Rugby Europe International Championships
Current season, competition or edition: Current sports event 2024–25 Rugby Europe International Championships | |
Sport | Rugby union |
---|---|
Founded | 1936 (predecessors) 2000 (current format) |
No. of teams | 35 (See below) |
Continent | Europe / Rugby Europe |
Most recent champion(s) | File:Flag of Georgia.svg Georgia |
Most titles | File:Flag of France.svg France (25) File:Flag of Georgia.svg Georgia (16) File:Flag of Romania.svg Romania (10) |
The Rugby Europe International Championships is the European Championship for tier 2 and tier 3 rugby union nations. The tournament is split into 4 levels, each with 4–8 teams. Its highest level is now called the Rugby Europe Championship and, unofficially, referred to as the Six Nations B. All levels play on a one-year cycle, replacing the old format of a two-year cycle, with the teams playing each other both home and away. From September 2016, there will still be an annual champion, but a format change means each year sees teams promoted and relegated between the levels.
History
International championships before 2000
Following the exclusion of France from the Five Nations Tournament after the 1931 edition, France joined with Italy, Romania, Germany, Spain, Belgium, Portugal, Netherlands, and Catalonia to create the International Amateur Rugby Federation (FIRA, now Rugby Europe) as an alternative to the International Rugby Football Board (now World Rugby). Three tournaments were held from 1936 to 1938, with France winning all three. Following the Second World War, France was readmitted into the Five Nations Championship, but they also competed in the only two tournaments organised by FIRA, the Rugby Union European Cup, held in 1952 and 1954, winning them both. From 1965, FIRA attempted to revitalise the European competition by creating the FIRA Nations Cup (1965–1973) and then the FIRA Trophy (1973–1997); however, France fielded a France A side made up mostly of university students.[citation needed] While the French students won many of the tournaments, Romania also had their share of tournament titles. In the late 1990s, the championship became irregular, with some editions not taking place because of qualifications for the World Cup. Finally, the European Nations Cup began in 2000, no longer including France and Italy, as they now played in the reformed Six Nations Championship.
European Nations Cup: initial format (since 2000)
Key | |
---|---|
Six Nations | |
Championship | |
Trophy | |
Conference | |
Others |
After the setup of the divisional system in 2000, Romania won the first competition with maximum points, The initial season also included Morocco. Russia then replaced Morocco in 2001 when Georgia secured the title and were crowned champions after a 31–20 win over Romania in Bucharest. As the competition format changed from a one-year tournament to two-years, the Netherlands were not relegated after this season. Romania started 2002 trailing Georgia after the 2001 results, but managed to win all of the remaining five games, including a 31–23 victory in Tbilisi. Portugal were 16–15 winners over Romania in Lisbon and installed themselves at the top of the 2003–04 table. In the second half of the competition, Romania won 36–6 against Portugal in Constanța, but went down 24–33 to Russia in Krasnodar. Then Portugal clinched their first title with a last-minute 19–18 home win over Russia. The Russia – Czech Republic game was rescheduled due to bad weather and was eventually cancelled. The 2005–06 championships also served as a qualifying pool for the 2007 Rugby World Cup. Romania triumphed finishing level on points with Georgia, while Ukraine were relegated after losing all matches. The 2007–08 edition saw the return of the Spanish to the top division. The winners were Georgia, following their display at the 2007 Rugby World Cup. The Russians recorded their best ever placement, finishing in second. The Czech Republic were the team to finish on the bottom of the table, losing all of their matches, relegating them back to Division 2A. A new format was decided at the beginning of 2009. Each calendar year had its own champion, but the cumulated ranking over two years determined which team was relegated. The 2009–10 edition was also basis for European qualification to the 2011 Rugby World Cup. The 2009 season saw the début of Germany in the top division, Georgia defended their title, and there were wins for Portugal and Russia in Bucharest. Faced with the possibility of missing a Rugby World Cup for the first time, Romania were managed the 2010 title. This feat was however not enough to overtake Georgia and Russia, who helped by their good results from the previous year, gained the automatic qualification for the 2011 RWC, leaving Romania to go through the Play-Off Qualification Rounds. Germany were relegated after failing to win any games. Georgia won the 2011 edition, after beating Romania 18–11 in Tbilisi. The promoted team, Ukraine, lost all but one of their matches, single win over Portugal.
