Rugby World Cup#Qualification

{{Main|Rugby World Cup qualification}}

Under the current format, 20 teams qualify for each Rugby World Cup. Twelve teams qualify automatically based on their performance in the previous World Cup — the top three teams in each of the four group (pool) stages of the previous tournament qualify for the next tournament as seeded teams.{{cite news| url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/rugby_union/7258823.stm | work=BBC News | title=Rankings to determine RWC pools | date=22 February 2008 |access-date=13 February 2013}}{{cite news|title=AB boost as World Cup seedings confirmed|url=http://www.stuff.co.nz/sport/rugby/news/281939|access-date=13 February 2013|newspaper=stuff.co.nz|date=22 February 2008|agency=NZPA}} The qualification system for the remaining eight places is region-based, with a total eight teams allocated for Europe, five for Oceania, three for the Americas, two for Africa, and one for Asia. The last place is determined by an intercontinental play-off.{{cite news |url=http://www.rugbyworldcup.com/home/news/newsid=2022896.html#caribbean+kick+rwc+2011+qualifying |title=Caribbean kick off for RWC 2011 qualifying |publisher=irb.com |date=3 April 2008 |access-date=13 February 2012 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110905162139/http://www.rugbyworldcup.com/home/news/newsid%3D2022896.html#caribbean+kick+rwc+2011+qualifying |archive-date=5 September 2011 }}

The tournament involves twenty nations competing over six weeks in September and October.{{cite web|url=http://www.rugbyworldcup.com/fixtures |title=Fixtures |access-date=21 July 2015 |website=World Rugby |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150815053510/http://www.rugbyworldcup.com/fixtures |archive-date=15 August 2015 }} There are two stages — a pool, followed by a knockout round. Nations are divided into four pools, A through to D, of five nations each.{{cite web|website=World Rugby |title=Tournament Rules |url=http://www.rugbyworldcup.com/tournament-rules |access-date=21 July 2015 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160201091833/http://www.rugbyworldcup.com/tournament-rules |archive-date=1 February 2016 }} The teams are seeded based on the World Rankings. The four highest-ranked teams are drawn into pools A to D. The next four highest-ranked teams are then drawn into pools A to D, followed by the next four. The remaining positions in each pool are filled by the qualifiers.{{cite news | url=https://tvnz.co.nz/rugby-news/2015-world-cup-seedings-take-shape-5226586 | title=2015 Rugby World Cup seedings take shape |work=TVNZ | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121121231858/https://tvnz.co.nz/rugby-news/2015-world-cup-seedings-take-shape-5226586 |archive-date=21 November 2012 |url-status=dead | date=20 November 2012 | agency=Australian Associated Press}}

Nations play four pool games, playing their respective pool members once each. A bonus points system is used during pool play. If two or more teams are level on points, a system of criteria determines the higher ranked.

Eight teams — the winner and runner-up from each of the four pools — enter the knockout stage. The knockout stage consists of quarter- and semi-finals, and then the final. The winner of each pool is placed against a runner-up of a different pool in a quarter-final. The winner of each quarter-final goes on to the semi-finals, and the respective winners proceed to the final. Losers of the semi-finals contest for third place, called the 'Bronze Final'. If a match in the knockout stages ends in a draw, the winner is determined through extra time. If that fails, the match goes into sudden death and the next team to score any points is the winner.

{{Main|History of the Rugby World Cup}}

Before the Rugby World Cup, there was no truly global rugby union competition, but there were a number of other tournaments. One of the oldest is the annual Six Nations Championship, which started in 1883 as the Home Nations Championship,{{Cite web |last1=cycles |first1=This text provides general information Statista assumes no liability for the information given being complete or correct Due to varying update |last2=Text |first2=Statistics Can Display More up-to-Date Data Than Referenced in the |title=Topic: Six Nations Championship |url=https://www.statista.com/topics/11881/six-nations-championship/ |access-date=31 January 2024 |website=Statista |language=en}} a tournament between England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales. It expanded to the Five Nations in 1910, when France joined the tournament. France did not participate from 1931 to 1939, during which period it reverted to a Home Nations championship. In 2000, Italy joined the competition, which became the Six Nations.{{cite web | url=http://www.6-nations-rugby.com/six-nations-history | title=A brief history of the Six Nations rugby tournament | publisher=6 Nations Rugby | access-date=31 October 2007|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20071108180856/http://www.6-nations-rugby.com/six-nations-history |archive-date = 8 November 2007}}

