The Japan Rugby Football Union (JRFU; ja, 日本ラグビーフットボール協会, ''Nihon Ragubi- Futtobo-ru Kyo-kai'') is the governing body for
rugby union
Rugby union, commonly known simply as rugby, is a close-contact team sport that originated at Rugby School in the first half of the 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand. In it ...
in
Japan. It was formed 30 November 1926, and organises matches for the
Japan national team.
The JRFU is currently one of only two federations from outside the
Six Nations and
The Rugby Championship with a seat on the executive council of
World Rugby
World Rugby is the world governing body for the sport of rugby union. World Rugby organises the Rugby World Cup every four years, the sport's most recognised and most profitable competition. It also organises a number of other international rug ...
, the sport's international governing body (the other is
Rugby Canada). Former
Japanese prime minister
The prime minister of Japan ( Japanese: 内閣総理大臣, Hepburn: ''Naikaku Sōri-Daijin'') is the head of government of Japan. The prime minister chairs the Cabinet of Japan and has the ability to select and dismiss its Ministers of Stat ...
Yoshirō Mori
is a former Japanese politician who served as Prime Minister of Japan between April 2000 and April 2001. He was unpopular in opinion polls during his time in office, and is known for making controversial statements, both during and after his ...
served as the JRFU's current president until 2015, when Tadashi Okamura took over the position.
Historical background
Rugby union was first introduced to Japanese students at
Keio University in Japan by Professor
Edward Bramwell Clarke (who was born in
Yokohama
is the second-largest city in Japan by population and the most populous municipality of Japan. It is the capital city and the most populous city in Kanagawa Prefecture, with a 2020 population of 3.8 million. It lies on Tokyo Bay, south of T ...
) and
Tanaka Ginnosuke, both graduates of
Cambridge University
The University of Cambridge is a Public university, public collegiate university, collegiate research university in Cambridge, England. Founded in 1209 and granted a royal charter by Henry III of England, Henry III in 1231, Cambridge is the world' ...
, in 1899. It had been played at the treaty ports (
Kobe and
Yokohama
is the second-largest city in Japan by population and the most populous municipality of Japan. It is the capital city and the most populous city in Kanagawa Prefecture, with a 2020 population of 3.8 million. It lies on Tokyo Bay, south of T ...
especially) before that, between teams of long-term foreign residents and visiting ships' crews, garrisons etc.
Tournaments and leagues sponsored
International
*
IRB TOSHIBA Junior World Championship 2009
*
Sanix World Rugby Youth Invitational Tournament
Domestic
*
Top League
Japan Rugby League One (formerly the Top League) is a rugby union competition in Japan. It is the highest level of professional rugby competition in the country. The Japan Rugby Football Union created the competition in 2003, by absorbing the ...
*
Microsoft Cup
*
All-Japan Rugby Football Championship
*
University championship rugby
*
National High School Rugby Tournament
Rugby World Cup 2011 bid
With Japan's advantages of a superb infrastructure (stadiums, accommodation and transportation) and the experience of co-staging the
Football World Cup 2002 with
Korea
Korea ( ko, 한국, or , ) is a peninsular region in East Asia. Since 1945, it has been divided at or near the 38th parallel, with North Korea (Democratic People's Republic of Korea) comprising its northern half and South Korea (Republic o ...
, the JRFU bid to host the
Rugby World Cup
The Rugby World Cup is a men's rugby union tournament contested every four years between the top international teams. The tournament is administered by World Rugby, the sport's international governing body. The winners are awarded the Webb E ...
in 2011.
The bid's catchphrase or slogan was "Making Rugby a Truly Global Sport". So far the Rugby World Cup has never been held outside the traditional rugby strongholds of the Northern and Southern hemisphere (the countries involved in the Six Nations and Tri-Nations tournaments). In that sense, the slogan was a justified attempt to grow the game worldwide, and make it a global sport.
The JRFU gave the following reasons for holding the Rugby World Cup in Japan at a press conference held on 22 September 2004:
:1. Rugby was introduced in Japan in 1899, and has a proud history, culture and tradition developed over the past 105 years. Japan is the leading Asian rugby country, and the focal point of rugby in the region.
:2. Japan is the only Union in Asia that has participated in the last five Rugby World Cups.
:3. Japan has the 4th largest number of registered rugby union players in the world (125,508), behind only England, South Africa and France.
:4. Japan offers significant commercial opportunities through established relationships with major corporations based in Japan, including those involved in Top League.