European Nations Cup: second format (from 2010 to 2016)
For the 2010–2012 competition (and promotion and relegation between groups going forward to successive competitions), the top two divisions (previously 1 and 2A) were redefined as 1A and 1B, both having six teams (previously six and five). The next four levels (previously 2B, 3A, 3B and 3C) become 2A-2D, under the new system, with the remnants of Division 3D making up the initial group of teams labelled as Division 3. In principle, each division is to encompass a different type of competition. In Division 1, groups have six teams (meaning more matches and thus more travel), a significant fraction of the players are assumed to be professional or semi-professional (meaning that fixtures are, as often as possible, scheduled within the IRB's international fixtures time windows when clubs must release players for national duty), and only one team is promoted and one relegated every two years (meaning that the competitions are more stable). In Division 2, groups have only five teams each (usually meaning one home match and one away match in the Autumn, and the same in the Spring, for each team), it is assumed that the majority of players are amateurs (meaning scheduling is not as limited), and in addition to the traditional automatic first-promoted-last-relegated system, fourth place from the higher pool will play second place from the lower pool after every two-year competition, with the winner taking the position in the higher pool. From a five-team group, one team is promoted, one team is relegated and two teams play in playoffs. Thus, a maximum of four of a pool's five teams could change from one two-year competition to the next. In Division 3, a single-location, short-time-period (one week or 10 days) tournament is organised once per year. This minimises travel costs for teams and time-off-work requirements for players, and allows the flexibility of having a different membership every year, rather than requiring the membership to be constant over two years. The best performing team over two years of tournaments is promoted to Division 2. In the year of transition to the new system (2010), there were no relegations from any division below the highest, because the second-highest (old 2A, new 1B) was expanded by one team.
International Championships: third format (from 2016 to 2022)
From September 2016, the European Nations Cup became the Rugby Europe International Championships, made up of five levels or divisions:
- Level 1 - Championship. The top six ranked European teams outside the Six Nations contest the annual title. Replaces the former Division 1A.
- Level 2 - Trophy. The next six ranked European teams bid for the Trophy title. Replaces the former Division 1B.
- Level 3 - Conference 1. Division 2, A through to D, becomes the new Conference level, where twenty teams are separated into two Conferences made up of ten teams each, based on their previous year rankings. Each conference is then split into two, North and South, where teams could change each year depending on the competing teams - nations closest to boundary moved from North to South and vice versa each season as necessary to geographically balance the conferences.
- Level 4 - Conference 2
- Level 5 - Development. Replaces Division 3.
The Trophy, Conference and Development divisions have normally been held across the turn of the year, in the autumn and winter of one year and the spring of the next. The Championship has usually been held in the spring, concurrent with the second half of the lower three divisions (and also concurrent with the Six Nations Championship). A promotion and relegation play-off system is maintained across all levels every year, moving away from the two-year system in place since 2003, meaning teams will be promoted and relegated every year.[1] In the 2020–2021 season, due to the worldwide COVID-19 epidemic, the lower divisions were not held, and much of the 2021 Championship division was delayed, being held over the whole of 2021 (thus, its last matches overlapped with the following 2021–2022 season of the lower divisions). Thus, there was no promotion/relegation between the divisions, including between the Championship and Trophy, following the 2020–2021 season: promotion/relegation resumed following the 2022 Championship (which was held on-time) and the 2021-2022 Trophy, Conference and Development divisions. The structure was slightly changed after 2022, to increase the Championship division to eight rather than six teams: furthermore, Russia (who had played, and lost, their first two matches), were disqualified and banned from the 2022 Championship and from all international rugby until further notice, following the Russian invasion of Ukraine after having played two matches of the 2022 season: their three remaining matches in the 2022 Championship were awarded to their opponents (Portugal, Georgia and Netherlands), by walkover. Qualification for three European spots in the 2023 Rugby World Cup was determined