Rugby union was also played at the Summer Olympic Games, first appearing at the 1900 Paris games and subsequently at London in 1908, Antwerp in 1920, and Paris again in 1924. France won the first gold medal, then Australasia, with the last two being won by the United States. However rugby union ceased to be on Olympic program after 1924.{{cite web | url=http://www.worldrugby.org/olympics/history | title=History of Rugby in the Olympics | website=World Rugby | date=9 November 2014 | access-date=21 July 2015 | archive-date=27 June 2015 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150627130524/http://www.worldrugby.org/olympics/history | url-status=dead }}{{cite web | url = http://www.espnscrum.com/scrum/rugby/story/167592.html | title = Rugby and the Olympics | last = Richards | first = Huw | date = 26 July 2012 | access-date = 13 April 2012 | publisher = ESPN}}{{efn|However an exhibition tournament, the 1936 FIRA Tournament, did take place at the 1936 Games. Rugby was reintroduced to the Olympics in 2016, but as men's and women's rugby sevens (i.e., seven-a-side rugby).}}

The idea of a Rugby World Cup had been suggested on numerous occasions going back to the 1950s, but met with opposition from most unions in the IRFB. The idea resurfaced several times in the early 1980s, with the Australian Rugby Union (ARU; now known as Rugby Australia) in 1983, and the New Zealand Rugby Union (NZRU; now known as New Zealand Rugby) in 1984 independently proposing the establishment of a world cup.Collins (2008), p. 13. A proposal was again put to the IRFB in 1985 and this time passed 10–6. The delegates from Australia, France, New Zealand and South Africa all voted for the proposal, and the delegates from Ireland and Scotland against; the English and Welsh delegates were split, with one from each country for and one against.{{cite web | publisher=worldcupweb.com | title=The History of RWC |url=http://www.worldcupweb.com/WCrugby/history.asp|access-date=25 April 2006|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20060414193531/http://www.worldcupweb.com/WCrugby/history.asp |archive-date = 14 April 2006|url-status=dead}}

The inaugural tournament, jointly hosted by Australia and New Zealand, was held in May and June 1987, with sixteen nations taking part.Peatey (2011) p. 31. The inaugural World Cup in 1987, did not involve any qualifying process; instead, the 16 places were automatically filled by seven eligible International Rugby Football Board (IRFB, now World Rugby) member nations, and the rest by invitation.Peatey (2011) p. 34. New Zealand became the first-ever champions, defeating France 29–9 in the final.Peatey (2011) p. 42. The subsequent 1991 tournament was hosted by England, with matches played throughout Britain, Ireland and France. Qualifying tournaments were introduced for the second tournament, where eight of the sixteen places were contested in a twenty-four-nation tournament.Peatey (2011) p. 59. This tournament saw the introduction of a qualifying tournament; eight places were allocated to the quarter-finalists from 1987, and the remaining eight decided by a thirty-five nation qualifying tournament. Australia won the second tournament, defeating England 12–6 in the final.Peatey (2011) p. 77.

