Rugby Football Board (IRFB) and the International Rugby Board (IRB), has been the governing body for rugby union since 1886, and currently has 101 countries as full members and 18 associate members. In 1845, the first laws were written by pupils at Rugby School; other significant events in the early development of rugby include the decision by Blackheath F.C.
A significant event in the early development of rugby football was the production of a written set of rules at Rugby School in 1845, followed by the Cambridge Rules that were drawn up in 1848. Formed in 1863, the national governing body The Football Association (FA) began codifying a set of universal football rules.
A significant event in the early development of rugby football was the production of a written set of rules at Rugby School in 1845, followed by the Cambridge Rules that were drawn up in 1848. Formed in 1863, the national governing body The Football Association (FA) began codifying a set of universal football rules.
The match had been moved from its normal site of Stade de France near Paris due to scheduling conflicts with France's hosting of UEFA Euro 2016. ==In culture== Thomas Hughes 1857 novel Tom Brown's Schooldays, set at Rugby School, includes a rugby football match, also portrayed in the 1940s film of the same name.
to leave the Football Association in 1863 and, in 1895, the split between rugby union and rugby league.
A significant event in the early development of rugby football was the production of a written set of rules at Rugby School in 1845, followed by the Cambridge Rules that were drawn up in 1848. Formed in 1863, the national governing body The Football Association (FA) began codifying a set of universal football rules.
Along with Tonga, other countries to have national rugby teams in Oceania include the Cook Islands, Niue, Papua New Guinea and Solomon Islands. ===North America and Caribbean=== In North America a club formed in Montreal in 1868, Canada's first club.
India began playing rugby in the early 1870s, the Calcutta Football Club forming in 1873.
Countries that have adopted rugby union as their de facto national sport include Fiji, Georgia, Madagascar, New Zealand, Samoa, Tonga, and Wales. International matches have taken place since 1871 when the first game was played between Scotland and England at Raeburn Place in Edinburgh.
The existing sport thereafter took on the name "rugby union" to differentiate it from rugby league, but both versions of the sport are known simply as "rugby" throughout most of the world. ===First internationals=== The first rugby football international was played on 27 March 1871 between Scotland and England in Edinburgh.
India began playing rugby in the early 1870s, the Calcutta Football Club forming in 1873.
The city of Montreal also played its part in the introduction of the sport in the United States, when students of McGill University played against a team from Harvard University in 1874. Although the exact date of arrival of rugby union in Trinidad and Tobago is unknown, their first club Northern RFC was formed in 1923, a national team was playing by 1927 and due to a cancelled tour to British Guiana in 1933, switched their venue to Barbados; introducing rugby to the island.
Rugby remains a minority sport in the region with Israel and the United Arab Emirates, as of 2019, being the only member union from the Middle East to be included in the IRB World Rankings. ===Africa=== In 1875, rugby was introduced to South Africa by British soldiers garrisoned in Cape Town.
In 1878, The Calcutta Football Club was disbanded, and rugby in India faltered.
Sri Lanka claims to have founded their union in 1878, and although little official information from the period is available, the team won the All-India cup in Madras in 1920.
Following the first internationals between England and Scotland, Ireland and Wales began competing in the 1880s, forming the Home International Championships.
By 1881 both Ireland and Wales had representative teams and in 1883 the first international competition, the Home Nations Championship had begun.
By 1881 both Ireland and Wales had representative teams and in 1883 the first international competition, the Home Nations Championship had begun.
The two most common differences in adapted versions are fewer players and reduced player contact. The oldest variant is rugby sevens (sometimes 7s or VIIs), a fast-paced game which originated in Melrose, Scotland in 1883.
Rugby was first played in Fiji circa 1884 by European and Fijian soldiers of the Native Constabulary at Ba on Viti Levu island.
World Rugby, previously called the International Rugby Football Board (IRFB) and the International Rugby Board (IRB), has been the governing body for rugby union since 1886, and currently has 101 countries as full members and 18 associate members. In 1845, the first laws were written by pupils at Rugby School; other significant events in the early development of rugby include the decision by Blackheath F.C.
WR, founded in 1886, governs the sport worldwide and publishes the game's laws and rankings.
South Africa and Kenya are among the 15 "core teams" that participate in every event of the men's World Rugby Sevens Series. ==Women's rugby union== Records of women's rugby football date from the late 19th century, with the first documented source being Emily Valentine's writings, in which she states that she set up a rugby team in Portora Royal School in Enniskillen, Ireland in 1887.
