List of rugby union playing countries

This list shows each country which has a union affiliated to World Rugby, the international governing body for rugby union. It also shows the number of registered clubs playing in each country, official referees and the number of registered players broken down by gender and age group.

In 2016, the total number of registered players increased from 2.82 million to 3.2 million while the total number of non-registered rugby players rose from 4.91 million to 5.3 million. South Africa has the most registered players with 651,146 and England the most players overall with 2,139,604. [1]


Country No. of Clubs Registered players Referees Under 13 boys Under 13 girls Teen males Teen females Senior males Senior females Total males Total females Total players
American Samoa[2] 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Andorra[3] 2 213 1 70 5 65 4 54 15 189 24 213
Argentina[4][5] 420 102790 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 102543 247 102790
Armenia[6] 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Australia[7][nb 1] 767 86952 4900 26664 0 19239 0 39380 1669 85283 1669 86952
Austria[8] 26 1747 18 80 35 190 42 1327 73 1597 150 1747
Azerbaijan[9] 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Bahamas[10] 6 635 20 10 10 150 15 400 50 560 75 635
Barbados[11] 6 321 7 26 0 123 14 135 23 284 37 321
Belgium[12] 58 14266 192 4564 857 3580 503 4121 641 12265 2001 14266
Bermuda[13] 8 701 11 220 33 125 40 192 91 537 164 701
Bosnia & Herzegovina[14] 9 911 23 292 54 186 71 245 63 723 188 911
Botswana[15] 12 5395 20 260 70 2800 1500 630 135 3690 1705 5395
Brazil[16] 230 10130 74 800 100 2915 150 5541 624 9256 874 10130
British Virgin Isles[17] 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Bulgaria[18] 36 3121 48 1225 182 1109 177 367 61 2701 420 3121
Burundi[19] 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Cambodia[20] 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Cameroon[21] 32 1722 37 212 12 375 22 1049 52 1636 86 1722
Canada[22] 309 23853 605 3337 411 5999 1997 9032 3077 18368 5485 23853
Cayman[23] 4 2200 30 388 182 961 251 305 113 1654 546 2200
Chile[24] 26 18755 338 8049 127 5448 168 4830 133 18327 428 18755
China[25] 15 5430 70 70 60 600 200 3900 600 4570 860 5430
Chinese Taipei[26] 13 1800 101 200 0 500 0 1000 100 1700 100 1800
Colombia[27] 76 5414 88 450 0 1924 21 2784 235 5158 256 5414
Cook Islands[28] 21 2258 82 675 434 469 104 526 50 1670 588 2258
Croatia[29] 21 2142 23 809 25 511 22 733 42 2053 89 2142
Czech Republic[30] 22 5382 110 1843 201 1321 149 1697 171 4861 521 5382
Denmark[31] 27 2606 74 203 52 296 56 1766 233 2265 341 2606
England[32] 1809 340347 321 694899 408072 602564 129121 131399 24933 1428862 562126 1990988
Fiji[33] 490 36030 309 22500 0 5200 60 8000 270 35700 330 36030
Finland[34] 18 770 35 0 0 25 4 265 80 290 84 374
France[35] 1798 360847 2095 165497 4444 57557 2360 124079 6910 347133 13714 360847
Georgia[36] 46 4181 45 940 12 2332 5 878 14 4150 31 4181
Germany[37] 108 11656 319 2083 333 3301 527 4639 773 10023 1633 11656
Ghana[38] 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Greece[39] 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Guam[40] 3 912 12 162 112 284 230 96 28 542 370 912
Guyana[41] 3 1324 25 400 105 315 75 295 134 1010 314 1324
Hong Kong[42] 59 7525 86 1998 1332 1270 500 1813 612 5081 2444 7525
Hungary[43] 33 2207 34 181 21 865 59 1002 79 2048 159 2207
India[44] 96 22282 98 2936 1367 9481 4806 2982 710 15399 6883 22282
Indonesia[45] 16 830 6 40 3 291 72 402 22 733 97 830
Iran[46] 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Ireland[47] 221 153080 2380 57409 6900 57867 2700 25440 2764 140716 12364 153080
Israel[48] 12 755 15 60 0 300 20 300 75 660 95 755
Italy[49] 784 66176 857 28364 3240 17220 488 15848 1016 61432 4744 66176
Ivory Coast[50] 14 5383 45 1905 142 2645 201 470 20 5020 363 5383
Jamaica[51] 9 2090 30 484 117 1120 56 276 37 1880 210 2090
Japan[52] 1522 122368 4545 31945 3937 37294 352 48470 370 117709 4659 122368
Kazakhstan[53] 12 2650 21 525 380 588 470 344 343 1457 1193 2650
Kenya[54] 60 42904 518 4446 2518 27930 580 6772 658 39148 3756 42904
Korea[55] 5 2620 80 200 150 880 10 1300 80 2380 240 2620
Kyrgyzstan[56] 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Lao[57] 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Latvia[58] 16 795 21 50 13 290 52 372 18 712 83 795
Lithuania[59] 16 1544 22 112 0 670 18 730 14 1512 32 1544
Luxembourg[60] 3 2437 7 721 402 625 276 348 65 1694 743 2437
Madagascar[61] 410 22540 160 1080 170 3600 170 16750 770 21430 1110 22540
Malaysia[62] 300 60030 702 15000 0 20000 0 25000 30 60000 30 60030
