England Rugby

Ah, England: the birthplace of rugby union, where it all began. Legend states that the game began in 1823 at Rugby School when William Webb Ellis (who the Rugby World Cup trophy is named after), picked up a football and ran with it, creating a brand new sport in the process. 

Since England rugby’s humble beginnings, rugby union has flourished in the country and now the sport is among the country’s most popular. In 2003, when the men’s England rugby union team lifted the Rugby World Cup, the sport truly reached the mainstream and players such as Jonny Wilkinson became household names. Today, the men’s England rugby union team is just as popular and players like Owen Farrell and Jonny May are regularly voted as being part of the country’s sporting elite. 

The England women’s rugby union team, the Red Roses, represent England on the international stage and regularly bring home international honours. They’ve won the Women’s Rugby World Cup, the Women’s Six Nations Championship and the Women’s European Championship in recent years.