The first two notable tours both took place in 1888the British Isles team touring New Zealand and Australia, followed by the New Zealand team touring Europe.
Tours would last for months, due to long traveling times and the number of games undertaken; the 1888 New Zealand team began their tour in Hawkes Bay in June and did not complete their schedule until August 1889, having played 107 rugby matches.
Tours would last for months, due to long traveling times and the number of games undertaken; the 1888 New Zealand team began their tour in Hawkes Bay in June and did not complete their schedule until August 1889, having played 107 rugby matches.
The first recorded match in Malaysia was in 1892, but the first confirmation of rugby is the existence of the HMS Malaya Cup which was first presented in 1922 and is still awarded to the winners of the Malay sevens. Rugby union was introduced to Japan in 1899 by two Cambridge students: Ginnosuke Tanaka and Edward Bramwell Clarke.
to leave the Football Association in 1863 and, in 1895, the split between rugby union and rugby league.
The earliest countries to see the playing of competitive rugby include South Africa, and neighbouring Rhodesia (modern-day Zimbabwe), which formed the Rhodesia Rugby Football Union in 1895 and became a regular stop for touring British and New Zealand sides. In more recent times the sport has been embraced by several African nations.
It adopted its current name of Rugby Europe in 2014. ===South America=== Although Argentina is the best-known rugby playing nation in South America, founding the Argentine Rugby Union in 1899, several other countries on the continent have a long history.
The first recorded match in Malaysia was in 1892, but the first confirmation of rugby is the existence of the HMS Malaya Cup which was first presented in 1922 and is still awarded to the winners of the Malay sevens. Rugby union was introduced to Japan in 1899 by two Cambridge students: Ginnosuke Tanaka and Edward Bramwell Clarke.
France joined the tournament in the 1900s and in 1910 the term Five Nations first appeared.
In World Cup years, an abbreviated tournament is held in which each team plays the others only once. ===Rugby within multi-sport events=== Rugby union was played at the Olympic Games in 1900, 1908, 1920 and 1924.
In 1900, France won the gold, beating Great Britain 27 points to 8 and defeating Germany 27 points to 17.
Touring international sides would play Test matches against international opponents, including national, club and county sides in the case of Northern Hemisphere rugby, or provincial/state sides in the case of Southern Hemisphere rugby. Between 1905 and 1908, all three major Southern Hemisphere rugby countries sent their first touring teams to the Northern Hemisphere: New Zealand in 1905, followed by South Africa in 1906 and Australia in 1908.
All three teams brought new styles of play, fitness levels and tactics, and were far more successful than critics had expected. The New Zealand 1905 touring team performed a haka before each match, leading Welsh Rugby Union administrator Tom Williams to suggest that Wales player Teddy Morgan lead the crowd in singing the Welsh National Anthem, Hen Wlad Fy Nhadau, as a response.
In 1905 France played England in its first international match. Rugby union was included as an event in the Olympic Games four times during the early 20th century.
Touring international sides would play Test matches against international opponents, including national, club and county sides in the case of Northern Hemisphere rugby, or provincial/state sides in the case of Southern Hemisphere rugby. Between 1905 and 1908, all three major Southern Hemisphere rugby countries sent their first touring teams to the Northern Hemisphere: New Zealand in 1905, followed by South Africa in 1906 and Australia in 1908.
Touring international sides would play Test matches against international opponents, including national, club and county sides in the case of Northern Hemisphere rugby, or provincial/state sides in the case of Southern Hemisphere rugby. Between 1905 and 1908, all three major Southern Hemisphere rugby countries sent their first touring teams to the Northern Hemisphere: New Zealand in 1905, followed by South Africa in 1906 and Australia in 1908.
In World Cup years, an abbreviated tournament is held in which each team plays the others only once. ===Rugby within multi-sport events=== Rugby union was played at the Olympic Games in 1900, 1908, 1920 and 1924.
In 1908, Australia defeated Great Britain, claiming the gold medal, the score being 32 points to three.
Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, in his 1924 Sherlock Holmes tale The Adventure of the Sussex Vampire, mentions that Dr Watson played rugby for Blackheath. Henri Rousseau's 1908 work Joueurs de football shows two pairs of rugby players competing.
