Rugby - World Cup
The Rugby World Cup is now recognised as the third largest sporting event in the world, after the Olympic Games and football World Cup.
It took the rugby authorities many decades to come to agreement on staging a global tournament, with the final impetus being given by Australia, New Zealand and France. The British and Irish unions were implacably opposed until finally enough support was mustered in 1985 to progress with the first tournament two years later.
| YEAR | FINAL VENUE | WINNERS | RUNNERS-UP |
| 1987 | Auckland | NEW ZEALAND | France |
| 1991 | London | AUSTRALIA | England |
| 1995 | Johannesburg | SOUTH AFRICA | New Zealand |
| 1999 | Cardiff | AUSTRALIA | France |
| 2003 | Sydney | ENGLAND | Australia |
| 2007 | Paris | SOUTH AFRICA | England |
| 2011 | Auckland | NEW ZEALAND | France |
| 2015 | London | NEW ZEALAND | Australia |
| 2019 | Yokohama | SOUTH AFRICA | England |