The History
The origin of rugby football is reputed to be an incident
during a game of English school football at Rugby School in 1823 when William
Webb-Ellis is said to have picked up the ball and run with it. Although the
evidence for the story is doubtful, it was immortalized at the school with a
plaque unveiled in 1895. Despite the anecdotal nature of the sport's origin,
the Rugby World Cup trophy is named after him. Rugby football stems from the
form of game played at Rugby School, which former pupils then introduced to
their subsequent university. Old Rugbeian Albert Pell, a student at Cambridge,
is credited with having formed the first 'football' team. During this early
period different schools used different rules, with former pupils from Rugby
and Eton attempting to carry their preferred rules through to their
universities. Significant events in the early development of rugby football
were the production of the first set of written football laws at Rugby School
in 1845, which was followed by the 'Cambridge Rules' drawn up in 1848.Other
important events include the Blackheath Club's decision to leave the Football
Association in 1863 and the formation of the Rugby Football Union in 1871. The
code was originally known as "rugby football"; it was not until after the
schism in England in 1895, which resulted in the separate code of rugby league,
that the sport took on the name "rugby union" to differentiate it from the
league game. Despite the sport's full name of rugby union, it is known simply as
rugby throughout most of the world. The first rugby football international took
place on 27 March 1871, played between England and Scotland. By 1881 both
Ireland and Wales had representative teams, and in 1883 the first international
competition, the Home Nations Championship had begun. 1883 was also the year the first rugby sevens tournament at Melrose, the Melrose Sevens, which is still
held annually. Five years later two important overseas tours took place; a
British Isles team visited Australia and New Zealand—although a private venture,
it laid the foundations for future British and Irish Lions tours; and the 1888
New Zealand Native team brought the first overseas team to British spectators
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 then 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. After Morgan began singing, the crowd joined in: the first time a national anthem was sung at the
start of a sporting event. In 1905 France played England in its first
international match. No international rugby games and union-sponsored club
matches were played during the First World War, but competitions continued
through service teams such as the New Zealand Army team. During the Second World War no international matches played by most countries though Italy, Germany and Romania played a limited number of games, and Cambridge and Oxford continued their annual University Match. Rugby union was included as an event in the Olympic Games four times during the early 1900s. In 1973 the first officially sanctioned international sevens tournament took place at Murrayfield , one of Scotland's biggest stadiums, as part of the Scottish Rugby Union centenary
celebrations. In 1987 the first Rugby World Cup was held in New Zealand and
Australia, and the inaugural winners were New Zealand. The first World Cup
Sevens tournament was held at Murrayfield in 1993. Rugby Sevens was introduced
into the Commonwealth Games in 1998 and is due to be added to the Olympic Games by 2016. Rugby union was an amateur sport until the IRB declared the game 'open' in 1995, 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. 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 South Africa, New Zealand and Australia.
during a game of English school football at Rugby School in 1823 when William
Webb-Ellis is said to have picked up the ball and run with it. Although the
evidence for the story is doubtful, it was immortalized at the school with a
plaque unveiled in 1895. Despite the anecdotal nature of the sport's origin,
the Rugby World Cup trophy is named after him. Rugby football stems from the
form of game played at Rugby School, which former pupils then introduced to
their subsequent university. Old Rugbeian Albert Pell, a student at Cambridge,
is credited with having formed the first 'football' team. During this early
period different schools used different rules, with former pupils from Rugby
and Eton attempting to carry their preferred rules through to their
universities. Significant events in the early development of rugby football
were the production of the first set of written football laws at Rugby School
in 1845, which was followed by the 'Cambridge Rules' drawn up in 1848.Other
important events include the Blackheath Club's decision to leave the Football
Association in 1863 and the formation of the Rugby Football Union in 1871. The
code was originally known as "rugby football"; it was not until after the
schism in England in 1895, which resulted in the separate code of rugby league,
that the sport took on the name "rugby union" to differentiate it from the
league game. Despite the sport's full name of rugby union, it is known simply as
rugby throughout most of the world. The first rugby football international took
place on 27 March 1871, played between England and Scotland. By 1881 both
Ireland and Wales had representative teams, and in 1883 the first international
competition, the Home Nations Championship had begun. 1883 was also the year the first rugby sevens tournament at Melrose, the Melrose Sevens, which is still
held annually. Five years later two important overseas tours took place; a
British Isles team visited Australia and New Zealand—although a private venture,
it laid the foundations for future British and Irish Lions tours; and the 1888
New Zealand Native team brought the first overseas team to British spectators
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 then 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. After Morgan began singing, the crowd joined in: the first time a national anthem was sung at the
start of a sporting event. In 1905 France played England in its first
international match. No international rugby games and union-sponsored club
matches were played during the First World War, but competitions continued
through service teams such as the New Zealand Army team. During the Second World War no international matches played by most countries though Italy, Germany and Romania played a limited number of games, and Cambridge and Oxford continued their annual University Match. Rugby union was included as an event in the Olympic Games four times during the early 1900s. In 1973 the first officially sanctioned international sevens tournament took place at Murrayfield , one of Scotland's biggest stadiums, as part of the Scottish Rugby Union centenary
celebrations. In 1987 the first Rugby World Cup was held in New Zealand and
Australia, and the inaugural winners were New Zealand. The first World Cup
Sevens tournament was held at Murrayfield in 1993. Rugby Sevens was introduced
into the Commonwealth Games in 1998 and is due to be added to the Olympic Games by 2016. Rugby union was an amateur sport until the IRB declared the game 'open' in 1995, 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. 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 South Africa, New Zealand and Australia.