France joined the tournament in the 1900s and in 1910 the term Five Nations first appeared.
In the early 21st century Madagascar has experienced crowds of 40,000 at national matches, while Namibia, whose history of rugby can be dated from 1915, have qualified for the final stages of the World Cup four times since 1999.
James Joyce mentions Irish team Bective Rangers in several of his works, including Ulysses (1922) and Finnegans Wake (1939), while his 1916 semi-autobiographical work A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man has an account of Ireland international James Magee.
Although there are reports of early women's matches in New Zealand and France, one of the first notable games to prove primary evidence was the 1917 war-time encounter between Cardiff Ladies and Newport Ladies; a photo of which shows the Cardiff team before the match at the Cardiff Arms Park.
Sri Lanka claims to have founded their union in 1878, and although little official information from the period is available, the team won the All-India cup in Madras in 1920.
In World Cup years, an abbreviated tournament is held in which each team plays the others only once. ===Rugby within multi-sport events=== Rugby union was played at the Olympic Games in 1900, 1908, 1920 and 1924.
In 1920, the United States, fielding a team with many players new to the sport of rugby, upset France in a shock win, eight points to zero.
Rugby union in Portugal also took hold between the First and Second World Wars, with a Portuguese National XV set up in 1922 and an official championship started in 1927. In 1999, FIRA agreed to place itself under the auspices of the IRB, transforming itself into a strictly European organising body.
The first recorded match in Malaysia was in 1892, but the first confirmation of rugby is the existence of the HMS Malaya Cup which was first presented in 1922 and is still awarded to the winners of the Malay sevens. Rugby union was introduced to Japan in 1899 by two Cambridge students: Ginnosuke Tanaka and Edward Bramwell Clarke.
The city of Montreal also played its part in the introduction of the sport in the United States, when students of McGill University played against a team from Harvard University in 1874. Although the exact date of arrival of rugby union in Trinidad and Tobago is unknown, their first club Northern RFC was formed in 1923, a national team was playing by 1927 and due to a cancelled tour to British Guiana in 1933, switched their venue to Barbados; introducing rugby to the island.
Fiji then sent their first overseas team to Samoa in 1924, who in turn set up their own union in 1924.
In World Cup years, an abbreviated tournament is held in which each team plays the others only once. ===Rugby within multi-sport events=== Rugby union was played at the Olympic Games in 1900, 1908, 1920 and 1924.
In 1924, the United States again defeated France 17 to 3, becoming the only team to win gold twice in the sport. In 2009 the International Olympic Committee voted with a majority of 81 to 8 that rugby union be reinstated as an Olympic sport in at least the 2016 and 2020 games, but in the sevens, 4-day tournament format.
Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, in his 1924 Sherlock Holmes tale The Adventure of the Sussex Vampire, mentions that Dr Watson played rugby for Blackheath. Henri Rousseau's 1908 work Joueurs de football shows two pairs of rugby players competing.
Rugby had been played in Brazil since the end of the 19th century, but the game was played regularly only from 1926, when São Paulo beat Santos in an inter-city match.
The Japan RFU was founded in 1926 and its place in rugby history was cemented with the news that Japan will host the 2019 World Cup.
The city of Montreal also played its part in the introduction of the sport in the United States, when students of McGill University played against a team from Harvard University in 1874. Although the exact date of arrival of rugby union in Trinidad and Tobago is unknown, their first club Northern RFC was formed in 1923, a national team was playing by 1927 and due to a cancelled tour to British Guiana in 1933, switched their venue to Barbados; introducing rugby to the island.
Rugby union in Portugal also took hold between the First and Second World Wars, with a Portuguese National XV set up in 1922 and an official championship started in 1927. In 1999, FIRA agreed to place itself under the auspices of the IRB, transforming itself into a strictly European organising body.
The 1928 Gold Medal for Art at the Antwerp Olympics was won by Luxembourg's Jean Jacoby for his work Rugby. In film, Ealing Studios' 1949 comedy A Run for Your Money and the 1979 BBC Wales television film Grand Slam both centre on fans attending a match.
However, the Home Nations (England, Ireland, Scotland, and Wales) excluded France in 1931 amid a run of poor results, allegations of professionalism and concerns over on-field violence.
