Rugby union is a contact sport played on a rectangular field of grass with an oval ball.
It is typically played by 2 teams of 15 players, although there are different forms of the game, such as rugby sevens.
Similar games have been played for hundreds of years, but rugby rules were first published in 1845 at Rugby School in England.
It is said that William Webb Ellis, a pupil at Rugby School, picked up a football and ran with it in 1823, leading to rugby as we know it today. There is no concrete evidence of this event, however, and most historians agree that while it is part of rugby’s folklore, it is most likely an origin myth.
The first international game of rugby was played by England and Scotland in 1871.
The split of rugby into “rugby union” and “rugby league” occurred in 1895 after disputes stemming from time and wage losses.
The Webb Ellis Cup is awarded to the winners of the Rugby World Cup, a tournament contested every 4 years by the world’s best rugby nations.
The first Rugby World Cup was won by New Zealand in 1987.
Rugby was officially an amateur sport until 1995.
Rugby sevens was first played at the Summer Olympic Games in 2016.
Touch rugby is another popular version of the game, with participants having to simply touch the opposition rather than fully tackle them.
The first international women’s rugby game was played in 1982 between France and the Netherlands.
Rugby teams are typically split into “forwards” and “backs”. Forwards are generally bigger players whose aim is to secure possession of the ball. Backs are generally smaller but faster players who are good at creating scoring opportunities.
Rugby is popular in a wide range of countries around the world, including England, Ireland, Scotland, Wales, France, Italy, South Africa, Argentina, Japan, Samoa, Tonga, Fiji, Australia and New Zealand.
The highest attended rugby match was between New Zealand and Australia in the year 2000. 109,874 supporters filled Sydney’s Stadium Australia to watch New Zealand win a closely contested game 39-35.
Famous rugby players include Jonah Lomu, Gareth Edwards, Jonny Wilkinson, Richie McCaw, Martin Johnson, Brian O’Driscoll, John Eales, David Campese, Michael Jones, Waisale Serevi, Joost van der Westhuizen, Bryan Habana and Daniel Carter.