In 1992, eight years after their last official series,{{efn|Against England in 1984.Harding (2000), p. 137}} South Africa hosted New Zealand in a one-off test match. The resumption of international rugby in South Africa came after the dismantling of the apartheid system.Peatey (2011) p. 78. With their return to test rugby, South Africa were selected to host the 1995 Rugby World Cup.Peatey (2011) p. 82. After upsetting Australia in the opening match, South Africa continued to advance through the tournament and met New Zealand in the final.Peatey (2011) p. 87.Harding (2000), pp. 159–160 After a tense final that went into extra time, South Africa emerged 15–12 winners,Peatey (2011) p. 99. with then President Nelson Mandela, wearing a Springbok jersey, presenting the trophy to South Africa's captain, Francois Pienaar.Harding (2000), p. 168

The 1999 tournament was hosted by Wales with matches also being held throughout the rest of the United Kingdom, Ireland and France. The tournament included a repechage system,{{cite web | url=https://www.skysports.com/rugby-union/news/21971/7079435/rugby-world-cup-history-the-wizards-from-oz-in-1999 | title=Rugby World Cup history: The Wizards from Oz in 1999 | publisher=Sky Sports | date=11 September 2015 | access-date=14 October 2018}} alongside specific regional qualifying places.{{cite web | url=http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/rugby/world_cup/news/1998/09/27/wc_qualifiers_standings/ | title=1999 World Cup Qualifiers | publisher=CNN Sports Illustrated | access-date=14 October 2018 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20040503171636/http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/rugby/world_cup/news/1998/09/27/wc_qualifiers_standings/ | archive-date=3 May 2004 | url-status=dead}} The number of participating nations was increased from sixteen to twenty — and has remained to date at twenty.{{cite news | url=https://www.irishtimes.com/sport/rugby/international/rwc-15-ireland-suffer-play-off-misery-against-argentina-1.2340253 | title=RWC #15: Ireland suffer play-off misery against Argentina | last=Madden | first=Patrick | newspaper=The Irish Times | date=4 September 2015 | access-date=14 October 2018}} Australia claimed their second title, defeating France in the final.{{cite news | url=https://www.theguardian.com/rugbycup/Story/0,,196930,00.html | title=Wallaby siege mentality secures Holy Grail | last=Kitson | first=Robert | work=The Guardian | date=8 November 1999 | access-date=14 October 2018}} The combination of the sport turning professional after 1995 and the increase in teams from sixteen to twenty led to a number of remarkably lopsided results in both the 1999 and 2003 tournaments, with two matches in each tournament resulting in teams scoring over 100 points; Australia's 142–0 win over Namibia in 2003 stands as the most lopsided score in Rugby World Cup history.{{Cite web |last=Morse |first=Ben |date=27 September 2023 |title='What chance did we have': Remembering Namibia's record-breaking 142-0 Rugby World Cup defeat |url=https://www.cnn.com/2023/09/27/sport/namibia-australia-2003-rugby-world-cup-record-spt-intl/index.html |access-date=31 January 2024 |website=CNN |language=en}}

In 2003 and 2007, the qualifying format allowed for eight of the twenty available positions to be automatically filled by the eight quarter-finalists of the previous tournament. The remaining twelve positions were filled by continental qualifying tournaments.{{cite news| title=Doin' it the Hard Way |magazine=Rugby News |volume=38 |issue=9 |year=2007 |page=26}} Ten positions were filled by teams qualifying directly through continental competitions. Another two places were allocated for a cross-continental repechage.{{cite news| title=Doin' it the Hard Way |magazine=Rugby News |volume=38 |issue=9 |year=2007 |page=27}}

The 2003 event was hosted by Australia, although it was originally intended to be held jointly with New Zealand. England emerged as champions defeating Australia in extra time. England's win broke the southern hemisphere's dominance in the event. Such was the celebration of England's victory that an estimated 750,000 people gathered in central London to greet the team, making the day the largest sporting celebration of its kind ever in the United Kingdom.{{cite news | work=bbc.co.uk | title=England honours World Cup stars |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/rugby_union/rugby_world_cup/3300061.stm|access-date=3 May 2006 | date=9 December 2003}}

File:Paul O'Connell Ireland Rugby.jpg

The 2007 competition was hosted by France, with matches also being held in Wales and Scotland. South Africa claimed their second title by defeating defending champions England 15–6. The biggest story of the tournament, however, was Argentina who racked up wins against some of the top European teams — France, Ireland, and Scotland — to finish first in the Pool of death and finish third overall in the tournament.[https://www.espn.com/rugby/report?gameId=25545&league=164205 "Ireland exit courtesy of powerful Pumas"], ESPN, 30 September 2007. The attention from Argentina's performance led to Argentina participating in SANZAAR{{Cite web |last=Gowar |first=Rex |date=23 November 2011 |title=Argentina has talent to meet challenge, says Sanzar |website=Reuters |url=https://www.reuters.com/article/rugby-argentina-sanzar-idUKLDE7AL02H20111123/}} and the professionalization of rugby in Argentina.