The city of Montreal also played its part in the introduction of the sport in the United States, when students of McGill University played against a team from Harvard University in 1874. Although the exact date of arrival of rugby union in Trinidad and Tobago is unknown, their first club Northern RFC was formed in 1923, a national team was playing by 1927 and due to a cancelled tour to British Guiana in 1933, switched their venue to Barbados; introducing rugby to the island.
The founding members were , , , , , and . Other European rugby playing nations of note include Russia, whose first officially recorded match is marked by an encounter between Dynamo Moscow and the Moscow Institute of Physical Education in 1933.
In 1934, instigated by the French Rugby Federation, FIRA (Fédération Internationale de Rugby Amateur) was formed to organise rugby union outside the authority of the IRFB.
France then rejoined in 1939–1940, though World War II halted proceedings for a further eight years.
The match had been moved from its normal site of Stade de France near Paris due to scheduling conflicts with France's hosting of UEFA Euro 2016. ==In culture== Thomas Hughes 1857 novel Tom Brown's Schooldays, set at Rugby School, includes a rugby football match, also portrayed in the 1940s film of the same name.
France has played in all the tournaments since WWII, the first of which was played in 1947.
The 1928 Gold Medal for Art at the Antwerp Olympics was won by Luxembourg's Jean Jacoby for his work Rugby. In film, Ealing Studios' 1949 comedy A Run for Your Money and the 1979 BBC Wales television film Grand Slam both centre on fans attending a match.
Other Asian playing countries of note include Singapore, South Korea, China and The Philippines, while the former British colony of Hong Kong is notable within rugby for its development of the rugby sevens game, especially the Hong Kong Sevens tournament which was founded in 1976. Rugby in the Middle East and the Gulf States has its history in the 1950s, with clubs formed by British and French Services stationed in the region after the Second World War.
It took Uruguay several aborted attempts to adapt to rugby, led mainly by the efforts of the Montevideo Cricket Club; these efforts succeeded in 1951 with the formation of a national league and four clubs.
The Rugby League World Cup dates from 1954 in contrast.
The official union of Oman was formed in 1971.
Bahrain founded its union a year later, while in 1975 the Dubai Sevens, the Gulf's leading rugby tournament, was created.
The record attendance for a match in Europe of 104,000 (at the time a world record) was set on 1 March 1975 when Scotland defeated Wales 12–10 at Murrayfield in Edinburgh during the 1975 Five Nations Championship.
Other Asian playing countries of note include Singapore, South Korea, China and The Philippines, while the former British colony of Hong Kong is notable within rugby for its development of the rugby sevens game, especially the Hong Kong Sevens tournament which was founded in 1976. Rugby in the Middle East and the Gulf States has its history in the 1950s, with clubs formed by British and French Services stationed in the region after the Second World War.
The 1928 Gold Medal for Art at the Antwerp Olympics was won by Luxembourg's Jean Jacoby for his work Rugby. In film, Ealing Studios' 1949 comedy A Run for Your Money and the 1979 BBC Wales television film Grand Slam both centre on fans attending a match.
Since the 1980s, the game has grown in popularity among female athletes, and by 2010, according to World Rugby, women's rugby was being played in over 100 countries. The English-based Women's Rugby Football Union (WRFU), responsible for women's rugby in England, Scotland, Ireland, and Wales, was founded in 1983, and is the oldest formally organised national governing body for women's rugby.
The present gold medal holders in the sevens tournament, held in 2014, are Japan in the men's event and China in the women's. ===Women's international rugby=== Women's international rugby union began in 1982, with a match between France and the Netherlands played in Utrecht.
Since the 1980s, the game has grown in popularity among female athletes, and by 2010, according to World Rugby, women's rugby was being played in over 100 countries. The English-based Women's Rugby Football Union (WRFU), responsible for women's rugby in England, Scotland, Ireland, and Wales, was founded in 1983, and is the oldest formally organised national governing body for women's rugby.
The Rugby World Cup, first held in 1987, is held every four years.
The Women's Rugby World Cup returned to a four-year cycle after 2017, with future competitions to be held in the middle year of the men's World Cup cycle. ==Major international competitions== ===Rugby World Cup=== The most important competition in rugby union is the Rugby World Cup, a men's tournament that has taken place every four years since the inaugural event in 1987.
New Zealand and South Africa have each won the title three times (New Zealand: 1987, 2011, 2015; South Africa: 1995, 2007, 2019), Australia have won twice (1991 and 1999), and England once (2003).