by the collective results of the 2021 and 2022 Championships added together, which (thanks to the fact of no promotion and relegation following the 2021 season, and the lower divisions not being played at all) formed a full home-and-away round-robin between the six nations of the Championship. The top two teams would qualify as Europe 1 and Europe 2: the third-place team, as Europe 3, would enter the final qualification tournament along with Africa 3 (Kenya), Americas 3 (USA) and the loser of the Asia/Pacific play-off (Hong Kong). Russia's expulsion mattered little, since they had lost all but two of their matches anyway (both in the 2021 season). However, the issue of ineligible players raised its head again, though not to the extent it had in the 2019 qualification: Spain, who had been fourth in 2021 but second in 2022 and were in fact in second place over the collective two years, were penalised 10 points - five in each season - for fielding an ineligible player in two matches. Georgia were far ahead in first place, with 9 wins and 1 draw over the two years: Spain's discomfiture resulted in Romania qualifying directly from the Championship in second place, and Portugal being in third place for the final intercontinental qualifier. Portugal won that tournament to qualify for the World Cup. Additionally, Rugby Europe made changes to the bonus points system. The standard system, that is applied in the Six Nations Championship was discarded in favour of the French system. The main difference is that where previously a team would be awarded 1 try bonus point for scoring (at least) 4 tries, regardless of the outcome, and whereas now, a team would be awarded 1 "bonus" point for winning while scoring at least the equivalent of 3 or more tries than their opponent.
International Championships: fourth format (from 2022 to 2023)
From October 2022,[2] the Rugby Europe International Championships, made up of five levels or divisions:
- Level 1 - Championship. The top eight ranked European teams outside the Six Nations contest the annual title.
- Level 2 - Trophy. The next six (originally intended, ended up as five) ranked European teams bid for the Trophy title.
- Level 3 - Conference 1
- Level 4 - Conference 2
- Level 5 - Development
A statement was released by the Polish Rugby Union in December 2021 confirming that the Rugby Europe Championship, will expand to 8 teams in 2022/2023 season. To accommodate this expansion, no team will be relegated from the top tier, while two teams from the second tier Trophy Championship will be promoted following the completion of the 2021/2022 Championship.[3] The serpentine system is applied to allocate each team to their respective groups.[2] Each team will play a total of five games (three round robin group matches to determine the team's path and two play-off matches).[2] Seeding (for group) and relegation is calculated over a two-year cycle, as is the promotion from Trophy competition.[2] This was further altered by Russia's expulsion from international sport following the invasion of Ukraine, which left only five teams from those who had contested the 2022 Championship. Three teams, rather than the originally intended two, were promoted from the Trophy - Belgium, Germany and Poland: and the Trophy, in 2022–23, thus contained only five teams rather than the previous six, even with the promotion of Sweden and Croatia from the Conference to join Ukraine, Lithuania and Croatia. A relegation system is maintained across all levels two-year, moving away from the one-year system in place since 2016, meaning teams will be promoted and relegated every two year.
International Championships: fifth format (from 2023 to 2024)
From 2023, the Rugby Europe International Championships, made up of four levels or divisions:
- Level 1 - Championship. The top eight ranked European teams outside the Six Nations contest the annual title. For the 2024 Championship, these were the same eight teams as in 2023.
- Level 2 - Trophy. The next six ranked European teams bid for the Trophy title. (The five teams from the 2022–23 season were joined by the previous year's Conference champions, the Czech Republic.)
- Level 3 - Conference. Former Conference 1 and Conference 2 combined to one level, in four groups.
- Level 4 - Development
A statement was released by the Polish Rugby Union in June 2023, confirming that the Rugby Europe Conference 1 and Conference 2 will be combined to one level. Teams with ambitions of climbing up the rugby pyramid can compete in a play-off to the Trophy after submitting their intentions to Rugby Europe where an assessment on various aspects will be made after winning their respective pool.
International Championships: new format (from 2024)
From 2024, the Rugby Europe International Championships, made up of three levels or divisions:
- Level 1 - Championship. The top eight ranked European teams outside the Six Nations contest the annual title.
- Level 2 - Trophy. The next six ranked European teams bid for the Trophy title.