File:2011 Rugby World Cup Wales vs Samoa (6168183024).jpg (in blue) and Wales (in red) during the 2011 World Cup]]

The 2011 tournament was awarded to New Zealand in November 2005, ahead of bids from Japan and South Africa. The All Blacks reclaimed their place atop the rugby world with a narrow 8–7 win over France in the 2011 final.{{Cite news|title=New Zealand 8-7 France|language=en-GB|work=BBC Sport|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/rugby-union/15405316|access-date=6 June 2021}}

The opening weekend of the 2015 tournament, hosted by England, generated the biggest upset in Rugby World Cup history when Japan, who had not won a single World Cup match since 1991, defeated heavily favoured South Africa. Overall, New Zealand once again won the final, this time against Australia. In doing so, they became the first team in World Cup history to win three titles, as well as the first to successfully defend a title.{{Cite web|title=New Zealand 34-17 Australia: Rugby World Cup 2015 final player ratings {{!}} Rugby World Cup 2015 |url=https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2015/oct/31/rugby-world-cup-final-new-zealand-australia-ratings|access-date=6 June 2021|website=The Guardian|date=31 October 2015 |last1=Aylwin |first1=Michael }}

Japan's hosting of the 2019 World Cup marked the first time the tournament had been held outside the traditional rugby strongholds; Japan won all four of their pool matches to top their group and qualify to the quarter-finals for the first time. The tournament saw South Africa claim their third trophy to match New Zealand for the most Rugby World Cup titles. South Africa defeated England 32–12 in the final.{{Cite news|title=Rugby World Cup 2019: fixtures, tables and results|language=en-GB|work=The Guardian|url=https://www.theguardian.com/sport/ng-interactive/2019/sep/18/rugby-world-cup-2019-fixtures-tables-and-results|access-date=6 June 2021|issn=0261-3077}}

Starting in 2021, gender designations were removed from the titles of the men's and women's World Cups. Accordingly, all World Cups for men and women will officially bear the "Rugby World Cup" name. The first tournament to be affected by the new policy was the 2022 women's tournament held in New Zealand, which retained its original title of "Rugby World Cup 2021" despite having been delayed from its original schedule due to COVID-19 issues.{{cite press release|url=https://www.world.rugby/news/444250 |title=World Rugby announces gender neutral naming for Rugby World Cup tournaments |publisher=World Rugby |date=21 August 2019 |access-date=22 August 2019}}

France hosted the 2023 World Cup. The tournament was won by South Africa, who defeated New Zealand 12–11 to become the second nation to successfully defend their World Champion title and the first nation to win the tournament four times.