England is the only team from the Northern Hemisphere to have won the Rugby World Cup. The Rugby World Cup has continued to grow since its inception in 1987.
This was replaced in 1994 by the Rugby Football Union for Women (RFUW) in England with each of the other Home Nations governing their own countries. The premier international competition in rugby union for women is the Women's Rugby World Cup, first held in 1991; from 1994 through 2014, it was held every four years.
As of 2009 over six hundred women's internationals have been played by over forty different nations. The first Women's Rugby World Cup was held in Wales in 1991, and was won by the United States.
The first World Cup Sevens tournament was held at Murrayfield in 1993.
This was replaced in 1994 by the Rugby Football Union for Women (RFUW) in England with each of the other Home Nations governing their own countries. The premier international competition in rugby union for women is the Women's Rugby World Cup, first held in 1991; from 1994 through 2014, it was held every four years.
The second tournament took place in 1994, and from that time through 2014 was held every four years.
The highest scoring international match between two recognised unions was Hong Kong's 164–13 victory over Singapore on 27 October 1994.
Historically rugby union was an amateur sport, but in 1995 formal restrictions on payments to players were removed, making the game openly professional at the highest level for the first time. Rugby union spread from the Home Nations of Great Britain and Ireland, with other early exponents of the sport including Australia, New Zealand, South Africa and France.
Both men and women's Sevens will again take place at the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo. Rugby union was an amateur sport until the IRB declared the game "open" in August 1995 (shortly after the completion of the 1995 World Cup), removing restrictions on payments to players.
However, the pre-1995 period of rugby union was marked by frequent accusations of "shamateurism", including an investigation in Britain by a House of Commons Select committee in early 1995.
New Zealand and South Africa have each won the title three times (New Zealand: 1987, 2011, 2015; South Africa: 1995, 2007, 2019), Australia have won twice (1991 and 1999), and England once (2003).
However, since then, England have won only in 2017; reigning champion France have won in each even-numbered year (2014, 2016, 2018) whilst Ireland won in 2013 and 2015. ==Professional rugby union == Rugby union has been professionalised since 1995.
Invictus (2009), based on John Carlin's book Playing the Enemy, explores the events of the 1995 Rugby World Cup and Nelson Mandela's attempt to use the sport to connect South Africa's people post-apartheid. In public art and sculpture there are many works dedicated to the sport.
Following the introduction of professionalism trans-national club competitions were started, with the Heineken Cup in the Northern Hemisphere and Super Rugby in the Southern Hemisphere. The Tri Nations, an annual international tournament involving Australia, New Zealand and South Africa, kicked off in 1996.
From its inception in 1996 through 2011, it was known as the Tri Nations, as it featured the hemisphere's traditional powers of Australia, New Zealand and South Africa.
The Women's Six Nations, first played in 1996 has been dominated by England, who have won the tournament on 14 occasions, including a run of seven consecutive wins from 2006 to 2012.
Rugby Sevens was introduced into the Commonwealth Games in 1998 and was added to the Olympic Games of 2016.
This is something the rugby world has aspired to for a long time and Bernard Lapasset, president of the International Rugby Board, said the Olympic gold medal would be considered to be "the pinnacle of our sport" (Rugby Sevens). Rugby sevens has been played at the Commonwealth Games since the 1998 Games in Kuala Lumpur.
Rugby union has also been an Asian Games event since the 1998 games in Bangkok, Thailand.
In the 1998 and 2002 editions of the games, both the usual fifteen-a-side variety and rugby sevens were played, but from 2006 onwards, only rugby sevens was retained.
Rugby union in Portugal also took hold between the First and Second World Wars, with a Portuguese National XV set up in 1922 and an official championship started in 1927. In 1999, FIRA agreed to place itself under the auspices of the IRB, transforming itself into a strictly European organising body.
In the early 21st century Madagascar has experienced crowds of 40,000 at national matches, while Namibia, whose history of rugby can be dated from 1915, have qualified for the final stages of the World Cup four times since 1999.
New Zealand and South Africa have each won the title three times (New Zealand: 1987, 2011, 2015; South Africa: 1995, 2007, 2019), Australia have won twice (1991 and 1999), and England once (2003).
