History of rugby union matches between Argentina and England

Last updated

The national rugby union teams of England and Argentina (Los Pumas) have been playing each other since 1978. The status of the first match is ambiguous, as Argentina awarded Test caps to its players but England did not (England sent a representative "England XV", not the 1st XV). They have met in 29 matches recognised by both sides as Tests. The first match was on 30 May 1981 and was a 19–19 draw. The second match of the two-test series was played on 6 June 1981 and was won by England 12–6. The 1982 Falklands War between Britain and Argentina meant that their next encounter did not take place until 1990. Excluding the ambiguous 1978 game, Argentina and England have played 29 times with England winning 23, Argentina 5 with 1 drawn.

Contents

The rugby rivalry between the two countries is not known for being as intense as their football rivalry.

Summary

Overall

DetailsPlayedWon by
Argentina
Won by
England
DrawnArgentina pointsEngland points
In Argentina143101264389
In England10280131269
Neutral venue505070129
Overall295231465787

Records

Note: Date shown in brackets indicates when the record was last set.

RecordArgentinaEngland
Longest winning streak1 (7 June 1997 – 25 November 2000) [a] 10 (14 November 2009 – 6 November 2022)
Largest points for
Home34 (10 June 2017)51 (3 November 1990)
Away30 (6 November 2022)51 (15 June 2013)
Largest winning margin
Home20 (7 June 1997)51 (3 November 1990)
Away7 (11 November 2006)29 (8 June 2013; 5 October 2019)

Results

No.DateVenueScoreWinnerCompetitionRef.
130 May 1981 Ferro Carril Oeste, Buenos Aires 19–19 draw 1981 England tour of Argentina
26 June 1981Ferro Carril Oeste, Buenos Aires6–12Flag of England.svg  England
328 July 1990 José Amalfitani Stadium, Buenos Aires12–25Flag of England.svg  England 1990 England tour of Argentina
44 August 1990José Amalfitani Stadium, Buenos Aires15–13Flag of Argentina.svg  Argentina
53 November 1990 Twickenham Stadium, London 51–0Flag of England.svg  England 1990 Argentina tour of Great Britain and Ireland
627 May 1995 Kings Park Stadium, Durban (South Africa)24–18Flag of England.svg  England 1995 Rugby World Cup
714 December 1996Twickenham Stadium, London20–18Flag of England.svg  England 1996 Argentina tour of England
831 May 1997Ferro Carril Oeste, Buenos Aires20–46Flag of England.svg  England 1997 England tour of Argentina and Australia
97 June 1997Ferro Carril Oeste, Buenos Aires33–13Flag of Argentina.svg  Argentina
1025 November 2000Twickenham Stadium, London19–0Flag of England.svg  England 2000 Summer International
1122 June 2002José Amalfitani Stadium, Buenos Aires18–26Flag of England.svg  England 2002 England tour of Argentina [1]
1211 November 2006Twickenham Stadium, London18–25Flag of Argentina.svg  Argentina 2006 Summer International [2]
136 June 2009 Old Trafford, Manchester 37–15Flag of England.svg  England 2009 England–Argentina tour [3]
1413 June 2009 Estadio Padre Ernesto Martearena, Salta 24–22Flag of Argentina.svg  Argentina [4]
1514 November 2009Twickenham Stadium, London16–9Flag of England.svg  England 2009 Winter International [5]
1610 September 2011 Forsyth Barr Stadium, Dunedin (New Zealand)13–9Flag of England.svg  England 2011 Rugby World Cup
178 June 2013Estadio Padre Ernesto Martearena, Salta3–32Flag of England.svg  England 2013 England tour of Argentina and Uruguay
1815 June 2013José Amalfitani Stadium, Buenos Aires26–51Flag of England.svg  England
199 November 2013Twickenham Stadium, London31–12Flag of England.svg  England 2013 Winter International [6]
2026 November 2016Twickenham Stadium, London27–14Flag of England.svg  England 2016 Winter International
2110 June 2017 Estadio San Juan del Bicentenario, San Juan 34–38Flag of England.svg  England 2017 England tour of Argentina [7]
2217 June 2017 Estadio Brigadier General Estanislao López, Santa Fe 25–35Flag of England.svg  England [8]
2311 November 2017Twickenham Stadium, London21–8Flag of England.svg  England 2017 Winter International [9]
245 October 2019 Tokyo Stadium, Chōfu (Japan)39–10Flag of England.svg  England 2019 Rugby World Cup [10]
256 November 2022Twickenham Stadium, London29–30Flag of Argentina.svg  Argentina 2022 Winter International
269 September 2023 Stade Vélodrome, Marseille (France)27–10Flag of England.svg  England 2023 Rugby World Cup [11]
2727 October 2023 Stade de France, Saint-Denis (France)23–26Flag of England.svg  England [12]
285 July 2025 Estadio Jorge Luis Hirschi, Buenos Aires 12–35Flag of England.svg  England 2025 England tour of Argentina and the United States [13]
2912 July 2025Estadio San Juan del Bicentenario, San Juan17–22Flag of England.svg  England [14]
3023 November 2025Twickenham Stadium, London 2025 Winter International

