A total of 25 teams have taken part in a men’s Rugby World Cup with Chile set to make their debut at France 2023. Canada's failure to qualify for Rugby World Cup 2023 means the number of teams to play in every edition falls to 10 in Argentina, Australia, England, France, Ireland, Italy, Japan, New Zealand, Scotland and Wales.
New Zealand and South Africa are the most successful with three Rugby World Cup titles each, with Australia (two) and England (one) the only other teams to lift the Webb Ellis Cup. The All Blacks are the only team to successfully defend the Webb Ellis Cup, winning back-to-back titles in 2011 and 2015. France are the only team to reach a final and not emerge victorious, while Japan became the 13th nation to reach a Rugby World Cup quarter-final, on home soil in 2019.
|
Team |
Champions |
Runners-up |
Third |
Fourth |
Quarter-finals |
|
New Zealand |
3 (1987, 2011, 2015) |
1 (1995) |
3 (1991, 2003, 2019) |
1 (1999) |
1 (2007) |
|
South Africa |
3 (1995, 2007, 2019) |
|
2 (1999, 2015) |
|
2 (2003, 2011) |
|
Australia |
2 (1991, 1999) |
2 (2003, 2015) |
1 (2011) |
1 (1987) |
3 (1995, 2007, 2019) |
|
England |
1 (2003) |
3 (1991, 2007, 2019) |
|
1 (1995) |
3 (1987, 1999, 2011) |
|
France |
|
3 (1987, 1999, 2011) |
1 (1995) |
2 (2003, 2007) |
3 (1991, 2015, 2019) |
|
Wales |
|
|
1 (1987) |
2 (2011, 2019) |
3 (1999, 2003, 2015) |
|
Argentina |
|
|
1 (2007) |
1 (2015) |
2 (1999, 2011) |
|
Scotland |
|
|
|
1 (1991) |
6 (1987, 1995, 1999, 2003, 2007, 2015) |
|
Ireland |
|
|
|
|
7 (1987, 1991, 1995, 2003, 2011, 2015, 2019) |
|
Fiji |
|
|
|
|
2 (1987, 2007) |
|
Samoa |
|
|
|
|
2 (1991, 1995) |
|
Canada |
|
|
|
|
1 (1991) |
|
Japan |
|
|
|
|
1 (2019) |
England fly-half Jonny Wilkinson is the record point-scorer in men’s Rugby World Cup history with 277, while All Black Jonah Lomu and South Africa’s Bryan Habana share the record for tries with 15.
Simon Culhane holds the record for most points by an individual in a match with 45 in New Zealand’s 145-17 defeat of Japan at RWC 1995 – the most points scored in a match. Fellow All Black Marc Ellis scored a record six tries in that victory.
Lomu (1999), Habana (2007) and All Black Julian Savea (2015) share the record for tries in a single tournament with eight, while New Zealand’s Grant Fox holds the record for most points in a tournament with 126 scored in 1987.
Springbok Jannie de Beer holds the record for most drop goals in a match with five against England at RWC 1999.
Women's tournament
In the women’s edition, a total of 23 teams have taken part in a Rugby World Cup with Fiji the last team to make their debut at New Zealand 2021. Only four of these teams – Canada, England, France and USA – have played in every edition to date.
New Zealand are the most successful team with six Rugby World Cup titles, including four in a row from 1998-2010 when they won all 19 matches played. England (two) and USA (one) are the only other champions with the Red Roses losing in the final on six occasions. France have reached the semi-finals on eight occasions but are yet to reach the title decider.