In 2000, Italy became the sixth nation in the contest and Rome's Stadio Olimpico has replaced Stadio Flaminio as the venue for their home games since 2013. The Rugby Championship is the Southern Hemisphere's annual international series for that region's top national teams.
While the largest winning margin of 152 points is held by two countries, Japan (a 155–3 win over Chinese Taipei) and Argentina (152–0 over Paraguay) both in 2002. The record attendance for a rugby union game was set on 15 July 2000 in which New Zealand defeated Australia 39–35 in a Bledisloe Cup game at Stadium Australia in Sydney before 109,874 fans.
In the 1998 and 2002 editions of the games, both the usual fifteen-a-side variety and rugby sevens were played, but from 2006 onwards, only rugby sevens was retained.
The New Zealand Women's team then won four straight World Cups (1998, 2002, 2006, 2010) before England won in 2014.
While the largest winning margin of 152 points is held by two countries, Japan (a 155–3 win over Chinese Taipei) and Argentina (152–0 over Paraguay) both in 2002. The record attendance for a rugby union game was set on 15 July 2000 in which New Zealand defeated Australia 39–35 in a Bledisloe Cup game at Stadium Australia in Sydney before 109,874 fans.
The Tri Nations was initially played on a home and away basis with the three nations playing each other twice. In 2006 a new system was introduced where each nation plays the others three times, though in 2007 and 2011 the teams played each other only twice, as both were World Cup years.
In the 1998 and 2002 editions of the games, both the usual fifteen-a-side variety and rugby sevens were played, but from 2006 onwards, only rugby sevens was retained.
The New Zealand Women's team then won four straight World Cups (1998, 2002, 2006, 2010) before England won in 2014.
The Women's Six Nations, first played in 1996 has been dominated by England, who have won the tournament on 14 occasions, including a run of seven consecutive wins from 2006 to 2012.
In 2012, this competition was extended to include Argentina, a country whose impressive performances in international games (especially finishing in third place in the 2007 Rugby World Cup) was deemed to merit inclusion in the competition.
New Zealand and South Africa have each won the title three times (New Zealand: 1987, 2011, 2015; South Africa: 1995, 2007, 2019), Australia have won twice (1991 and 1999), and England once (2003).
The 2007 World Cup was contested by 94 countries with ticket sales of 3,850,000 over the pool and final stage.
The Tri Nations was initially played on a home and away basis with the three nations playing each other twice. In 2006 a new system was introduced where each nation plays the others three times, though in 2007 and 2011 the teams played each other only twice, as both were World Cup years.
Since Argentina's strong performances in the 2007 World Cup, after the 2009 Tri Nations tournament, SANZAR (South Africa, New Zealand and Australian Rugby) invited the Argentine Rugby Union (UAR) to join an expanded Four Nations tournament in 2012.
This is an increase of 19 percent since the previous report in 2007.
The report also claimed that since 2007 participation has grown by 33 percent in Africa, 22 percent in South America and 18 percent in Asia and North America.
Since Argentina's strong performances in the 2007 World Cup, after the 2009 Tri Nations tournament, SANZAR (South Africa, New Zealand and Australian Rugby) invited the Argentine Rugby Union (UAR) to join an expanded Four Nations tournament in 2012.
In 1924, the United States again defeated France 17 to 3, becoming the only team to win gold twice in the sport. In 2009 the International Olympic Committee voted with a majority of 81 to 8 that rugby union be reinstated as an Olympic sport in at least the 2016 and 2020 games, but in the sevens, 4-day tournament format.
As of 2009 over six hundred women's internationals have been played by over forty different nations. The first Women's Rugby World Cup was held in Wales in 1991, and was won by the United States.
Since the 1980s, the game has grown in popularity among female athletes, and by 2010, according to World Rugby, women's rugby was being played in over 100 countries. The English-based Women's Rugby Football Union (WRFU), responsible for women's rugby in England, Scotland, Ireland, and Wales, was founded in 1983, and is the oldest formally organised national governing body for women's rugby.
In 2010, the women's rugby sevens event was introduced.
The New Zealand Women's team then won four straight World Cups (1998, 2002, 2006, 2010) before England won in 2014.
In April 2010 Lithuania which is a second tier rugby nation, broke the record of consecutive international wins for second tier rugby nations.
New Zealand and South Africa have each won the title three times (New Zealand: 1987, 2011, 2015; South Africa: 1995, 2007, 2019), Australia have won twice (1991 and 1999), and England once (2003).
