Rugby Football Union

The Rugby Football Union ( RFU) is the national sports body for rugby union in England. It takes over the organization of international matches and is responsible for the education and training of players and referees. The headquarters is located in Twickenham Stadium, traditionally the home games of the England team will be held in the.

History

On January 26, 1871, the representatives of 21 English clubs met in London to found the RFU and hold a set of rules for sports writing. The planned 22 representatives should come from the London Wasps, but the first meeting did not reach in time.

By the year 1885 the rugby union rules were determined by the RFU, to Ireland, Scotland and Wales, the International Rugby Board established because they were not happy with certain provisions. England refused membership from first appeared in 1890 and the new umbrella organization for.

1895 formed clubs from the north of England have their own association, the Northern Rugby Football Union, which later became known as Rugby Football League. The RFU closed the concerned clubs from the league, as they pay their players and would therefore violate the existing amateur status. The exclusion also applied to all players who belonged to the clubs and those who played without payment against the excluded clubs.

The RFU struggled over several decades against the introduction of league operation. Only in 1972 was the John Player Cup, the first cup competition for English clubs. 1987 led to a national league with several divisions, the most important in Europe today is in addition to the French league Top 14 and the multinational Pro12.