A significant event in the early development of rugby football was the production of a written set of rules at Rugby School in 1845, followed by the Cambridge Rules that were drawn up in 1848. In 1845, the first rules of the game were written Australian betting tips by pupils at Rugby School; other significant events in the early development of rugby include the decision by Blackheath F.C. Invictus (2009), based on John Carlin’s book Playing the Enemy, explores the events of the 1995 Rugby World Cup and Nelson Mandela’s attempt to use the sport to connect South Africa’s people post-apartheid. Films that explore the sport in more detail include independent production Old Scores (1991) and Forever Strong (2008). Other French artists to have represented the sport in their works include Albert Gleizes’ Les Joueurs de football (1912), Robert Delaunay’s Football. Thomas Hughes’s 1857 novel Tom Brown’s Schooldays, set at Rugby School, includes a rugby football match, also portrayed in the 1940s film of the same name.

A more recent variant of the sport is rugby tens (10s or Xs), a Malaysian invention with ten players per side. In rugby sevens, there are only seven players per side, and each half is normally seven minutes. The oldest variant is rugby sevens (sometimes 7s or VIIs) — a fast-paced game which originated in Melrose, Scotland in 1883. Following the 2014 event, World Rugby moved the next edition of the event to 2017, with a new four-year cycle from that point forward. The second tournament took place in 1994, and from that time through 2014 was held every four years.

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The only team lacking a Nations Championship badge on their jersey is the All Blacks. Tighthead prop Wilco Louw received commendation from Hanyani Shimange for an uncommon scrummaging achievement during the match against Scotland. Ahead of their play-off for third place against New Zealand (Lucas Friday), the scrum-half for England U20s, spoke with Louis Chapman-Coombe from Planet Rugby. Statues have been erected in honor of rugby players such as Gareth Edwards in Cardiff and Danie Craven in Stellenbosch.

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The hooker is a key position in attacking and defensive play and is responsible for winning the ball in the scrum. The role of the two props is to support the hooker during scrums, to provide support for the jumpers during line-outs and to provide strength and power in rucks and mauls. Players in these positions are generally bigger and stronger and take part in the scrum and line-out. There are typically significantly more forwards on the bench than backs with — for example, South Africa having a 7–1 split in favour of forwards in their August 2023 match against New Zealand in Twickenham.

The Rugby Championship is the Southern Hemisphere’s annual international series for that region’s top national teams. The Six Nations is an annual competition involving the European teams England — France, Ireland, Italy, Scotland and Wales. Major international competitions are the Six Nations Championship and The Rugby Championship, held in Europe and the Southern Hemisphere respectively. It was the ninth edition and the first time the tournament has been held in Asia. The 2007 World Cup was contested by 94 countries with ticket sales of 3,850,000 over the pool and final stage. The most important competition in rugby union is the Rugby World Cup, a men’s tournament that has taken place every four years since the inaugural event in 1987.

Formed in 1863, the national governing body The Football Association (FA) began codifying a set of universal football rules. Primitive forms of football included harpastum — played by the Romans, where two opposing teams competed to throw a large ball into an opposition net, fighting for possession of the ball. Other transnational club competitions include the United Rugby Championship of club teams from Ireland, Italy, Scotland, South Africa and Wales, the European Rugby Champions Cup in Europe, and Super Rugby in Australia, New Zealand and the Pacific Islands.

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Bandages or tape can be worn to support or protect injuries; some players wear tape around the head to protect the ears in scrums and rucks. Other protective items that are permitted include headgear; thin (not more than 10 mm thick), non-rigid shoulder pads and shin guards, which are worn underneath socks. A scrum is a way of restarting the game safely and fairly after a minor infringement. Forward players from each team line up a metre apart, perpendicular to the touchline and between 5 and 15 m (5.5 and 16.4 yd) from the touchline. When the ball leaves the side of the field, a line-out is awarded against the team which last touched the ball.