From its inception in 1996 through 2011, it was known as the Tri Nations, as it featured the hemisphere's traditional powers of Australia, New Zealand and South Africa.
The Tri Nations was initially played on a home and away basis with the three nations playing each other twice. In 2006 a new system was introduced where each nation plays the others three times, though in 2007 and 2011 the teams played each other only twice, as both were World Cup years.
Naismith played rugby at McGill University. Swedish football was a code whose rules were a mix of Association and Rugby football rules. Rugby lends its name to wheelchair rugby, a full-contact sport which contains elements of rugby such as crossing a try line with the ball to score. ==Statistics and records== According to a 2011 report by the Centre for the International Business of Sport, over four and a half million people play rugby union or one of its variants organised by the IRB.
In 2012, this competition was extended to include Argentina, a country whose impressive performances in international games (especially finishing in third place in the 2007 Rugby World Cup) was deemed to merit inclusion in the competition.
Since Argentina's strong performances in the 2007 World Cup, after the 2009 Tri Nations tournament, SANZAR (South Africa, New Zealand and Australian Rugby) invited the Argentine Rugby Union (UAR) to join an expanded Four Nations tournament in 2012.
The competition has been officially rechristened as The Rugby Championship beginning with the 2012 edition.
The Women's Six Nations, first played in 1996 has been dominated by England, who have won the tournament on 14 occasions, including a run of seven consecutive wins from 2006 to 2012.
In 2000, Italy became the sixth nation in the contest and Rome's Stadio Olimpico has replaced Stadio Flaminio as the venue for their home games since 2013. The Rugby Championship is the Southern Hemisphere's annual international series for that region's top national teams.
However, since then, England have won only in 2017; reigning champion France have won in each even-numbered year (2014, 2016, 2018) whilst Ireland won in 2013 and 2015. ==Professional rugby union == Rugby union has been professionalised since 1995.
In 2014, there were more than 6 million people playing worldwide, of whom 2.36 million were registered players.
As of February 2014, WR (then known as the IRB, for International Rugby Board) recorded 119 unions in its membership, 101 full members and 18 associate member countries.
It adopted its current name of Rugby Europe in 2014. ===South America=== Although Argentina is the best-known rugby playing nation in South America, founding the Argentine Rugby Union in 1899, several other countries on the continent have a long history.
This was replaced in 1994 by the Rugby Football Union for Women (RFUW) in England with each of the other Home Nations governing their own countries. The premier international competition in rugby union for women is the Women's Rugby World Cup, first held in 1991; from 1994 through 2014, it was held every four years.
After the 2014 event, the tournament was brought forward a year to 2017 to avoid clashing with other sporting cycles, in particular the Rugby World Cup Sevens competition.
The most gold medal holders are New Zealand who have won the competition on four successive occasions until South Africa beat them in 2014.
The present gold medal holders in the sevens tournament, held in 2014, are Japan in the men's event and China in the women's. ===Women's international rugby=== Women's international rugby union began in 1982, with a match between France and the Netherlands played in Utrecht.
The second tournament took place in 1994, and from that time through 2014 was held every four years.
The New Zealand Women's team then won four straight World Cups (1998, 2002, 2006, 2010) before England won in 2014.
Following the 2014 event, World Rugby moved the next edition of the event to 2017, with a new four-year cycle from that point forward.
In 2014 the IRB published a breakdown of the total number of players worldwide by national unions.
New Zealand and South Africa have each won the title three times (New Zealand: 1987, 2011, 2015; South Africa: 1995, 2007, 2019), Australia have won twice (1991 and 1999), and England once (2003).
However, since then, England have won only in 2017; reigning champion France have won in each even-numbered year (2014, 2016, 2018) whilst Ireland won in 2013 and 2015. ==Professional rugby union == Rugby union has been professionalised since 1995.
Rugby Sevens was introduced into the Commonwealth Games in 1998 and was added to the Olympic Games of 2016.
In international matches, eight replacements are allowed; in domestic or cross-border tournaments, at the discretion of the responsible national union(s), the number of replacements may be nominated to a maximum of eight, of whom three must be sufficiently trained and experienced to provide cover for the three front row positions. Prior to 2016, all substitutions, no matter the cause, counted against the limit during a match.
In 2016, World Rugby changed the law so that substitutions made to replace a player deemed unable to continue due to foul play by the opposition would no longer count against the match limit.