|
Team |
Champions |
Runners-up |
Third |
Fourth |
|
New Zealand |
5 (1998, 2002, 2006, 2010, 2017, 2021) |
|
1 (1991 joint) |
|
|
England |
2 (1994, 2014) |
5 (1991, 2002, 2006, 2010, 2017, 2021) |
1 (1998) |
|
|
USA |
1 (1991) |
1 (1994) |
|
1 (2017) |
|
France |
|
|
6 (1991 joint, 1994, 2002, 2006, 2014, 2017, 2021) |
1 (2010) |
|
Canada |
|
1 (2014) |
|
3 (1998, 2002, 2006, 2021) |
|
Australia |
|
|
1 (2010) |
|
|
Wales |
|
|
|
1 (1994) |
|
Ireland |
|
|
|
1 (2014) |
Men's top performers all-time
The all-time leading performers in men's Rugby World Cups. (* denotes still playing)
TOP TRY-SCORERS
|
Player |
Country |
Tries |
|
Jonah Lomu |
New Zealand |
15 |
|
Bryan Habana |
South Africa |
15 |
|
Drew Mitchell |
Australia |
14 |
|
Doug Howlett |
New Zealand |
13 |
|
Adam Ashley-Cooper |
Australia |
12 |
|
Vincent Clerc |
France |
11 |
|
Joe Rokocoko |
New Zealand |
11 |
|
Rory Underwood |
England |
11 |
|
Chris Latham |
Australia |
11 |
|
Brian Lima |
Samoa |
10 |
|
Shane Williams |
Wales |
10 |
|
David Campese |
Australia |
10 |
TOP POINT SCORERS
|
Player |
Country |
Points |
|
Jonny Wilkinson |
England |
277 |
|
Gavin Hastings |
Scotland |
227 |
|
Michael Lynagh |
Australia |
195 |
|
Dan Carter |
New Zealand |
191 |
|
Grant Fox |
New Zealand |
170 |
|
Andrew Mehrtens |
New Zealand |
163 |
|
Handré Pollard* |
South Africa |
162 |
|
Chris Paterson |
Scotland |
140 |
|
Frédéric Michalak |
France |
136 |
|
Gonzalo Quesada |
Argentina |
135 |
MOST PENALTIES
|
Player |
Country |
Penalties |
|
Jonny Wilkinson |
England |
58 |
|
Handré Pollard* |
South Africa |
39 |
|
Gavin Hastings |
Scotland |
36 |
|
Gonzalo Quesada |
Argentina |
35 |
|
Michael Lynagh |
Australia |
33 |
|
Andrew Mehrtens |
New Zealand |
33 |
|
Grant Fox |
New Zealand |
31 |
|
Thierry Lacroix |
France |
30 |
|
Chris Paterson |
Scotland |
27 |
|
Nicky Little |
Fiji |
26 |
MOST CONVERSIONS
|
Player |
Country |
Conversions |
|
Dan Carter |
New Zealand |
58 |
|
Gavin Hastings |
Scotland |
39 |
|
Grant Fox |
New Zealand |
37 |
|
Michael Lynagh |
Australia |
36 |
|
Jonny Wilkinson |
England |
28 |
|
Paul Grayson |
England |
27 |
|
Stephen Jones |
Wales |
27 |
|
Andrew Mehrtens |
New Zealand |
25 |
|
Ronan O’Gara |
Ireland |
24 |
|
Frédéric Michalak |
France |
24 |
MOST DROP GOALS
|
Player |
Country |
Drop goals |
|
Jonny Wilkinson |
England |
14 |
|
Jannie de Beer |
South Africa |
6 |
|
Gareth Rees |
Canada |
5 |
|
Rob Andrew |
England |
5 |
|
Juan Martín Hernández |
Argentina |
4 |
|
Dan Carter |
New Zealand |
3 |
|
Dan Parks |
Scotland |
3 |
|
Berrick Barnes |
Australia |
3 |
|
Jonathan Davies |
Wales |
3 |
|
Gregor Townsend |
Scotland |
3 |
|
Andrew Mehrtens |
New Zealand |
3 |
|
Joel Stransky |
South Africa |
3 |
|
Theuns Kotze |
Namibia |
3 |
|
Handré Pollard* |
South Africa |
3 |
MOST APPEARANCES
|
Player |
Country |
Matches |
|
Jason Leonard |
England |
22 |
|
Richie McCaw |
New Zealand |
22 |
|
Alun Wyn Jones* |
Wales |
21 |
|
Schalk Burger |
South Africa |
20 |
|
George Gregan |
Australia |
20 |
|
Keven Mealamu |
New Zealand |
20 |
|
Sam Whitelock* |
New Zealand |
19 |
|
Sonny Bill Williams |
New Zealand |
19 |
|
Adam Ashley-Cooper |
Australia |
19 |
|
Mike Catt |
England |
19 |
|
Jonny Wilkinson |
England |
19 |
MOST MATCHES AS CAPTAIN
|
Player |
Country |
Matches |
|
Richie McCaw |
New Zealand |
13 |
|
Will Carling |
England |
11 |
|
Martin Johnson |
England |
11 |
|
Raphaël Ibanez |
France |
11 |
|
John Smit |
South Africa |
11 |
|
Sam Warburton |
Wales |
11 |
|
Thierry Dusautoir |
France |
10 |
|
Agustín Pichot |
Argentina |
8 |
|
Brian O’Driscoll |
Ireland |
8 |
|
Semo Sititi |
Samoa |
8 |
(* still playing)