Jose Sanchez
Research expert covering society, economy, & politics for Latin America
Rugby union in the United Kingdom and Ireland - statistics & facts
As a global sport, no country can truly claim to be the home of rugby union. However, considering it was in England at the Rugby School, where student William Webb Ellis was reportedly the first to pick up and run with the ball during a game of football, England can at least maintain to be the birthplace of the sport. Nevertheless, the growth of rugby beyond school fields and makeshift amateur fixtures is a tale that also belongs to Scotland, Wales, and Ireland; following the establishment of the Rugby Football Union (RFU) in England in 1871 as the world’s first governing body for rugby, Scotland, Ireland, and Wales all followed suit in establishing their own national governing bodies. In 1883, these nations came together and competed in the inaugural edition of rugby’s oldest international tournament, the Home International Championship, which is today known as the Six Nations Championship.
Meanwhile, there has been a healthy growth in adults playing rugby union in Wales in recent years, which comes as no surprise when considering that Wales recently ranked as the country with the most interest in the Six Nations championship. Across the Irish Sea, rugby union is currently enjoying a golden era, particularly in the men’s professional game, with the Irish national team completing a Grand Slam in the 2023 Six Nations. This has vindicated Sport Ireland’s decision to increase its annual investment to the Irish Rugby Football Union (IRFU) by around 39 percent during the 2022-2024 funding cycle.
Another issue currently facing rugby union in the UK and Ireland, as well as worldwide, is the use of performance-enhancing drugs (PEDs) among players of all levels. As the sport with the most anti-doping active rule violations as of January 2025, the use of PEDS mars the integrity of rugby union. Despite the sport’s problem with PEDs, the number of anti-doping tests performed by the RFU decreased in the 2023/24 season compared to 2019/20. With a look to the future, the national governing bodies will be aware of the need to tackle these problems, however, there is no doubt that rugby union is and will continue to be a bedrock among the UK and Ireland’s sporting institutions.
How many people play rugby union in the United Kingdom and Ireland?
Despite its long-running affinity with the sport, there has been a general decline in participation in rugby union in England in recent years. Among adults, participation in England has gone from around 260,000 individuals aged over 16 playing the sport in 2016 to less than 225,000. In Scotland, rugby union participation rates among Scottish men have also dropped. Interest among women, however, has spiked, with the number of Scottish women playing the sport nearly doubling between 2018/19 and 2023/24.Meanwhile, there has been a healthy growth in adults playing rugby union in Wales in recent years, which comes as no surprise when considering that Wales recently ranked as the country with the most interest in the Six Nations championship. Across the Irish Sea, rugby union is currently enjoying a golden era, particularly in the men’s professional game, with the Irish national team completing a Grand Slam in the 2023 Six Nations. This has vindicated Sport Ireland’s decision to increase its annual investment to the Irish Rugby Football Union (IRFU) by around 39 percent during the 2022-2024 funding cycle.
What are the biggest issues currently facing rugby union?
Although the brand value of the RFU, IRFU, and Welsh Rugby Union (WRU) all exceeded 100 million euros in 2023, there is no doubt who the sport's biggest asset is: the players. Duly, the need to safeguard players from avoidable injuries is imperative, with preventing head injuries one of the sport’s current main priorities; concussions have consistently ranked as the most common injury among professional players in England by some distance. This is by no means a problem only at the professional level, as illustrated by the number of concussions among amateur Irish male rugby union players nearly doubling between 2018/19 and 2022/23. In response to the sport’s problem with head injuries, a lower tackle height was introduced in 2023. Tellingly, the incidence rate of concussions among amateur Irish rugby players more than halved in the 2023/24 season.Another issue currently facing rugby union in the UK and Ireland, as well as worldwide, is the use of performance-enhancing drugs (PEDs) among players of all levels. As the sport with the most anti-doping active rule violations as of January 2025, the use of PEDS mars the integrity of rugby union. Despite the sport’s problem with PEDs, the number of anti-doping tests performed by the RFU decreased in the 2023/24 season compared to 2019/20. With a look to the future, the national governing bodies will be aware of the need to tackle these problems, however, there is no doubt that rugby union is and will continue to be a bedrock among the UK and Ireland’s sporting institutions.