Mali[63] 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Malta[64] 7 585 8 69 0 135 8 292 81 496 89 585
Mauritania[65] 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Mauritius[66] 7 410 9 50 0 160 30 155 15 365 45 410
Mexico[67] 26 3454 54 665 476 831 350 968 164 2464 990 3454
Moldova[68] 7 2610 55 490 242 1138 281 379 80 2007 603 2610
Monaco[69] 2 165 4 52 0 59 0 52 2 163 2 165
Mongolia[70] 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Morocco[71] 20 7331 80 748 30 2934 30 3489 100 7171 160 7331
Namibia[72] 27 14226 26 8000 0 5000 18 1084 124 14084 142 14226
Netherlands[73] 82 8869 260 1432 101 2202 155 4386 593 8020 849 8869
New Zealand[74] 600 156893 2255 64794 9540 40390 3521 27726 922 132910 13983 146893
Nigeria[75] 17 6198 10 915 572 3421 720 510 60 4846 1352 6196
Niue Islands[76] 6 405 9 70 40 80 40 150 25 300 105 405
Norway[77] 27 1502 24 168 47 369 120 612 186 1149 353 1502
Pakistan[78] 49 4012 21 300 0 1810 25 1859 18 3969 43 4012
Papua New Guinea[79] 72 3200 52 150 50 400 100 2290 210 2840 360 3200
Paraguay[80] 21 3568 39 200 0 1820 80 1420 48 3440 128 3568
Peru[81] 11 950 15 150 10 220 0 500 70 870 80 950
Philippines[82] 13 1300 11 300 75 200 75 500 150 1000 300 1300
Poland[83] 58 5963 59 1075 59 1541 48 3143 97 5759 204 5963
Portugal[84] 46 5270 52 1152 0 2749 0 1040 329 4941 329 5270
Romania[85] 83 9612 199 4915 320 3067 150 1048 112 9030 582 9612
Russia[86] 105 14519 89 2878 0 6853 835 3633 320 13364 1155 14519
Rwanda[87] 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Samoa[88] 140 23372 600 9279 4149 1792 212 7690 250 18761 4611 23372
Scotland[89] 251 38500 360 9541 324 15009 1297 11687 642 36237 2263 38500
Senegal[90] 13 3350 19 1400 50 1000 110 720 70 3120 230 3350
Serbia[91] 12 1352 25 273 72 360 19 605 23 1238 114 1352
Singapore[92] 24 9690 90 2448 918 3366 1428 1020 510 6834 2856 9690
Slovenia[93] 7 480 5 140 10 30 10 260 30 430 50 480
Solomon Islands[94] 48 3158 75 324 20 766 108 1800 140 2890 268 3150
South Africa[95] 1526 651146 3460 320842 4522 199213 4906 113174 8489 633229 17917 651146
Spain[96] 210 20016 311 1812 129 7426 354 9588 707 18826 1190 20016
Sri Lanka[97] 98 103325 396 35200 14110 48552 958 3850 655 87602 15723 103325
St Lucia[98] 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
St. Vincent & The Grenadines[99] 6 1036 3 205 109 415 127 140 40 760 276 1036
Swaziland[100] 14 18920 43 4700 5100 4850 3100 740 430 10290 8630 18920
Sweden[101] 41 3507 63 350 110 850 244 1452 501 2652 855 3507
Switzerland[102] 30 2384 52 456 28 484 18 1274 124 2214 170 2384
Tahiti[103] 18 1617 14 492 216 328 96 403 82 1223 394 1617
Tanzania[104] 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Thailand[105] 169 17732 104 2541 385 5522 1663 5716 1905 13779 3953 17732
Tonga[106] 82 6891 8 370 0 3472 0 3049 0 6891 0 6891
Trinidad & Tobago[107] 14 5060 58 1038 422 1798 341 1336 125 4172 888 5060
Tunisia[108] 74 16218 93 4489 1304 5622 1958 1919 926 12030 4188 16218
Uganda[109] 17 14110 114 4900 2200 5900 400 560 150 11360 2750 14110
Ukraine[110] 44 2880 68 800 50 1100 30 800 100 2700 180 2880
Uruguay[111] 23 6065 64 2896 10 1803 98 1219 39 5918 147 6065
United States[112] 2588 88151 2061 178819 150267 47323 19594 50211 11769 276353 181630 457983
Uzbekistan[113] 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Vanuatu[114] 12 2520 22 500 50 720 60 1100 90 2320 200 2520
Venezuela[115] 34 2415 30 60 20 380 25 1650 280 2090 325 2415
Wales[116][117] 250 50557 2053 12318 100 14500 492 22408 739 49226 1331 50557
Zambia[118] 20 10200 40 4100 400 3600 300 1600 200 9300 900 10200
Zimbabwe[119] 17 22163 44 7900 0 12975 425 768 95 21643 520 22163
Totals[nb 2] 18,633 4,504,188 32,972 1,552,495 476,498 1,337,930 181,589 772,443 80,443 3,765,411 738,034 4,503,445

Footnotes
Notes
  1. Australia: Data listed in the table, including the total of 86,952 registered players, is from the archived IRB webpage as at 25 September 2011,[nb 3] which allows for comparison to figures from other countries sourced from the same website in the same time frame. Participation figures recorded in later archives from the IRB include both registered and unregistered players (totals over 297,000 in 2012,[nb 4] and over 482,000 in 2014,[nb 5] and are therefore not useful in comparison to the rest of the table). Other sources, such as Ausport, put the overall number of rugby players as low as 42,100 but this is based on older data from 1999–2000.[nb 6][nb 7]
  2. The totals for all the age groups combined fail to match the total due to Argentina's failure to supply breakdown figures for age group and gender. Assuming total players as correct figure.