- Level 3 - Conference. Former Conference and Development combined to one level, in five groups.
Current divisions and standings (2024–25)
* | Champion of the 2023–24 season |
↑ | Team promoted from the division below after the 2023–24 season |
• | Division champion but team not promoted after the 2023–24 season |
‡ | Last place of division but team not relegated after the 2023–24 season |
↓ | Team relegated from the division above after the 2023–24 season |
Updated through 30 November 2024
Predecessor tournaments (1936–1999)
FIRA Tournaments (1936–1938)
Year | Host city | Winner | Runner-up | Third place |
---|---|---|---|---|
1936 | Nazi Germany Berlin | File:Flag of France.svg France | File:Flag of Germany (1935–1945).svg Germany | File:Flag of Italy (1861–1946).svg Italy |
1937 | French Fourth Republic Paris | File:Flag of France.svg France | File:Flag of Italy (1861–1946).svg Italy | File:Flag of Germany (1935–1945).svg Germany |
1938 | Romania Bucharest | File:Flag of France (1794–1815, 1830–1958).svg France | File:Flag of Germany (1935–1945).svg Germany | File:Flag of Romania.svg Romania |
Rugby Union European Cup (1952–1954)
Year | Winner | Runner-up | Third place |
---|---|---|---|
1952 | File:Flag of France (1794–1815, 1830–1958).svg France | File:Flag of Italy.svg Italy | File:Flag of Germany.svg West Germany |
1954 | File:Flag of France (1794–1815, 1830–1958).svg France | File:Flag of Italy.svg Italy | File:Flag of Spain (1945–1977).svg Spain |
FIRA Nations Cup (1965–1973)
Year | First Division | Second Division | |||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Winner | Runner-up | Third | Relegated | Winner | |
1965–66 | File:Flag of France.svg France | File:Flag of Italy.svg Italy | File:Flag of Romania (1965-1989).svg Romania | File:Flag of the Czech Republic.svg Czechoslovakia | File:Flag of Portugal.svg Portugal |
1966–67 | File:Flag of France.svg France | File:Flag of Romania (1965-1989).svg Romania | File:Flag of Italy.svg Italy | File:Flag of Portugal.svg Portugal | File:Flag of the Czech Republic.svg Czechoslovakia |
1967–68 | File:Flag of France.svg France | File:Flag of Romania (1965-1989).svg Romania | File:Flag of the Czech Republic.svg Czechoslovakia | — | File:Flag of Poland.svg Poland |
1968–69 | File:Flag of Romania (1965-1989).svg Romania | File:Flag of France.svg France | File:Flag of the Czech Republic.svg Czechoslovakia | File:Flag of Germany.svg West Germany File:Flag of Poland.svg Poland |
File:Flag of Italy.svg Italy |
1969–70 | File:Flag of France.svg France | File:Flag of Romania (1965-1989).svg Romania | File:Flag of Italy.svg Italy | File:Flag of the Czech Republic.svg Czechoslovakia | File:Flag of Morocco.svg Morocco |
1970–71 | File:Flag of France.svg France | File:Flag of Romania (1965-1989).svg Romania | File:Flag of Morocco.svg Morocco | File:Flag of Italy.svg Italy | File:Flag of the Czech Republic.svg Czechoslovakia |
1971–72 | File:Flag of France.svg France | File:Flag of Romania (1965-1989).svg Romania | File:Flag of Morocco.svg Morocco | File:Flag of the Czech Republic.svg Czechoslovakia | File:Flag of Spain (1945–1977).svg Spain |
1972–73 | File:Flag of France.svg France | File:Flag of Romania (1965-1989).svg Romania | File:Flag of Spain (1945–1977).svg Spain | — | File:Flag of Portugal.svg Portugal |
FIRA Trophy (1973–1997)
Year | First Division | Lower Division Champions | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Winner | Runner-up | Third | Relegated | Second Division | Third Division | |
