Rugby union has established itself as a popular sport for both spectators and participants, particularly in Australia, Argentina, Cook Islands, England, Fiji, France, Georgia, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Madagascar, New Zealand, Niue, Namibia, Romania, Samoa, Scotland, Solomon Islands, South Africa, Tonga, and Wales.
Other places with lasting traditions in rugby football, as a minority sport in most cases, include Andorra, Barbados, Belgium, Bermuda, Brazil, Canada, Chile, Côte d'Ivoire, Cuba, Czech Republic, Denmark, Germany, Hong Kong, India, Kenya, Latvia, Malaysia, Moldova, Morocco, The Netherlands, Pakistan, Papua New Guinea, Paraguay, Poland, Portugal, Russia, Singapore, South Korea, Spain, Sri Lanka, Switzerland, Tunisia, Uganda, Ukraine, Uruguay, the United States, Venezuela, Zambia, and Zimbabwe.
In April 2010 Lithuania broke the record of consecutive international wins previously held by New Zealand and South Africa,which was 17 consecutive wins against tier 1 nations, with their 18th win in tier 2 in a match against Serbia.
The United States are the most recent Olympic gold medalists; an American team stacked with American football players won the event at the Paris Olympics in 1924, which was the last year rugby union was played at the games. Large numbers of players are active in North America, and the USA regularly qualify for World Cups, while Canada has participated at every World Cup.
Japan, also a country with many registered players, will host the 2019 World Cup. It will be the first country outside the Commonwealth and France to host the event, and is viewed by the IRB as an opportunity for rugby union to extend its reach, particularly in Asia. Previously, Japan unsuccessfully bid to host the 2011 tournament, narrowly losing to selected host New Zealand.
The International Rugby Board (IRB), founded in 1886, governs the sport worldwide and also publishes the game's laws and rankings. There are currently 95 full members and eight associate member countries. According to IRB figures, rugby union is played in over 100 countries spanning six continents by men and women of all ages. The IRB controls the Rugby World Cup, the Women's Rugby World Cup, Rugby World Cup Sevens, IRB Sevens World Series, Junior World Championship, Junior World Trophy, Nations Cup and the Pacific Nations Cup. It holds votes to decide where all of these events shall be held, except in the case of the Sevens World Series. For that competition, the IRB contracts with several national unions to hold individual events.
