Japan National Rugby Union Team

Although rugby was first played in Japan in 1866, the Japan national rugby union team did not play their first international game until 1932. Ever since, the Japan Rugby team have slowly progressed and have begun to become a force on the world stage. For example, they beat the Junior All Blacks in 1968 and were only narrowly beaten 6-3 by England in 1971.

Over the years since, the Japan Rugby team have become a respected international side who are capable of beating the top sides. They beat a Scotland XV in 1989 and comprehensively beat Wales 23-8 in 2013. In 2011, they also won the Pacific Nations Cup for the first time and in 2014 they entered the world’s top 10 after they won 10 tests in a row.

However, the Japan national rugby union team’s greatest achievement arguably came in the 2015 Rugby World Cup. During the tournament, they produced a shock for the ages when they defeated South Africa in one of the competition’s finest ever matches. Following this, Japan hosted the 2019 edition of the tournament and they reached the quarter-final stage for the first time in their history.