{{Main|Webb Ellis Cup}}

File:Rugby World Cup Trophy.JPG

Winners of the Rugby World Cup are presented with the Webb Ellis Cup, named after William Webb Ellis. The trophy is also referred to simply as the Rugby World Cup. The trophy was chosen in 1987 for use in the competition, and was created in 1906 by Garrard's Crown Jewellers.{{cite news|title=Second World Cup exists, Snedden confirms|url=http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10745840|access-date=13 February 2013|newspaper=The New Zealand Herald|date=18 August 2011}}{{cite news|last=Quinn|first=Keith|title=Keith Quinn: Back-history of RWC – part three|url=https://tvnz.co.nz/rugby-world-cup/keith-quinn-back-history-rwc-part-three-4374234|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140903095746/https://tvnz.co.nz/rugby-world-cup/keith-quinn-back-history-rwc-part-three-4374234 |archive-date=3 September 2014 |url-status=dead |work=TVNZ |date=30 August 2011}} The trophy is restored and repaired by fellow Royal Warrant holder Thomas Lyte at the completion of each tournament or at any given time in the intervening years between each competition{{cite news|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-22213850|title=Friday Boss: Kevin Baker of silversmiths Thomas Lyte|work=BBC News}}{{cite web|url=https://www.royalwarrant.org/company/thomas-lyte?back=%2Fdirectory%3Fquery%3D%26page%3D66|title=Thomas Lyte|work=royalwarrant.org}} The words 'The International Rugby Football Board' and 'The Webb Ellis Cup' are engraved on the face of the cup, and Thomas Lyte are responsible for engraving the name of the victorious teams on the plinth of the trophy.{{Cite web |title=Restorers of the Rugby World Cup - The Webb Ellis Cup |url=https://thomaslyte.com/rugby-world-cup-trophy-the-webb-ellis-cup/ |access-date=10 February 2025 |website=Thomas Lyte |language=en}} The plinth features the names of every winner since the inaugural tournament in 1987. It stands thirty-eight centimetres high and is silver gilded in gold, and supported by two cast scroll handles, one with the head of a satyr, and the other a head of a nymph.{{cite web|title=The History of the Webb Ellis Cup|url=http://www.skysport.co.nz/rugby-webb-ellis-cup/|archive-url=https://archive.today/20130413232354/http://www.skysport.co.nz/rugby-webb-ellis-cup/|url-status=dead|archive-date=13 April 2013|publisher=Sky Sport New Zealand|access-date=13 February 2013}} In Australia the trophy is colloquially known as "Bill" — a reference to William Webb Ellis.

In 2015, the World Cup Final was commemorated with a 24 carat gold-plated Rugby World Cup final match ball, made by Web Ellis Cup custodians, Thomas Lyte. Borrowing from the design of Gilbert's official match balls for the tournament, the full-scale replica featured the distinctive markings seen on the ball used in the final, held at Twickenham, between New Zealand and Australia.  {{Cite web |last=tshego |date=27 November 2015 |title=Thomas Lyte Rounds Off Rugby World Cup |url=https://www.sportindustry.biz/news-categories/news/thomas-lyte-rounds-rugby-world-cup/ |access-date=12 February 2025 |website=Sport Industry Group |language=en-GB}}

{{Main|Rugby World Cup hosts}}

Tournaments are organised by Rugby World Cup Ltd (RWCL), which is itself owned by World Rugby. The selection of host is decided by a vote of World Rugby Council members.{{cite web | title=Official Website of the Rugby World Cup | url=http://www.rugbyworldcup.com/en/home/Disclaimer | work=rugbyworldcup.com | access-date=14 April 2007| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20070202143044/http://www.rugbyworldcup.com/en/home/Disclaimer| archive-date = 2 February 2007}}{{cite news|title=England awarded 2015 Rugby World Cup|url=http://www.abc.net.au/news/2009-07-29/england-awarded-2015-rugby-world-cup/1371384|access-date=13 February 2013|publisher=ABC News Australia|date=29 July 2009|agency=AFP}} The voting procedure is managed by a team of independent auditors, and the voting kept secret. The host nation is generally selected five or six years before the competition.

