A Basic History of Rugby

Rugby is said to have originated at Rugby School in Warwickshire, England, in 1823 when during a game of football a student named William Webb Ellis decided to pick up a ball and go with it. Although there is very little evidence to support this theory, the Rugby World Cup Trophy is now named after him, it is called the "Web Ellis Cup."

In 1863 a collection of British boarding schools and clubs met and decided upon a set of rules and in 1871 Rugby Football Union was officially formed. That same year, the first ever international rugby union match was played between Scotland and England. Held in Raeburn Place on the 27th of March in front of a crowd of 4000 spectators.
Scotland won the match with two tries and a drop goal to Englands single try.

Rugby grew and became popular throughout the British Empire. For example in Australia the first formal team was Sydney University Football Club, in 1869 the first match was played between the University of Sydney and Newington College. From this beginning, the first major competition in Australia developed, beginning in 1874. This was organised by the Southern Rugby Union, this was administered by the rugby union at Twickenham, in England. Administration was given over to the Southern Rugby Union in 1881.
Rugby also developed in other parts of the empire during the 19th and 20th century such as New Zealand, South Africa and Canada.
Rugby spread to other countries as-well such as Germany and the United States. The first Rugby World Cup was played in 1987. New Zealand hosted the tournament, with some games, including both semi-finals, being played in Australia. The All Blacks won beating France in the final.