Rugby

Rugby is a type of football. It is played with an oval ball and players can both kick or run with it. There are two types of rugby: in Rugby Union there are teams of 15 players, who are amateurs, and it is played by England, Wales, Scotland, Ireland (a joint team from both Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland), France, South Africa, Australia and New Zealand. There are regular matches between these countries. In Rugby League there are 13 players in a team, the players are all professionals and it is mostly played in the north of England and Australia.

Rugby takes its name from Rugby School in the Midlands. In 1823, a boy playing football at the school picked up the ball and ran with it.

Michael Vaughan-Rees, Geraldine Sweeney, Picot Cassidy: In Britain. 21st Century Edition, Cornelsen Verlag, 2000, page 61