1973–74 | File:Flag of France.svg France | File:Flag of Romania (1965-1989).svg Romania | File:Flag of Spain (1945–1977).svg Spain | File:Flag of Poland.svg Poland File:Flag of Morocco.svg Morocco |
File:Flag of Italy.svg Italy | Not held |
1974–75 | File:Flag of Romania (1965-1989).svg Romania | File:Flag of France.svg France | File:Flag of Italy.svg Italy | File:Flag of the Czech Republic.svg Czechoslovakia | File:Flag of Poland.svg Poland | |
1975–76 | File:Flag of France.svg France | File:Flag of Italy.svg Italy | File:Flag of Romania (1965-1989).svg Romania | File:Flag of the Netherlands.svg Netherlands | File:Flag of Morocco.svg Morocco[lower-alpha 1] File:Flag of the Czech Republic.svg Czechoslovakia | |
1976–77 | File:Flag of Romania (1965-1989).svg Romania | File:Flag of France.svg France | File:Flag of Italy.svg Italy | File:Flag of Morocco.svg Morocco | File:Flag of the Czech Republic.svg Czechoslovakia | File:Flag of Belgium (civil).svg Belgium |
1977–78 | File:Flag of France.svg France | File:Flag of Romania (1965-1989).svg Romania | File:Flag of Spain (1977–1981).svg Spain | File:Flag of the Czech Republic.svg Czechoslovakia | File:Flag of the Soviet Union.svg Soviet Union | Not held |
1978–79 | File:Flag of France.svg France | File:Flag of Romania (1965-1989).svg Romania | File:Flag of the Soviet Union.svg Soviet Union | File:Flag of Spain (1977–1981).svg Spain | File:Flag of Morocco.svg Morocco | |
1979–80 | File:Flag of France.svg France | File:Flag of Romania (1965-1989).svg Romania | File:Flag of Italy.svg Italy | File:Flag of Morocco.svg Morocco | File:Flag of Spain (1977–1981).svg Spain | File:Flag of Tunisia.svg Tunisia |
1980–81 | File:Flag of Romania (1965-1989).svg Romania | File:Flag of France.svg France | File:Flag of the Soviet Union.svg Soviet Union | File:Flag of Poland.svg Poland | File:Flag of Germany.svg West Germany | File:Flag of Portugal.svg Portugal |
1981–82 | File:Flag of France.svg France | File:Flag of Italy.svg Italy | File:Flag of Romania (1965-1989).svg Romania | — | File:Flag of Morocco.svg Morocco | File:Flag of Sweden.svg Sweden |
1982–83 | File:Flag of Romania (1965-1989).svg Romania | File:Flag of Italy.svg Italy | File:Flag of the Soviet Union.svg Soviet Union | File:Flag of Germany.svg West Germany | File:Flag of Poland.svg Poland | File:Flag of the Czech Republic.svg Czechoslovakia |
1983–84 | File:Flag of France.svg France | File:Flag of Romania (1965-1989).svg Romania | File:Flag of Italy.svg Italy | File:Flag of Poland.svg Poland File:Flag of Morocco.svg Morocco |
File:Flag of Spain.svg Spain File:Flag of Tunisia.svg Tunisia |
Not held |
1984–85 | File:Flag of France.svg France | File:Flag of the Soviet Union.svg Soviet Union | File:Flag of Italy.svg Italy | File:Flag of Spain.svg Spain | File:Flag of Portugal.svg Portugal | File:Flag of the Netherlands.svg Netherlands |
1985–87 | File:Flag of France.svg France | File:Flag of the Soviet Union.svg Soviet Union | File:Flag of Romania (1965-1989).svg Romania | File:Flag of Tunisia.svg Tunisia File:Flag of Portugal.svg Portugal |
File:Flag of Spain.svg Spain | Not held |
1987–89 | File:Flag of France.svg France | File:Flag of the Soviet Union.svg Soviet Union | File:Flag of Romania (1965-1989).svg Romania | File:Flag of Spain.svg Spain | File:Flag of Poland.svg Poland | File:Flag of Bulgaria.svg Bulgaria |