The tournament has been hosted by multiple nations. For example, the 1987 tournament was co-hosted by Australia and New Zealand. World Rugby requires that the hosts must have a venue with a capacity of at least 60,000 spectators for the final.{{cite news|title=New Zealand came close to losing Rugby World Cup 2011|url=http://www.rugbyweek.com/news/article.asp?id=17256|access-date=13 February 2013|newspaper=Rugby Week|date=12 December 2008}} Host nations sometimes construct or upgrade stadia in preparation for the World Cup, such as Millennium Stadium – purposely built for the 1999 tournament – and Eden Park, upgraded for 2011.{{cite web | title=Millennium Stadium, Cardiff | work=Virtual Tourist | url=http://www.virtualtourist.com/travel/Europe/United_Kingdom/Wales/South_Glamorgan/Cardiff-315777/Things_To_Do-Cardiff-Millennium_Stadium-BR-1.html | access-date=23 February 2007 | archive-date=18 February 2007 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070218040548/http://www.virtualtourist.com/travel/Europe/United_Kingdom/Wales/South_Glamorgan/Cardiff-315777/Things_To_Do-Cardiff-Millennium_Stadium-BR-1.html | url-status=dead }} The first country outside of the traditional rugby nations of SANZAAR or the Six Nations to be awarded the hosting rights was 2019 host Japan. France hosted the 2023 tournament. The next tournament to be hosted by a nation outside the traditional nations will be the 2031 tournament in the United States.{{cite press release|url=https://www.rugbyworldcup.com/news/714742/rugby-world-cup-host-locations-confirmed-through-to-2033 |title=Rugby World Cup Locations Confirmed Through to 2033 |publisher=World Rugby |date=12 May 2022 |access-date=19 May 2022}}

Organizers of the Rugby World Cup, as well as the Global Sports Impact, state that the Rugby World Cup is the third largest sporting event in the world, behind only the FIFA World Cup and the Olympics,{{cite web |url=http://hospitality.rugbyworldcup.com/rugby_world_cup_2015_official_hospitality_in_numbers.aspx |title=Rugby World Cup 2015 Official Hospitality |publisher=RWC Ltd |access-date=4 December 2014 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141207214944/http://hospitality.rugbyworldcup.com/rugby_world_cup_2015_official_hospitality_in_numbers.aspx |archive-date=7 December 2014 }}{{Cite news | url=https://www.bbc.com/sport/30326825 | title=Olympics and World Cup are the biggest, but what comes next?| work=BBC Sport| date=4 December 2014}} although other sources question whether this is accurate.{{Cite news|url=http://www.nzherald.co.nz/sport/news/article.cfm?c_id=4&objectid=10761073|title=Rugby World Cup: Logic debunks outrageous numbers game|date=23 October 2011|work=The New Zealand Herald|access-date=3 April 2017|language=en-NZ|issn=1170-0777}}

Reports emanating from World Rugby and its business partners have frequently touted the tournament's media growth, with cumulative worldwide television audiences of 300 million for the inaugural 1987 tournament, 1.75 billion in 1991, 2.67 billion in 1995, 3 billion in 1999,{{cite web | title=Rugby World Cup 2003 | work=sevencorporate.com.au | url=http://www.sevencorporate.com.au/page.asp?partid=225 |access-date=25 April 2006|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20060415041733/http://www.sevencorporate.com.au/page.asp?partid=225 |archive-date = 15 April 2006|url-status=dead}} 3.5 billion in 2003,{{cite web | title=Visa International Renews Rugby World Cup Partnership | work=corporate.visa.com | url=http://www.corporate.visa.com/md/nr/press269.jsp | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060427071525/http://www.corporate.visa.com/md/nr/press269.jsp | archive-date=27 April 2006 |access-date=25 April 2006}} and 4 billion in 2007.{{cite web|url=http://www.deloitte.com/assets/dcom-unitedkingdom/Local%20assets/documents/uk_SBG_IrB2008.pdf |title=Potential Impact of the Rugby World Cup on a Host Nation |year=2008 |access-date=12 April 2014 |publisher=Deloitte & Touche |page=5 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140413142158/http://www.deloitte.com/assets/dcom-unitedkingdom/Local%20assets/documents/uk_SBG_IrB2008.pdf |archive-date=13 April 2014 }} The 4 billion figure was widely dismissed as the global audience for television is estimated to be about 4.2 billion.{{cite web |url=http://www.vrworld.com/2011/01/26/digital-divide-global-household-penetration-rates-for-technology/ |title=Digital Divide: Global Household Penetration Rates for Technology |publisher=VRWorld |date= 26 January 2011|access-date=1 September 2015}}