:5. Japan has a proud record of international sporting success, highlighted most recently by its outstanding achievement at the
2004 Olympic Games
The 2004 Summer Olympics ( el, Θερινοί Ολυμπιακοί Αγώνες 2004, ), officially the Games of the XXVIII Olympiad ( el, Αγώνες της 28ης Ολυμπιάδας, ) and also known as Athens 2004 ( el, Αθήνα 2004), ...
that surpassed all expectations.
:6. Japan has the state of the art stadiums, infrastructure, systems, and know-how required for a major sporting event such as Rugby World Cup already largely in place, following its successful hosting of the 2002 FIFA World Cup.
:7. The Government of Japan supports the growth of the game and endorses Japan’s bid to host Rugby World Cup 2011.
Former Prime Minister
Yoshiro Mori, who played rugby for many years, is a keen advocate and active supporter of the bid, and a key figure in obtaining political support exercising significant influence.
:8. Japan’s hosting of the World Cup would fulfill the
IRB’s goal of making rugby a truly global sport. It would increase competition and serve to narrow the existing divide between the Top Tier Nations and the Second Tier Nations for the good of the game in the long term.
However,
New Zealand
New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...
won the hosting rights in 2011 in a process which was later much criticised for lack of transparency as at the last minute the voting was made secret thanks to an Irish RU proposal. Reasons for JRFU not getting the cup were that the Union had never hosted a major rugby tournament before. As well as that, support for rugby in Japan was considered relatively poor, with many foreign players based in Japan commenting on the Top League's low crowd numbers. The biggest factor in preventing Japan winning the bid was believed to be it leaving important bid details until its final presentation in Dublin. Many delegates had been instructed for whom to vote prior to the final bid presentations.
Rugby World Cup 2019
Having lost out to New Zealand for the 2011 World Cup, Japan put in bids for the 2015 and 2019 World Cups. On 28 July 2009, the IRB awarded them the
2019 Rugby World Cup
The 2019 Rugby World Cup was the ninth edition of the Rugby World Cup, the quadrennial world championship for men's rugby union teams. It was hosted in Japan from 20 September to 2 November in 12 venues all across the country. The opening match ...
, giving
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...
the
2015 Rugby World Cup due to its strong financial status.
Top League
In an effort to improve the overall standard of Japanese rugby, the JRFU created a new semi-professional
Top League
Japan Rugby League One (formerly the Top League) is a rugby union competition in Japan. It is the highest level of professional rugby competition in the country. The Japan Rugby Football Union created the competition in 2003, by absorbing the ...
in 2003 with the season spanning 2003-04. In the second season the League was composed of the following company-sponsored teams:
*
Canon Eagles
*
Coca-Cola Red Sparks
*
Honda Heat
*
Kintetsu Liners
Hanazono Kintetsu Liners rugby team are a Japanese rugby union team owned by Kintetsu Corporation which was founded in 1929. They have won the All-Japan Championship three times as an amateur team. Their home is at Hanazono Rugby Stadium in Hig ...
*
Kobelco Steelers
The Kobelco Kobe Steelers are a Japanese rugby union team owned by Kobe Steel, and based in Kobe. They were the first ever Top League champions when the League started in the 2003-2004 season. The team rebranded as Kobelco Kobe Steelers ahead of ...
*
Kubota Spears
Kubota Spears Funabashi Tokyo Bay (commonly known as the Kubota Spears) is a Japanese rugby union team based in Funabashi, Chiba participating in the Japan Rugby League One. The team rebranded as Kubota Spears Funabashi Tokyo Bay ahead of the rebr ...
*
NEC Green Rockets
NEC Green Rockets Tokatsu (formerly NEC Green Rockets) is a Japanese rugby union team in the Japan Rugby League One. The team's captain iRyota Asano The previous captain was Takuro Miuchi, who was also the captain of the Japan national rugby unio ...
*
Nihon IBM Big Blue
*
Ricoh Black Rams
Black Rams Tokyo (formerly Ricoh Black Rams) is a Japanese rugby union team in the Japan Rugby League One. Placed 10th in the 2004-2005 season which meant it had to win a play-off against one of the top regional teams to stay in the league, as it d ...
*
Panasonic Wild Knights
*
Suntory Sungoliath
*
Toshiba Brave Lupus
*
Toyota Verblitz
Toyota Verblitz is a Japanese rugby union team in the Japan Rugby League One. Verblitz is a portmanteau of ''verde'' (Spanish and Portuguese for 'green') and ''blitz'' (German for 'lightning'). The team is owned by Toyota Motor Corporation and is ...