1989–90 | File:Flag of France.svg France A[lower-alpha 2] | File:Flag of the Soviet Union.svg Soviet Union[lower-alpha 2] | File:Flag of Romania.svg Romania[lower-alpha 2] | File:Flag of Poland.svg Poland | File:Flag of Spain.svg Spain | File:Flag of Andorra.svg Andorra |
1990–92 | File:Flag of France.svg France A | File:Flag of Italy.svg Italy | File:Flag of Romania.svg Romania | — | File:Flag of Germany.svg Germany File:Flag of Morocco.svg Morocco |
File:Flag of Sweden.svg Sweden |
1992–94 | File:Flag of France.svg France A | File:Flag of Italy.svg Italy | File:Flag of Romania.svg Romania | — | File:Flag of Poland.svg Poland File:Flag of Croatia.svg Croatia |
File:Flag of Georgia (1990–2004).svg Georgia File:Flag of Moldova.svg Moldova |
1995–97 | File:Flag of Italy.svg Italy | File:Flag of France.svg France | File:Flag of Romania.svg Romania | — | File:Flag of the Netherlands.svg Netherlands File:Flag of Yugoslavia (1992–2003); Flag of Serbia and Montenegro (2003–2006).svg Serbia and Montenegro |
File:Flag of Ukraine.svg Ukraine File:Flag of Hungary.svg Hungary File:Flag of Austria.svg Austria |
FIRA Tournament (1996–1999)
Year | First Division | Lower Division Champions | |||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Winner | Runner-up | Third | Relegated | Second Division | Third Division | Fourth Division | |
1996–97 | File:Flag of Spain.svg Spain | File:Flag of Portugal.svg Portugal | File:Flag of Poland.svg Poland | — | Not held | ||
1997–98 | Not held | File:Flag of Latvia.svg Latvia | File:Flag of Luxembourg.svg Luxembourg | File:Flag of Austria.svg Austria | |||
1998–99 | File:Flag of Russia.svg Russia | File:Flag of Germany.svg Germany File:Flag of Croatia.svg Croatia File:Flag of Denmark.svg Denmark |
File:Flag of Switzerland (Pantone).svg Switzerland |
Statistics
Nation | 1st place, gold medalist(s) | 2nd place, silver medalist(s) | 3rd place, bronze medalist(s) |
---|---|---|---|
File:Flag of France.svg France | 25 | 5 | - |
File:Flag of Romania.svg Romania | 6 | 12 | 7 |
File:Flag of Italy.svg Italy | 1 | 9 | 8 |
File:Flag of the Soviet Union.svg Soviet Union | 1 | 3 | 3 |
File:Flag of Spain.svg Spain | 1 | - | 3 |
File:Flag of Germany.svg Germany | - | 1 | 3 |
File:Flag of Morocco.svg Morocco | - | - | 2 |
File:Flag of the Czech Republic.svg Czechoslovakia | - | - | 2 |
Current Tournaments (2000–present)
European Nations Cup (2000–2016)
Year | First Division | Lower Division Champions | |||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Winner | Runner-up | Third | Relegated | Second Division | Third Division | Fourth Division | |
2000 | File:Flag of Romania.svg Romania | File:Flag of Georgia (1990–2004).svg Georgia | File:Flag of Morocco.svg Morocco | — | File:Flag of Russia.svg Russia | File:Flag of the Czech Republic.svg Czech Republic | File:Flag of Slovenia.svg Slovenia |
2001 | File:Flag of Georgia (1990–2004).svg Georgia | File:Flag of Romania.svg Romania | File:Flag of Russia.svg Russia | — | File:Flag of Poland.svg Poland | Not held[4] | Not held |
2001–02 | File:Flag of Romania.svg Romania | File:Flag of Georgia (1990–2004).svg Georgia | File:Flag of Russia.svg Russia | File:Flag of the Netherlands.svg Netherlands | File:Flag of the Czech Republic.svg Czech Republic[5] | File:Flag of Slovenia.svg Slovenia | |
2003–04 | File:Flag of Portugal.svg Portugal | File:Flag of Romania.svg Romania | File:Flag of Georgia.svg Georgia | File:Flag of Spain.svg Spain | File:Flag of Ukraine.svg Ukraine | File:Flag of Moldova.svg Moldova | |