Although UAR initially had no representation on the former SANZAR board, it was granted input into the organisation's issues, especially with regard to The Rugby Championship, and became a full SANZAAR member in 2016 (when the country entered Super Rugby). National unions oversee rugby union within individual countries and are affiliated to WR.
Since 2016, the WR Council has 40 seats.
In 1924, the United States again defeated France 17 to 3, becoming the only team to win gold twice in the sport. In 2009 the International Olympic Committee voted with a majority of 81 to 8 that rugby union be reinstated as an Olympic sport in at least the 2016 and 2020 games, but in the sevens, 4-day tournament format.
The event is likely to remain a permanent fixture of the Asian Games due to elevation of rugby sevens as an Olympic sport from the 2016 Olympics onwards.
However, since then, England have won only in 2017; reigning champion France have won in each even-numbered year (2014, 2016, 2018) whilst Ireland won in 2013 and 2015. ==Professional rugby union == Rugby union has been professionalised since 1995.
The 2016 World Rugby Year in Review reported 8.5 million players, of which 3.2 million were registered union players and 1.9 million were registered club players; 22% of all players were female. The most capped international player from the tier 1 nations is former New Zealand openside flanker and captain Richie McCaw who has played in 148 internationals.
In 2016, the All Blacks of New Zealand set the new record 18 consecutive test wins among tier 1 rugby nations, bettering their previous consecutive run of 17.
The record attendance for a domestic club match is 99,124, set when Racing 92 defeated Toulon in the 2016 Top 14 final on 24 June at Camp Nou in Barcelona.
The match had been moved from its normal site of Stade de France near Paris due to scheduling conflicts with France's hosting of UEFA Euro 2016. ==In culture== Thomas Hughes 1857 novel Tom Brown's Schooldays, set at Rugby School, includes a rugby football match, also portrayed in the 1940s film of the same name.
After the 2014 event, the tournament was brought forward a year to 2017 to avoid clashing with other sporting cycles, in particular the Rugby World Cup Sevens competition.
The Women's Rugby World Cup returned to a four-year cycle after 2017, with future competitions to be held in the middle year of the men's World Cup cycle. ==Major international competitions== ===Rugby World Cup=== The most important competition in rugby union is the Rugby World Cup, a men's tournament that has taken place every four years since the inaugural event in 1987.
Following the 2014 event, World Rugby moved the next edition of the event to 2017, with a new four-year cycle from that point forward.
However, since then, England have won only in 2017; reigning champion France have won in each even-numbered year (2014, 2016, 2018) whilst Ireland won in 2013 and 2015. ==Professional rugby union == Rugby union has been professionalised since 1995.
This record was equalled by England on 11 March 2017 with a win over Scotland at Twickenham.
However, since then, England have won only in 2017; reigning champion France have won in each even-numbered year (2014, 2016, 2018) whilst Ireland won in 2013 and 2015. ==Professional rugby union == Rugby union has been professionalised since 1995.
The Japan RFU was founded in 1926 and its place in rugby history was cemented with the news that Japan will host the 2019 World Cup.
Rugby remains a minority sport in the region with Israel and the United Arab Emirates, as of 2019, being the only member union from the Middle East to be included in the IRB World Rankings. ===Africa=== In 1875, rugby was introduced to South Africa by British soldiers garrisoned in Cape Town.
South Africa are the reigning champions, having defeated England in the final of the 2019 Rugby World Cup in Yokohama.
New Zealand and South Africa have each won the title three times (New Zealand: 1987, 2011, 2015; South Africa: 1995, 2007, 2019), Australia have won twice (1991 and 1999), and England once (2003).
The accumulated television audience for the event, then broadcast to 200 countries, was a claimed 4.2 billion. The 2019 Rugby World Cup took place in Japan between 20 September and 2 November.
Both men and women's Sevens will again take place at the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo. Rugby union was an amateur sport until the IRB declared the game "open" in August 1995 (shortly after the completion of the 1995 World Cup), removing restrictions on payments to players.
In 1924, the United States again defeated France 17 to 3, becoming the only team to win gold twice in the sport. In 2009 the International Olympic Committee voted with a majority of 81 to 8 that rugby union be reinstated as an Olympic sport in at least the 2016 and 2020 games, but in the sevens, 4-day tournament format.
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