*
Yamaha Jubilo
Top League
Japan Rugby League One (formerly the Top League) is a rugby union competition in Japan. It is the highest level of professional rugby competition in the country. The Japan Rugby Football Union created the competition in 2003, by absorbing the ...
Champions
*2003-04
Kobelco Steelers
The Kobelco Kobe Steelers are a Japanese rugby union team owned by Kobe Steel, and based in Kobe. They were the first ever Top League champions when the League started in the 2003-2004 season. The team rebranded as Kobelco Kobe Steelers ahead of ...
*2004-05
Toshiba Brave Lupus
Microsoft Cup
The
Microsoft Cup is a knock-out tournament played between the top eight Top League teams. The winners of the first Microsoft Cup were
NEC Green Rockets
NEC Green Rockets Tokatsu (formerly NEC Green Rockets) is a Japanese rugby union team in the Japan Rugby League One. The team's captain iRyota Asano The previous captain was Takuro Miuchi, who was also the captain of the Japan national rugby unio ...
, who beat
Toshiba Brave Lupus 24-19 on 22 February 2004. However, Toshiba won the 41st Japan Championship on 21 March 2004 when they beat
Kobelco Steelers
The Kobelco Kobe Steelers are a Japanese rugby union team owned by Kobe Steel, and based in Kobe. They were the first ever Top League champions when the League started in the 2003-2004 season. The team rebranded as Kobelco Kobe Steelers ahead of ...
22-10.
All-Japan Championship (Nihon Senshuken)
The schedule for the 42nd All-Japan Championship was as follows:
2005
5 February
1.
Fukuoka Sanix Bombs 47 Kanto Gakuin University 36 (
Chichibunomiya)
2. Waseda University 59 Tamariba club 5 (Chichibunomiya)
12 February
3. Fukuoka Sanix Bombs 21
NEC Green Rockets
NEC Green Rockets Tokatsu (formerly NEC Green Rockets) is a Japanese rugby union team in the Japan Rugby League One. The team's captain iRyota Asano The previous captain was Takuro Miuchi, who was also the captain of the Japan national rugby unio ...
55 (Chichibunomiya)
4. Waseda University 9
Toyota Verblitz
Toyota Verblitz is a Japanese rugby union team in the Japan Rugby League One. Verblitz is a portmanteau of ''verde'' (Spanish and Portuguese for 'green') and ''blitz'' (German for 'lightning'). The team is owned by Toyota Motor Corporation and is ...
28 (Chichibunomiya)
19 February
5. NEC Green Rockets 24
Yamaha Jubilo 13 (
Hanazono)
6. Toyota Verblitz 24
Toshiba Brave Lupus 19 (Chichibunomiya)
27 February
7. Final - NEC Green Rockets 17 Toyota Verblitz 13 (Chichibunomiya)
See also
*
Chichibunomiya Stadium
*
Hakata no Mori stadium
*
Japan national rugby union team
The Japan national rugby union team, often known as the Cherry Blossoms, Sakura, and more recently The Brave Blossoms (''ブレイブ・ブロッサムズ - Bureibu burossamuzu'') is traditionally the strongest rugby union power in Asia and has ...
*
Higashi Osaka Hanazono Rugby Stadium
*
National High School Rugby Tournament
*
Stadia used in the FIFA World Cup 2002
*
Top League
Japan Rugby League One (formerly the Top League) is a rugby union competition in Japan. It is the highest level of professional rugby competition in the country. The Japan Rugby Football Union created the competition in 2003, by absorbing the ...
*
University championship rugby
*
Rugby union in Japan
Rugby union in Japan is a moderately popular sport. Japan has the fourth largest population of rugby union players in the world and the sport has been played there for over a century. There are 125,000 Japanese rugby players, 3,631 official rugby ...
Contact information
The address for JRFU is:
Japan Rugby Football Union,
Kita Aoyama 2-8-35,
Minato ward,
Tokyo 107-0061
Further reading
For the historical background see Chapter 27
References
External links
Official Japan RFU website(January 31, 2005)
(February 19, 2005)
- Japan Times, February 24, 2005
Japan RFU- in Japanese
{{Authority control
Union
Union commonly refers to:
* Trade union, an organization of workers
* Union (set theory), in mathematics, a fundamental operation on sets
Union may also refer to:
Arts and entertainment
Music
* Union (band), an American rock group
** ''Un ...
*
*
*
Rugby Football Union
Japan
Sports organizations established in 1926
1926 establishments in Japan