The 2019 Rugby World Cup (Japanese: ラグビーワールドカップ2019), 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 was played at Ajinomoto Stadium in Chōfu, Tokyo, with the final match being held at International Stadium Yokohama in Yokohama. This was the first time that the tournament had taken place in Asia and outside the traditional Tier 1 rugby nations.
The tournament saw the first cancellation of matches at the Rugby World Cup with Typhoon Hagibis affecting three matches due to the expected impact on safety that the typhoon would have.
South Africa beat England 32−12 in the final to claim their third title, equalling New Zealand's record. In doing so, South Africa became the first team to win the title after losing a match in the pool stage. The defending champions, New Zealand, finished third after defeating Wales in the bronze final.
Venues[]
| Stadiums | Location | Capacity |
|---|---|---|
| International Stadium Yokohama | Yokohama | 72,327 |
| Shizuoka Stadium Ecopa | Shizuoka (Fukuroi) | 50,889 |
| Tokyo Stadium | Tokyo (Chōfu) | 49,970 |
| City of Toyota Stadium | Toyota | 45,000 |
| Sapporo Dome | Sapporo | 41,410 |
| Oita Stadium | Ōita | 40,000 |
| Kumamoto Stadium | Kumamoto | 32,000 |
| Kobe Misaki Stadium | Kobe | 30,132 |
| Hanazono Rugby Stadium | Osaka (Higashiōsaka) | 24,100 |
| Kumagaya Rugby Stadium | Kumagaya | 24,000 |
| Fukuoka Hakatanomori Stadium | Fukuoka | 20,049 |
| Kamaishi Recovery Memorial Stadium | Kamaishi | 16,020 |
Participating teams[]
| Region | Team | World Rank |
|---|---|---|
| Africa (Rugby Africa) | Namibia | 23 |
| South Africa | 4 | |
| North America (Rugby Americas North) | Canada | 22 |
| United States | 13 | |
| Asia (Asia Rugby) | Japan (host country) | 10 |
| Europe (Rugby Europe) | England | 3 |
| France | 8 | |
| Georgia | 12 | |
| Ireland | 1 | |
| Italy | 14 | |
| Russia | 20 | |
| Scotland | 7 | |
| Wales | 5 | |
| Oceania (Oceania Rugby) | Australia | 6 |
| Fiji | 9 | |
| New Zealand | 2 | |
| Samoa | 16 | |
| Tonga | 15 | |
| South America (Sudamérica Rugby) | Argentina | 11 |
| Uruguay | 19 |
List of games[]
Pool stage[]
| Date | Venue | Winner | Score | Runners-up |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pool A | ||||
| 20 September 2019 | Tokyo Stadium, Chōfu | Japan | 30–10 | Russia |
| 22 September 2019 | International Stadium Yokohama, Yokohama | Ireland | 27–3 | Scotland |
| 24 September 2019 | Kumagaya Rugby Stadium, Kumagaya | Samoa | 34–9 | Russia |
| 28 September 2019 | Shizuoka Stadium Ecopa, Fukuroi | Japan | 19–12 | Ireland |
| 30 September 2019 | Kobe Misaki Stadium, Kobe | Scotland | 34–0 | Samoa |
| 3 October 2019 | Ireland | 35–0 | Russia | |
| 5 October 2019 | City of Toyota Stadium, Toyota | Japan | 38–19 | Samoa |
| 9 October 2019 | Shizuoka Stadium Ecopa, Fukuroi | Scotland | 61–0 | Russia |
| 12 October 2019 | Fukuoka Hakatanomori Stadium, Fukuoka | Ireland | 47–5 | Samoa |
| 13 October 2019 | International Stadium Yokohama, Yokohama | Japan | 28–21 | Scotland |
| Pool B | ||||
| 21 September 2019 | International Stadium Yokohama, Yokohama | New Zealand | 23–13 | South Africa |
| 22 September 2019 | Hanazono Rugby Stadium, Higashiōsaka | Italy | 47–22 | Namibia |
| 26 September 2019 | Fukuoka Hakatanomori Stadium, Fukuoka | Italy | 48–7 | Canada |
| 28 September 2019 | City of Toyota Stadium, Toyota | South Africa | 57–3 | Namibia |
| 2 October 2019 | Oita Stadium, Ōita | New Zealand | 63–0 | Canada |
| 4 October 2019 | Shizuoka Stadium Ecopa, Fukuroi | South Africa | 49–3 | Italy |
| 6 October 2019 | Tokyo Stadium, Chōfu | New Zealand | 71–9 | Namibia |
| 8 October 2019 | Kobe Misaki Stadium, Kobe | South Africa | 66–7 | Canada |
| 12 October 2019 | City of Toyota Stadium, Toyota (match cancelled due to Typhoon Hagibis) |
