Introduction to Rugby

Rugby is a thrilling, dynamic sport that captivates audiences around the world. It is an amazing blend of brute force and power between heavyweight forwards and speed and creativity from players in the back line.

It leads to spectacular encounters, and rugby shines the brightest on the international stage, with big events like the Rugby World Cup, Six Nations, and the Rugby Championship.

Union vs League

There are different formats of rugby, and the main ones, Rugby Union and Rugby League, came about due to a split in the sport back in the 19th century. Typically, when the sport is being talked about, Rugby Union is being referred to as it’s the most popular version of the game.

Another version of rugby which continues to grow in popularity, is Sevens. This is a reduced version of the game, with just seven players on each side, played on a smaller pitch with an emphasis on attacking running. 

History of Rugby

Rugby originated in England in the early 19th century. The sport gets its name from Rugby School, situated in the town of Rugby, where it took shape. Versions of the sport were played before that, but it was in Rugby that the first formal rules were shaped in 1845.

In the late 1800s, a team called Blackheath FC decided to leave the governing body, The Football Association, due to a class and geographic divide. In the north of England, teams were mostly working class, and southern teams were predominantly middle class. The northern teams, who felt underrepresented, decided to pull away.

The schism in the sport gave rise to the growth of both formats, not only across England, Scotland, Wales and Ireland but further afield in places like France, Australia, New Zealand and South Africa. Rugby was played in four of the first seven editions of the Olympic Games and had a run of three consecutive appearances from 2016 through to 2024 with the Sevens format. 

Basic Rules of Rugby

The objective of rugby, which is played with an oval-shaped ball, is to earn points by scoring tries and making successful kicks at goal. A team grounding the ball in the opposition’s in-goal area is awarded a try and is worth five points. 

A further two points can be added by making a successful conversion kick between the upright posts, which stand at least 16m (52.5 feet) tall. Three points can also be claimed from kicking a penalty goal or a drop goal.

In rugby, the ball can only be passed laterally or backwards, and any forward pass is penalised, but the ball can be kicked ahead to try and gain territory. In rugby union, play can continue unbroken until the ball goes into touch or an infringement happens. The defending team tackles the attacking ball carrier. The grounded player must release the ball, resulting in a ruck, which is when players compete over the top of the tackled player to gain possession. 

A scrum is formed as a way to restart the game after an infringement, such as the ball being knocked forward. Eight specialist players from each side link together in a scrum to compete for the ball in a pushing contest. 

Union has 15 players per side and relies heavily on skilled set pieces like scrums and line-outs. Rugby League only has 13 players per side, and teams only have a set number of plays (six) before they have to either kick the ball or turn it over to the opposition.

Popularity of Rugby in Different Countries

It’s estimated that there are 10 million-plus rugby players worldwide and over 100 full-member unions operating under World Rugby, the sport’s governing body. 

The giants of the Southern Hemisphere are New Zealand, Australia and South Africa, all of which have won the Rugby World Cup. Those three competed in the Tri-Nations before it was expanded to include Argentina and reformatted to the Rugby Championship in 2012. 

In the Northern Hemisphere, the top tournament is the Six Nations, where England, Ireland, Scotland, Wales, France and Italy compete for the annual honour. Some of the biggest rugby matches, though, happen when teams from the Northern Hemisphere clash with those from the South in annual Test matches. 

Rugby has also grown in other areas of the world, like North America, South America, and Japan. As a result, the Rugby World Cup is set to expand to 24 teams from 2027 onwards. The tournament’s growth helps to promote the game further in countries like Samoa, Namibia, Romania, and Portugal, all of which have appeared in the tournament before.

The international game is supported by the professional club level of competitions. In Europe, the big ones are the English Premiership, the United Rugby Championship and the European Champions Cup, while Australia’s Super Rugby dominates the club scene in the Southern Hemisphere.

Popular Bets in Rugby

Rugby betting can be approached in many ways, with one of the most popular options being to pick the winner of a match. Draws can happen in rugby, but they are rare. When a rugby match looks one-sided with a heavy favourite, then bettors can switch to other betting options like the popular handicap market.

A handicap in rugby betting is giving a team a virtual advantage or disadvantage. An England -5.5 handicap, for example, would require them to win by at least six points, or if Argentina were +6.5 against New Zealand, they couldn’t lose by more than six points. Handicap markets are a great way of levelling teams from a betting perspective. Other popular rugby betting markets are:

• Winning Margin
• First Try scorer
• Total Points Over/Under
• Team to Score First
• Race to 10 points
• Half Time Result
• Half-Time/Full-Time

Long-term forecasts on outright bets are also popular as bettors like to try and predict the outcome of competitions, like the winner of the Six Nations or domestic leagues like the English Premiership, before a tournament has even started.

Interest in both the sport and rugby betting gathers the greatest momentum around the time of major international tournaments like the Rugby World Cup, with casual punters looking to get in on the action as well.