However, independent reviews have called into question the methodology of those growth estimates, pointing to factual inconsistencies.{{cite news |url=http://www.nzherald.co.nz/business/news/article.cfm?c_id=3&objectid=10642274 |title=Filling the Cup – cost $500m and climbing |author=Nippert, Matt |work = The New Zealand Herald|publisher=APN New Zealand |date=2 May 2010 |access-date=2 December 2014}} The event's supposed drawing power outside of a handful of rugby strongholds was also downplayed significantly, with an estimated 97 percent of the 33 million average audience produced by the 2007 final coming from Australasia, South Africa, the British Isles and France.{{cite news |url=http://www.nzherald.co.nz/sport/news/article.cfm?c_id=4&objectid=10761073 |title=Logic debunks outrageous numbers game |author=Burgess, Michael|work = The New Zealand Herald|publisher=APN New Zealand |date=23 October 2011 |access-date=2 December 2014}} Other sports have been accused of exaggerating their television reach over the years; such claims are not exclusive to the Rugby World Cup.

While the event's global popularity remains a matter of dispute, high interest in traditional rugby nations is well documented. The 2003 final, between Australia and England, became the most watched rugby union match in the history of Australian television.{{cite news | last=Derriman | first=Phillip | date = 1 July 2006 | title=Rivals must assess impact of Cup fever | work = The Sydney Morning Herald| publisher = Fairfax | url=http://www.smh.com.au/news/sport/rivals-must-assess-impact-of-cup-fever/2006/06/30/1151174394285.html?page=2 |access-date=1 July 2006}} The 2023 tournament achieved 1.33 billion viewing hours across all programming making it the most viewed rugby event of all time.{{cite web |title=Rugby World Cup 2023 was the most viewed rugby event of all time |url=https://www.rugbyworldcup.com/2023/news/904424/rugby-world-cup-2023-was-the-most-viewed-rugby-event-of-all-time |website=Rugby World Cup |access-date=21 March 2024}}

{{See also|List of sports attendance figures}}

Notes:

• The host union keeps revenue from gate receipts. World Rugby, through RWCL, receive revenue from sources including broadcasting rights, sponsorship and tournament fees.

{{small div|

;Keys

• aet: result/match won after extra time

}}

{{See also|National team appearances in the Rugby World Cup}}

File:Rugby world cup countries best results and hosts rev1.png

Twenty-five nations have participated at the Rugby World Cup (excluding qualifying tournaments). The only nations to host and win a tournament are New Zealand (1987 and 2011) and South Africa (1995). The performance of other host nations includes England (1991 final hosts) and Australia (2003 hosts) both finishing runners-up, while France (2007 hosts) finished fourth, and Wales (1999 hosts) and Japan (2019 hosts) reached the quarter-finals. Wales became the first host nation to be eliminated at the pool stages in 1991 while England became the first solo host nation to be eliminated at the pool stages in 2015.[https://www.standard.co.uk/sport/rugby/england-become-first-host-nation-eliminated-at-pool-stage-of-rugby-world-cup-a3072231.html "England become first host nation eliminated at pool stage of Rugby World Cup"], Evening Standard, Tom Dutton, 3 October 2015. Of the twenty-five nations that have participated in at least one tournament, ten of them have never missed a tournament.{{efn|Argentina, Australia, England, France, Ireland, Italy, Japan, New Zealand, Scotland and Wales are the nations that have never missed a tournament, playing in all nine thus far. South Africa has played in all eight in the post-apartheid era (as of 2023).|name=|group=}}

As of the 2023 World Cup, 26 nations have qualified to compete across 10 tournaments.

;Legend

• {{border|width=3px|color=red|  }} = Hosts
• Q = Qualified (or just for the 1987 World Cup, invited)
• - = Did not qualify (or not invited to the 1987 World Cup)
• X = Expelled during qualification
• E = Expelled after qualification
• B = Banned

{{Main|Records and statistics of the Rugby World Cup|List of Rugby World Cup try scorers|List of Rugby World Cup hat-tricks}}

File:Gavin Hastings.jpg of Scotland is one of four players to have kicked a record eight penalties in a single World Cup match.]]