2004–06 | File:Flag of Romania.svg Romania | File:Flag of Georgia.svg Georgia | File:Flag of Portugal.svg Portugal | File:Flag of Ukraine.svg Ukraine | File:Flag of Spain.svg Spain | File:Flag of Latvia.svg Latvia | |
2006–08 | File:Flag of Georgia.svg Georgia | File:Flag of Russia.svg Russia | File:Flag of Romania.svg Romania | File:Flag of the Czech Republic.svg Czech Republic | File:Flag of Germany.svg Germany | File:Flag of Sweden.svg Sweden | |
2008–10 | File:Flag of Georgia.svg Georgia | File:Flag of Russia.svg Russia | File:Flag of Portugal.svg Portugal | File:Flag of Germany.svg Germany [6] | File:Flag of Ukraine.svg Ukraine | File:Flag of Lithuania.svg Lithuania | |
2010 | File:Flag of Romania.svg Romania | File:Flag of Georgia.svg Georgia | File:Flag of Russia.svg Russia | ||||
2011 | File:Flag of Georgia.svg Georgia | File:Flag of Romania.svg Romania | File:Flag of Portugal.svg Portugal | File:Flag of Ukraine.svg Ukraine [6] | File:Flag of Belgium (civil).svg Belgium | File:Flag of Sweden.svg Sweden | |
2012 | File:Flag of Georgia.svg Georgia | File:Flag of Spain.svg Spain | File:Flag of Romania.svg Romania | ||||
2013 | File:Flag of Georgia.svg Georgia | File:Flag of Romania.svg Romania | File:Flag of Russia.svg Russia | File:Flag of Belgium (civil).svg Belgium [6] | File:Flag of Germany.svg Germany | File:Flag of the Netherlands.svg Netherlands | |
2014 | File:Flag of Georgia.svg Georgia | File:Flag of Romania.svg Romania | File:Flag of Russia.svg Russia | ||||
2015 | File:Flag of Georgia.svg Georgia | File:Flag of Romania.svg Romania | File:Flag of Spain.svg Spain | File:Flag of Portugal.svg Portugal | File:Flag of Belgium (civil).svg Belgium | File:Flag of Estonia.svg Estonia | |
2016 | File:Flag of Georgia.svg Georgia | File:Flag of Romania.svg Romania | File:Flag of Russia.svg Russia |
Rugby Europe International Championships (2016–)
First Format
Year | Championship | Trophy | Conference 1 | Conference 2 | Development | |||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Winner | Runner-up | Third | Relegated | Winner | Runner-up | Third | Relegated | Winners | Relegated | Winners | Relegated | Winner | ||||
2016–17 | File:Flag of Romania.svg Romania | File:Flag of Georgia.svg Georgia | File:Flag of Spain.svg Spain | — | File:Flag of Portugal.svg Portugal | File:Flag of the Netherlands.svg Netherlands | File:Flag of Switzerland (Pantone).svg Switzerland | File:Flag of Ukraine.svg Ukraine | File:Flag of the Czech Republic.svg Czech Republic[lower-alpha 1] | File:Flag of Malta.svg Malta | File:Flag of Luxembourg.svg Luxembourg | File:Flag of Cyprus.svg Cyprus | File:Flag of Hungary.svg Hungary[lower-alpha 2] | File:Flag of Bosnia and Herzegovina.svg Bosnia and Herzegovina[lower-alpha 2] | File:Flag of Turkey.svg Turkey | File:Flag of Slovakia.svg Slovakia[lower-alpha 3] |
2017–18 | File:Flag of Georgia.svg Georgia | File:Flag of Russia.svg Russia | File:Flag of Germany.svg Germany | — | File:Flag of Portugal.svg Portugal | File:Flag of the Netherlands.svg Netherlands | File:Flag of the Czech Republic.svg Czech Republic | File:Flag of Moldova.svg Moldova | File:Flag of Lithuania.svg Lithuania[lower-alpha 1] | File:Flag of Malta.svg Malta | File:Flag of Latvia.svg Latvia | File:Flag of Andorra.svg Andorra | File:Flag of Luxembourg.svg Luxembourg[lower-alpha 2] | File:Flag of Cyprus.svg Cyprus[lower-alpha 2] | File:Flag of Estonia.svg Estonia | File:