Non-test results

Below is a list of matches that Argentina has awarded matches test match status by virtue of awarding caps, but England did not.

DateVenueScoreWinnerCompetition
14 October 1978 [b] Twickenham Stadium, London13–13draw 1978 Argentina tour of Great Britain, Ireland and Italy
17 June 2002 Buenos Aires CRC Field, Los Polvorines 29–24Flag of Argentina.svg  Argentina XV 2002 England tour of Argentina

List of series

PlayedWon by
Argentina
Won by
England
Drawn
8053
YearArgentinaEnglandSeries winner
Flag of Argentina.svg 1981 01Flag of England.svg  England
Flag of Argentina.svg 1990 11 draw
Flag of Argentina.svg 1997 11 draw
Flag of Argentina.svg 2002 01Flag of England.svg  England
Flag of England.svgFlag of Argentina.svg 2009 11 draw
Flag of Argentina.svg 2013 02Flag of England.svg  England
Flag of Argentina.svg 2017 02Flag of England.svg  England
Flag of Argentina.svg 2025 02Flag of England.svg  England

Notes

  1. Argentina have never defeated England in consecutive matches. The longest period of time following a win over England, however, was 3 years and 171 days.
  2. Not classed as a full international by England who played as an England XV, 12 players from the XV played against the All Blacks one month later.[ citation needed ]

References

  1. "England Tour – Buenos Aires, 22 June 2002". ESPNscrum. ESPN.
  2. "England 18–25 Argentina". BBC Sport. 11 November 2006. Retrieved 20 October 2019.
  3. "England 37–15 Argentina". BBC Sport. 6 June 2009. Retrieved 20 October 2019.
  4. "Argentina 24–22 England". BBC Sport. 13 June 2009. Retrieved 20 October 2019.
  5. "England 16-9 Argentina". BBC Sport. 14 November 2009. Retrieved 20 October 2019.
  6. "England beat Argentina at home ahead of All Blacks test". BBC Sport. 9 November 2013. Retrieved 20 October 2019.
  7. "England beat Argentina thanks to Denny Solomona's late try". BBC Sport. 10 June 2017. Retrieved 20 October 2019.
  8. Laybourn, Ian (17 June 2017). "England beat Argentina to complete 2-0 rugby Test series victory in eighth successive win over the Pumas". The Independent .
  9. "England up and running with unspectacular victory over Argentina to begin autumn internationals". The Independent . Retrieved 12 October 2023.
  10. "England dismiss feisty Argentina after Tomás Lavanini sees red". The Guardian. 5 October 2019. Retrieved 12 October 2023.
  11. "England 27–10 Argentina: George Ford kicks England to remarkable Rugby World Cup win despite Tom Curry red card". Sky Sports. 9 September 2023. Retrieved 12 October 2023.
  12. "Earl and Dan edge England to victory over Argentina in bronze final". The Guardian. 27 October 2023. Retrieved 5 March 2025.
  13. "George Ford marks milestone by leading England to victory in Argentina". The Guardian. 5 July 2025. Retrieved 6 July 2025.
  14. "Argentina 17-22 England: Jack van Poortvliet scores late to clinch impressive series win". BBC Sport. 12 July 2025. Retrieved 13 July 2025.