The record for most points overall is held by English player Jonny Wilkinson, who scored 277 during his World Cup career.Peatey (2011) p. 243. New Zealand All Black Grant Fox holds the record for most points in one competition, with 126 in 1987; Jason Leonard of England holds the record for most World Cup matches: 22 between 1991 and 2003 along with Richie McCaw 22 between 2003 and 2015. All Black Simon Culhane holds the record for most points in a match by one player, 45, as well as the record for most conversions in a match, 20.{{cite web|url=http://www.rugbyworldcup.com/statistics/ |title=All Time RWC Statistics |publisher=International Rugby Board |access-date=12 April 2014 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141202180522/http://www.rugbyworldcup.com/statistics |archive-date=2 December 2014 }} All Black Marc Ellis holds the record for most tries in a match, six, which he scored against Japan in 1995.Peatey (2011) p. 244.

New Zealand's Jonah Lomu is the youngest player to appear in a final – aged 20 years and 43 days in the 1995 final.Peatey (2011) p. 245. Lomu (playing in two tournaments) and South African Bryan Habana (playing in three tournaments) share the record for most total World Cup tournament tries, both scoring 15. Lomu (in 1999) and Habana (in 2007) also share the record, along with All Black Julian Savea (in 2015) and Will Jordan (in 2023), for most tries in a tournament, with 8 each. South Africa's Jannie de Beer kicked five drop-goals against England in 1999 – an individual record for a single World Cup match. The record for most penalties in a match is 8, held by Australian Matt Burke, Argentinian Gonzalo Quesada, Scotland's Gavin Hastings and France's Thierry Lacroix, with Quesada also holding the record for most penalties in a tournament, with 31.

The most points scored in a game is 145, by the All Blacks against Japan in 1995, while the widest winning margin is 142, held by Australia in a match against Namibia in 2003.Peatey (2011) p. 242.

A total of 25 players have been sent off (red carded) in the tournament. Welsh lock Huw Richards was the first, while playing against New Zealand in 1987. No player has been red carded more than once.

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• {{cite book | last = Collins | first = Tony | editor-last = Ryan | editor-first = Greg | title = The Changing Face of Rugby: The Union Game and Professionalism since 1995 | year = 2008 | publisher = Cambridge Scholars Publishing | chapter = 'The First Principle of Our Game': The rise and fall of amateurism: 1886–1995 | isbn = 978-1-84718-530-3 }}
• Davies, Gerald (2004). The History of the Rugby World Cup Sanctuary Publishing Ltd. {{ISBN|1-86074-602-0}}.
• Farr-Jones, Nick, (2003). Story of the Rugby World Cup, Australian Post Corporation. {{ISBN|0-642-36811-2}}.
• {{cite book | last1=Harding |first1=Grant |last2=Williams |first2=David |title=The Toughest of Them All: New Zealand and South Africa: The Struggle for Rugby Supremacy |year=2000 | publisher=Penguin Books |location=Auckland, New Zealand |isbn=978-0-14-029577-1}}
• {{cite thesis| last = Martin | first = Gerard John | title = The Game is not the Same – a History of Professional Rugby in New Zealand | date = 2005 | publisher = Auckland University of Technology}}
• {{cite book | last = Peatey | first = Lance | title = In Pursuit of Bill: A Complete History of the Rugby World Cup | publisher = New Holland Publishers | year = 2011 | isbn=978-1-74257-191-1 }}
• {{cite thesis| last = Phillpots | first = Kyle | title = The Professionalisation of Rugby Union | date = 2000 | publisher = University of Warwick| url = http://wrap.warwick.ac.uk/4498/ }}
• {{cite journal | last = Williams | first= Peter | year = 2002 | title = Battle Lines on Three Fronts: The RFU and the Lost War Against Professionalism |journal=The International Journal of the History of Sport |volume=19 |issue=4 |pages=114–136 |doi=10.1080/714001793| s2cid= 145705183 | url= http://usir.salford.ac.uk/id/eprint/27325/2/Battle_Lines.pdf }}

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