Rugby is the most popular sport in New Zealand, played by hundreds of thousands of people every week. Rugby is a source of national pride in the country, which has a long and successful history with the sport. In this article we take a look at how New Zealand became a global rugby powerhouse.

History of Rugby in New Zealand

Like most countries that play rugby internationally, New Zealand were introduced to the sport by British settlers in the 19th century. They brought the sport over from England, even though the Māori played a similar game before the arrival of any settlers.

The 19th century saw the sport become coded and new clubs began to form. Christchurch Football Club was founded in 1863, with the first official game of rugby played in Nelson in May 1870. Rugby grew largely thanks to Charles Monro, who is credited with bringing the sport to New Zealand.

More teams formed, with an international side being assembled in the 1880s. In 1884, the first team representing New Zealand toured Australia where they dominated the local teams.

The 20th century saw the sport become even more popular, in large part thanks to the extraordinary success of the national team, the All Blacks. The top flight of New Zealand domestic rugby, the National Provincial Championship was formed in 1976. Just a few years later, New Zealand made some controversial tours of South Africa during apartheid which cast a shadow over the sport.

But rugby in New Zealand continued to grow and the country became an important part of the International Rugby Board. New Zealand was instrumental in establishing the Rugby World Cup, with the country getting to host the first tournament in 1987 because of that effort.

New Zealand also hosted the 2011 Rugby World Cup and emerged victorious. Since rugby became a professional sport, the top players in the country have also played Super Rugby. This is an international competition, that currently includes teams from New Zealand, Australia and the Pacific Islands.

The New Zealand women’s rugby team has also achieved unprecedented success, winning the Rugby World Cup a record six times, including the last two tournaments.  

New Zealand Rugby Team

The New Zealand Rugby team dates all the way back to 1884 when the first representative side toured Australia, dominating the competition. From the start the All Blacks were one of the most revered and feared teams in all of rugby, playing their first test match in 1903 against Australia.

The team became known as the All Blacks due to their all-black kit and had massive success when they toured Europe, winning 34 of the 35 games they played in the 1905-06 tour. During this time, the All Blacks continued to dominate against pretty much every other nation in the world.

They also used the Haka, a traditional Māori war dance, as a way to intimidate opponents. During this era, rugby was as much a physical battle as a sport and the New Zealanders thrived in this chaotic style of play. There were plenty of controversial tours that the New Zealand team undertook at this time, including plenty of tours of South Africa during apartheid. There was even a rebel tour of South Africa in 1986 which resulted in the players who were involved being banned when they returned.

New Zealand rugby played a pivotal role in establishing the first Rugby World Cup in 1987 and they certainly benefitted from it. At the time, they had a legendary team featuring John Kirwan, Sean Fitzpatrick, David Kirk and Buck Shelford. They dominated the tournament, conceding just 52 points across all the matches, and went on to win the title in front of their home fans.

Through the 1990s the All Blacks produced one of the sport’s most iconic figures: Jonah Lomu. His performances on the international stage captivated audiences, showing that not everyone who was his size had to play in the forward pack.

Despite their dominance, New Zealand rugby went through a bit of a dry spell when it came to Rugby World Cup success. They won the newly established Tri-Nations year after year, but lost in the 1995 Rugby World Cup Final, before failing to even make the final for three straight tournaments.

Their loss in the 2007 Rugby World Cup quarter-finals to France was controversial, with certain refereeing decisions going the way of the home side. But New Zealand fought back and their team through the 2010s is widely regarded as the greatest rugby team ever assembled.

With Richie McCaw as captain and Dan Carter as the team’s superstar fly-half, New Zealand became the first team in RWC history to win the competition twice in a row. They dominated the field at home in 2011, beating France in the final. Four years later the All Blacks defeated Australia for their record third RWC title.

As the 2010s gave way to a new decade, the All Blacks found themselves in a period of transition. They have welcomed though some big new talent, including dynamic wingers like Will Jordan and Mark Tele’a.

Beauden Barrett is consistently proving himself as one of the best players in the world and the All Blacks have won the Rugby Championship four years in a row.

But the All Blacks did lose their second RWC Final to the Springboks in 2023. They also lost their first series at home in 2022, with the number one team in the world Ireland pulling off an amazing result. New Zealand are far from the best team at the moment, with their squad continuing to change and develop.

Despite recent setbacks, it is only a matter of time before New Zealand rugby reaches the pinnacle of the sport once again.