  4. "Australia". IRB. Archived from the original on 5 October 2012. Retrieved 4 May 2016.
  5. "119 countries... 6.6 million players" (PDF). IRB. 2014. Archived from the original (PDF) on 7 July 2014. Retrieved 4 May 2016.
  6. "Active Australia: The Numbers Game" (PDF). Ausport. March 2000. p. 12. Archived from the original (PDF) on 26 July 2008. Retrieved 4 May 2016.
  7. "Rugby Union Profile, Ausport" (PDF). Ausport. March 2000. Archived from the original (PDF) on 26 July 2008. Retrieved 21 October 2014.
References
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  54. "Kenya". IRB. Archived from the original on 7 October 2011. Retrieved 25 September 2011.
  55. "Korea". IRB. Archived from the original on 28 September 2011. Retrieved 25 September 2011.
  56. "Kyrgyzstan". IRB. Archived from the original on 28 September 2011. Retrieved 25 September 2011.
  57. "Lao". IRB. Archived from the original on 28 September 2011. Retrieved 25 September 2011.
  58. "Latvia". IRB. Archived from the original on 30 September 2011. Retrieved 25 September 2011.
  59. "Lithuania". IRB. Archived from the original on 30 September 2011. Retrieved 25 September 2011.
  60. "Luxembourg". IRB. Archived from the original on 30 September 2011. Retrieved 25 September 2011.
  61. "Madagascar". IRB. Archived from the original on 30 September 2011. Retrieved 25 September 2011.
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  67. "Mexico". IRB. Archived from the original on 28 September 2011. Retrieved 25 September 2011.
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  69. "Monaco". IRB. Archived from the original on 30 September 2011. Retrieved 25 September 2011.
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  72. "Namibia". IRB. Archived from the original on 26 September 2011. Retrieved 25 September 2011.
  73. "Netherlands". IRB. Archived from the original on 28 September 2011. Retrieved 10 June 2012.
  74. "New Zealand". IRB. Archived from the original on 24 June 2012. Retrieved 10 June 2012.
  75. "Nigeria". IRB. Archived from the original on 30 September 2011. Retrieved 25 September 2011.
  76. "Niue Islands". IRB. Archived from the original on 25 September 2011. Retrieved 25 September 2011.
  77. "Norway". IRB. Archived from the original on 26 September 2011. Retrieved 25 September 2011.
  78. "Pakistan". IRB. Archived from the original on 28 September 2011. Retrieved 25 September 2011.
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  80. "Paraguay". IRB. Archived from the original on 30 September 2011. Retrieved 25 September 2011.
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  109. "Uganda". IRB. Archived from the original on 1 October 2011. Retrieved 25 September 2011.
  110. "Ukraine". IRB. Archived from the original on 3 September 2011. Retrieved 25 September 2011.
  111. "Uruguay". IRB. Archived from the original on 11 November 2012. Retrieved 25 September 2011.
  112. "USA". IRB. Archived from the original on 11 May 2012. Retrieved 10 June 2012.
  113. "Uzbekistan". IRB. Archived from the original on 3 October 2011. Retrieved 25 September 2011.
  114. "Vanuatu". IRB. Archived from the original on 25 September 2011. Retrieved 25 September 2011.
  115. "Venezuela". IRB. Retrieved 25 September 2011.
  116. "Wales". IRB. Archived from the original on 3 September 2011. Retrieved 25 September 2011.
  117. "Wales". WRU. Retrieved 25 September 2011.
  118. "Zambia". IRB. Archived from the original on 11 May 2011. Retrieved 25 September 2011.
  119. "Zimbabwe". IRB. Archived from the original on 30 September 2011. Retrieved 25 September 2011.
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