New Zealand | 0–0 (draw) |
Italy |
| 13 October 2019 | Kamaishi Recovery Memorial Stadium, Kamaishi (match cancelled due to an evacuation order in Kamaishi during Typhoon Hagibis) |
Namibia | 0–0 (draw) |
Canada |
| Pool C | ||||
| 21 September 2019 | Tokyo Stadium, Chōfu | France | 23–21 | Argentina |
| 22 September 2019 | Sapporo Dome, Sapporo | England | 35–3 | Tonga |
| 26 September 2019 | Kobe Misaki Stadium, Kobe | England | 45–7 | United States |
| 28 September 2019 | Hanazono Rugby Stadium, Higashiōsaka | Argentina | 28–12 | Tonga |
| 2 October 2019 | Fukuoka Hakatanomori Stadium, Fukuoka | France | 33–9 | United States |
| 5 October 2019 | Tokyo Stadium, Chōfu | England | 39–10 | Argentina |
| 6 October 2019 | Kumamoto Stadium, Kumamoto | France | 23–21 | Tonga |
| 9 October 2019 | Kumagaya Rugby Stadium, Kumagaya | Argentina | 47–17 | United States |
| 12 October 2019 | International Stadium Yokohama, Yokohama (match cancelled due to Typhoon Hagibis) |
England | 0–0 (draw) |
France |
| 13 October 2019 | Hanazono Rugby Stadium, Higashiōsaka | Tonga | 31–19 | United States |
| Pool D | ||||
| 21 September 2019 | Sapporo Dome, Sapporo | Australia | 39–21 | Fiji |
| 23 September 2019 | City of Toyota Stadium, Toyota | Wales | 43–14 | Georgia |
| 25 September 2019 | Kamaishi Recovery Memorial Stadium, Kamaishi | Uruguay | 30–27 | Fiji |
| 29 September 2019 | Kumagaya Rugby Stadium, Kumagaya | Georgia | 33–7 | Uruguay |
| 29 September 2019 | Tokyo Stadium, Chōfu | Wales | 29–25 | Australia |
| 3 October 2019 | Hanazono Rugby Stadium, Higashiōsaka | Fiji | 45–10 | Georgia |
| 5 October 2019 | Oita Stadium, Ōita | Australia | 45–10 | Uruguay |
| 9 October 2019 | Wales | 29–17 | Fiji | |
| 11 October 2019 | Shizuoka Stadium Ecopa, Fukuroi | Australia | 27–8 | Georgia |
| 13 October 2019 | Kumamoto Stadium, Kumamoto | Wales | 35–13 | Uruguay |
Final round[]
| Date | Venue | Winner | Score | Runners-up |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Quarter-finals | ||||
| 19 October 2019 | Oita Stadium, Ōita | England | 40–16 | Australia |
| Tokyo Stadium, Chōfu | New Zealand | 46–14 | Ireland | |
| 20 October 2019 | Oita Stadium, Ōita | Wales | 20–19 | France |
| Tokyo Stadium, Chōfu | South Africa | 26–3 | Japan | |
| Semi-finals | ||||
| 26 October 2019 | International Stadium Yokohama, Yokohama | England | 19–7 | New Zealand |
| 27 October 2019 | South Africa | 19–16 | Wales | |
| Bronze final | ||||
| 1 November 2019 | Tokyo Stadium, Chōfu | New Zealand | 40–17 | Wales |
| Final | ||||
| 2 November 2019 | International Stadium Yokohama, Yokohama | South Africa | 32–12 | England |
Broadcasters[]
| Country | Broadcaster(s) |
|---|---|
| Latin America | ESPN |
| Middle East and North Africa | beIN Sports |
| Nordic countries | NENT |
| Southeast Asia | beIN Sports |
| Sub-Saharan Africa | SuperSport |
| Albania Kosovo |
DigitAlb |
| Argentina | Televisión Pública Argentina |
| Australia | Fox Sports, Network 10 |
| Belgium | Telenet |
| Brazil | ESPN |
| Canada | TSN |
| Cyprus | CYTA |
| Czech Republic Slovakia |
Pragosport |
| Fiji Pacific Islands |
Fiji TV |
| France | TF1 Group |
| Georgia | GPB |
| Germany | ProSiebenSat.1 Media |
| Hong Kong | beIN Sports |
| India | Sony Pictures Networks |
| Ireland | Eir Sport, RTÉ |
| Israel | Charlton |
| Italy | RAI |
| Japan | DAZN, J Sports, NHK, Nippon TV |
| Latvia | LTV7 |
| Malaysia | RTM |
| Netherlands | Ziggo Sport |
| New Zealand | Spark Sport, TVNZ |
| Poland | Polsat |
| Portugal | Sport TV |
| Romania | TVR |
| Russia | Match TV |
| South Africa | SABC |
| Spain | Movistar+ |
| Taiwan | ELTA |
| United Kingdom | ITV, S4C |
| United States | NBCUniversal |
| Uruguay | Canal 10 |