Rugby union at the Mediterranean Games has been played four times from 1955 to 1993.
Rugby union at the Mediterranean Games has been played four times from 1955 to 1993.
| Year | Host | Gold medal game | Bronze medal game | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gold medalist | Score | Silver medalist | Bronze medalist | Score | Fourth place | ||||
| 1955 Details |  Barcelona |  France | n/a |  Italy |  Spain | ||||
| 1979 Details |  Split | France | n/a | Italy |  Morocco |  Yugoslavia | |||
| 1983 Details |  Casablanca | France | n/a | Italy | Morocco | Spain | |||
| 1993 Details |  Languedoc | France | n/a | Italy | Spain |  Croatia | |||
^n/a A round-robin tournament determined the final standings.
| Rank | Nation | Gold | Silver | Bronze | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | France | 4 | 0 | 0 | 4 |
| 2 |  Italy | 0 | 4 | 0 | 4 |
| 3 | Morocco | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 |
 Spain | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 | |
| Totals (4 nations) | 4 | 4 | 4 | 12 | |
Rugby football is a collective name for the family of team sports of rugby union and rugby league, as well as the earlier forms of football from which both games, as well as Australian rules football and gridiron football, evolved.
Rugby union, commonly known simply as rugby, is a close-contact team sport that originated in England in the first half of the 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand. In its most common form, a game is played between two teams of 15 players each, using an oval-shaped ball on a rectangular field called a pitch. The field has H-shaped goalposts at both ends.
Rugby sevens is a variant of rugby union in which teams are made up of seven players playing seven-minute halves, instead of the usual 15 players playing 40-minute halves. Rugby sevens is administered by World Rugby, the body responsible for rugby union worldwide. The game is popular at all levels, with amateur and club tournaments generally held in the summer months. Sevens is one of the most well distributed forms of rugby, and is popular in parts of Africa, Asia, Europe, and the Americas, and especially in the South Pacific.
Rugby union has been a men's medal sport at the modern Summer Olympic Games, being played at four of the first seven competitions. The sport debuted at the 1900 Paris games where the gold medal was won by the host nation. It was subsequently featured at the London games in 1908, the Antwerp games in 1920 and the Paris games in 1924.
Twickenham Stadium in Twickenham, south-west London, England, is a rugby union stadium owned by the Rugby Football Union (RFU), English rugby union governing body, which has its headquarters there. The England national rugby union team plays home matches at the stadium.
The France national rugby league team represent France in international rugby league matches. They are referred to as les Chanticleers or less commonly as les Tricolores. The team is run under the auspices of the Fédération Française de Rugby à XIII.
Estadi Olímpic Lluís Companys is a stadium in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain. Originally built in 1927 for the 1929 International Exposition in the city, it was renovated in 1989 to be the main stadium for the 1992 Summer Olympics and 1992 Summer Paralympics.
Rugby union is a growing team sport in Spain. As of 2019, there were 37,241 registered rugby union players in Spain, playing for 332 clubs in various divisions. The sport's governing body in Spain, the Spanish Rugby Federation, was founded in 1923. It joined the International Rugby Board in 1988, and is also a member of Rugby Europe.
The Māori All Blacks, previously called the New Zealand Māori, New Zealand Maoris and New Zealand Natives, are a rugby union team from New Zealand. They are a representative team of the New Zealand Rugby Union, and a prerequisite for playing is that the player has Māori whakapapa (genealogy). In the past this rule was not strictly applied; non–Māori players who looked Māori were often selected in the team. These included a few Pacific island players and a couple of African descent. Today all players have their ancestry verified before selection in the team.
The 1955 Mediterranean Games, officially known as the II Mediterranean Games, and commonly known as Barcelona 1955, were the 2nd Mediterranean Games. The Games were held in Barcelona, Spain over 10 days, from 15 to 25 July 1955, where 1,135 athletes from 10 countries participated. There were a total of 102 medal events from 19 different sports. In the medals table France was first on the podium, Italy second and Spain came third.
The 1959 Mediterranean Games, officially known as the III Mediterranean Games, and commonly known as Beirut 1959, were the 3rd Mediterranean Games. After visiting Africa and Europe, the Mediterranean Games were for the first time held in Asia in Beirut, Lebanon, thus completing the trio of continents belonging to the Mediterranean Sea.
The 1979 Mediterranean Games, officially known as the VIII Mediterranean Games, and commonly known as Split 1979, were the 8th Mediterranean Games. The Games were held in Split, Yugoslavia, from 15 to 29 September 1979, where 2,408 athletes from 14 countries participated. There were a total of 192 medal events from 26 different sports.
The IX Mediterranean Games, commonly known as the 1983 Mediterranean Games, were the 9th Mediterranean Games. The Games were held in Casablanca, Morocco, from 3 to 17 September 1983, where 2,192 athletes from 16 countries participated. There were a total of 162 medal events from 20 different sports.
The XII Mediterranean Games, commonly known as the 1993 Mediterranean Games, were the 12th Mediterranean Games. The Games were held in Languedoc-Roussillon, France, from 16 June to 27 June 1993, where 2,598 athletes from 19 countries participated. There were a total of 221 medal events from 25 different sports.
France A, also known as France XV and France B in the past, was the former name of the second national rugby union team of France behind the French national side.
A test match in rugby union is an international match, usually played between two senior national teams, that is recognised as such by at least one of the teams' national governing bodies.
Sport in Algeria dates back to antiquity. In the Aurès Mountains, people played games such as El Kherdba or El khergueba. Playing cards, checkers and chess games are part of Algerian culture. Horse racing (fantasia) and rifle shooting are among the recreational traditions of Algeria.
Jean-Luc Joinel is a retired French international rugby union player. He played as a Flanker for CA Brive. He earned his first cap with the French national team on 11 November 1977 against New Zealand at Toulouse.
Rugby sevens at the 2016 Summer Olympics was held over six days in August 2016 in Rio de Janeiro. The 2016 Olympics was the debut for rugby sevens at the Summer Olympics, though rugby union was last played at the 1924 games.
Giancarlo Pivetta is a former Italian rugby union player and a current coach. He played as a prop and as a hooker.