The Rugby World Cup qualification process determines the nations that will participate at the Rugby World Cup.
The first three World Cups did not have any qualifying process. All the teams that attended were invited to participate. The 2002 Women's Rugby World Cup had the first and only qualification match, it was between Hong Kong and Japan, with the latter qualifying. The rest of the teams were invited to the tournament.
The 2006 Women's Rugby World Cup qualification was identical to the previous tournament as they only had one qualifying tournament in Asia. Kazakhstan qualified, although it was not their first appearance. In 2008, the Rugby World Cup Limited Board chairman, Bernard Lapasset announced a global qualification process for the 2010 Women's Rugby World Cup. [1] However, not all member unions of the International Rugby Board were given an opportunity to qualify.
The 2014 Women's Rugby World Cup qualification had six teams that qualified automatically and six teams that qualified via regional tournaments. Africa had its first regional qualification. [2]
The introduction of the repechage tournament in the 2017 World Cup qualifiers gave Hong Kong their first World Cup appearance. Seven teams automatically qualified for the tournament, England, Canada, France, Ireland, New Zealand, USA and Australia. [3] The remaining five spots were determined through regional tournaments. [4] [5]
| Continental zone | 1991  | 1994  | 1998  | 2002  | 2006  | 2010  | 2014  | 2017  | 2021  |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total World Cup spots | 12 | 12 | 16 | 16 | 12 | 12 | 12 | 12 | 12 |
| Africa | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 4 |
| Americas | 2 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 4 |
| Asia | 1 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 4 | 4 | 7 | 2 | 7 |
| Oceania | 1 | 0 | 2 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 4 | 6 |
| Europe | 8 | 8 | 12 | 10 | 5 | 8 | 12 | 12 | 9 |
| Total entrants | 12 | 12 | 16 | 17 | 15 | 18 | 26 | 20 | 30 |
The 2007 Rugby World Cup was the sixth Rugby World Cup, a quadrennial international rugby union competition inaugurated in 1987. Twenty nations competed for the Webb Ellis Cup in the tournament, which was hosted by France from 7 September to 20 October. France won the hosting rights in 2003, beating a bid from England. The competition consisted of 48 matches over 44 days; 42 matches were played in ten cities throughout France, as well as four in Cardiff, Wales, and two in Edinburgh, Scotland.
Rugby World Cup qualification is a process that determines which nations will compete at the Rugby World Cup, a men's rugby union competition.
For the 1991 Rugby World Cup, 16 nations participated in the finals tournament, half of which came through qualifying matches, and the other were granted automatic entry as they were quarter-finalists at the 1987 Rugby World Cup. The 25 teams taking part in regional qualifiers together with the 8 teams which qualified automatically brings to 33 the total number of teams participating in the 1991 Rugby World Cup.
The qualification process for the 2003 Rugby World Cup began during the pool stages of the 1999 tournament in Wales, during which the quarterfinalists were awarded automatic qualification for the 2003 event. A further twelve teams qualified through regional tournaments and the repechage process.
2011 Rugby World Cup qualifying began at the 2007 tournament in France, where twelve teams earned a place in the finals of the tournament, this automatically qualified them for the 2011 Rugby World Cup in New Zealand.
The qualification process for the 2015 Rugby World Cup began during the pool stages of the 2011 tournament in New Zealand, during which the top three teams from each of the four pools were awarded automatic qualification for the 2015 event. A further eight teams qualified through regional tournaments and the repechage process. The tournament was held in England; it began on 18 September 2015 and finished on 31 October.
The 2023 Rugby World Cup is scheduled to be the tenth Rugby World Cup, the quadrennial world championship for men's rugby union teams. It is scheduled to take place in France from 8 September to 28 October 2023 in nine venues across the country. The opening match and final will take place at the Stade de France, in the commune of Saint-Denis, north of Paris. The tournament will take place in the bicentenary year of the "invention" of the sport by William Webb Ellis. Originally, the tournament was scheduled to last the typical six weeks; however, on 23 February 2021, World Rugby announced an additional week to accommodate the additional rest day requirement for player welfare. This means that teams will have a minimum of five rest days for all matches, optimising recovery and preparation for the tournament. It will be the third time France has hosted the Rugby World Cup, having previously hosted the 2007 Rugby World Cup, as well as the 1991 Rugby World Cup as joint hosts with England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales. It precedes the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris and will take place less than a year before the Olympic opening ceremony.
The qualification process for the 2019 Rugby World Cup in Japan began during the pool stages of the 2015 tournament in England, during which the top three teams from each of the four pools were awarded automatic qualification for the 2019 event. A further eight teams qualified through regional, cross-regional tournaments and the repechage process.
The qualification process for the 2017 Women's Rugby World Cup began on 14 February 2015. Twelve teams qualified for the tournament, which was held in Ireland in 2017.
The 2018 Hong Kong Sevens was the 43rd edition of the Hong Kong Sevens tournament, and the seventh tournament of the 2017–18 World Rugby Sevens Series. The performance from this tournament determined the first fourteen seedings of the 2018 Rugby World Cup Sevens tournament alongside the past year's series and the previous six event of the 2017–18 season.
This is the qualifications of the 2018 Rugby World Cup Sevens aimed at selecting men's rugby sevens national teams that appeared in the finals in San Francisco. A total of 55 nations took part in the qualifying process.
The qualification process for the inaugural women's tournament of the 2009 Rugby World Cup Sevens. There are no automatic qualifiers, so all national teams qualified by way of regional tournaments. Unlike the men's tournament, the Arabian Gulf did not prequalify as hosts. The qualification process allocated two slots for Africa, two for North America/West Indies, one for South America, three for Asia, six for Europe and two for Oceania.
The qualification process of women's teams for the 2013 Rugby World Cup Sevens. Automatic qualification was extended to the host and the four semifinalists of the previous cup's tournament. The remaining spots were contested in each of the six regions' respective tournaments.
The 2021 Rugby World Cup is the ninth edition of the Women's Rugby World Cup, as organized by World Rugby. It is scheduled to be held from 8 October to 12 November 2022 in Auckland and Whangārei, New Zealand. It was originally scheduled to be held in 2021, but was postponed by one year due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Twelve teams qualified for men's rugby sevens at the 2020 Summer Olympics. Japan automatically qualified as host, with the top four teams of the 2018–19 World Rugby Sevens Series securing their spots. Afterwards, qualification was determined with each of the six continental confederations determining a representative, and the remaining qualification spot determined through an international sevens tournament.
The qualification process for the 2023 Rugby World Cup in France began during the pool stages of the 2019 tournament in Japan, at which the top three teams from each of the four pools qualified automatically for the 2023 event. A further eight teams will qualify through regional, cross-regional play-offs and the repechage process.
The qualification process for the 2021 Rugby World Cup began on 9 August 2019 with 12 teams qualifying to the tournament which will be held in New Zealand. The 2021 Rugby World Cup was postponed by one year in March 2021 to 2022 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The 2021–22 Rugby Africa Cup, which doubled as Qualifying for the 2023 Rugby World Cup for Africa began in June 2021, where teams competed for one direct qualification spot into the final World Cup tournament and for one place in the Final Qualification Tournament.
This is the qualifying process for the 2022 Rugby World Cup Sevens with the aim of selecting the men's national rugby sevens teams that will compete in the tournament in Cape Town, South Africa. A total of 59 nations took part in the qualifying process.
This is the qualifying process for the 2022 Rugby World Cup Sevens with the aim of selecting the women's national rugby sevens teams that will compete in the tournament in Cape Town, South Africa. A total of 47 nations took part in the qualifying process.