The Rugby World Cup is a men's rugby union tournament contested every four years between the top international teams. The tournament was first held in 1987, when the tournament was co-hosted by New Zealand and Australia.
The New Zealand men's national rugby union team, commonly known as the All Blacks, represents New Zealand in men's international rugby union, which is considered the country's national sport. The team won the Rugby World Cup in 1987, 2011 and 2015.
The Bledisloe Cup is a rugby union competition between the national teams of Australia and New Zealand that has been contested since the 1930s. The frequency at which the competition is held has varied, as has the number of matches played, but it currently consists of an annual three-match series, reduced to a two-match series in World Cup years, with two of the matches also counting towards The Rugby Championship. New Zealand have had the most success, winning the trophy in 2020 for the 48th time, while Australia have won the trophy 12 times.
The Australia national rugby union team, nicknamed the Wallabies, is the representative national team in the sport of rugby union for the nation of Australia. The team first played at Sydney in 1899, winning their first test match against the touring British Isles team.
The Scotland national rugby union team represents Scotland in men's international rugby union is administered by the Scottish Rugby Union. The team takes part in the annual Six Nations Championship and participates in the Rugby World Cup, which takes place every four years. As of 2 November 2020, Scotland are 7th in the World Rugby Rankings.
The France national rugby union team represents France in men's international rugby union and it is administered by the French Rugby Federation. They traditionally play in blue shirts emblazoned with the national emblem of a golden rooster on a red shield, with white shorts and red socks; thus they are commonly referred to as Les Tricolores or Les Bleus. The team's home matches are mostly played at the Stade de France in the Paris suburb of Saint-Denis. France is ranked 4th in the World Rugby Rankings as of 3 November 2020.
The Canterbury Rugby Football Union is the governing body for rugby union in a portion of the Canterbury region of New Zealand. Its colours are red and black in a hooped design. The CRFU govern the running of the Canterbury representative team which have won New Zealand's first-tier domestic competition National Provincial Championship 14 times including a "six-peat" from 2008 to 2013 – with five in the National Provincial Championship, two in the Air New Zealand Cup, five in the ITM Cup and one in the Mitre 10 Cup. Their most recent victory was the 2017 Mitre 10 Cup. Canterbury also acts as a primary feeder to the Crusaders, who play in the Super Rugby competition.
The Dave Gallaher Trophy is a rugby union trophy, contested between France and New Zealand and named after Dave Gallaher, the 1905–06 All Black captain who was killed in Belgium during World War I.
Michael Cheika is an Australian rugby coach and former player. He was the coach of the Australian national team from 2014 to 2019. In 2015, he received the World Rugby Coach of the Year award.
Sir Stephen William Hansen and High Chief Of Vaiala, is a New Zealand rugby union coach and former rugby union player.
The West Coast Rugby Football Union, formed in 1890, is the official governing body for rugby union in a substantial part of the West Coast region of New Zealand and is affiliated to the New Zealand Rugby Union. The team is based in Greymouth and plays home matches at John Sturgeon Park.
The Army Rugby Union (ARU) is the governing body for rugby union in the British Army and a constituent body of the Rugby Football Union (RFU). The ARU was formed on 31 December 1906 and marked the fulfilment of Lieutenant J. E. C. "Birdie" Partridge's idea to have a body to administer the playing of rugby union in the British Army.
The national rugby union teams of France and New Zealand have been playing each other for over a century; as of 19 October 2015, they have played 56 Test matches against each other. The first encounter, during the historic 1905–1906 All Blacks tour of Europe and North America, which was also France's first Test, took place in Paris in January 1906 and was won by New Zealand 38–8. It was not until their third meeting, in 1954, that France secured their first win over New Zealand (3–0).
France–New Zealand relations refers to international relations between New Zealand and France. Relations between France and New Zealand have been rocky at times, but more recently become much closer. Bilateral relations have been generally good since World War I and World War II, with both countries working closely during the conflicts, but the relationship was severely jeopardised by the sinking of the Rainbow Warrior in Auckland on 10 July 1985 by French Direction Générale de la Sécurité Extérieure (DGSE) agents.
Benjamin Robert Smith is a New Zealand rugby union player, currently representing Pau in the French Top 14. He formerly played for the Highlanders in the Super Rugby competition and for Otago in the ITM Cup.
Josef Schmidt is a New Zealand-born rugby union coach, who was the head coach of Ireland from 2013–2019. In six years under his leadership, Ireland won three Six Nations Championships, and recorded their first-ever wins over his home nation of New Zealand. Schmidt's first head coaching role in Europe was with Leinster Rugby, beginning in 2010. He brought unprecedented success to the province, reaching six finals and winning four trophies in three years. He was previously an assistant coach with the Blues and Clermont Auvergne.
The Royal Navy Rugby Union (RNRU) was formed in 1907 to administer the playing of rugby union in the Royal Navy. It fields a representative side that competes in the Army Navy Match, although a side representing the Royal Navy predates the formation of the union by twenty-eight years. The RNRU also has had a number of international players within its representative squads in all forms of the game. In 2011 the RNRU produced its first women's international as well as providing the captain of England VIIs.
The 2015 Rugby World Cup Final was a rugby union match to determine the winner of the 2015 Rugby World Cup, played between reigning champions New Zealand and their rivals Australia on 31 October 2015 at Twickenham Stadium in London. New Zealand beat Australia 34–17, winning the World Cup for a record third time, and becoming the first team to retain the Webb Ellis Cup.
Charles Brown was a New Zealand rugby union player. A halfback, Brown represented Taranaki at a provincial level, and was a member of the New Zealand national side, the All Blacks, in 1913 and 1920. He played nine matches for the All Blacks including two internationals.
Rieko Edward Ioane is a New Zealand professional rugby union footballer who plays as a wing for New Zealand team Blues in Super Rugby and the New Zealand national team. In his youth career, he was selected to play in the 2014 and 2015 Sevens World Series for New Zealand and took part in Auckland Grammar School first XV, the top representative team in secondary school.
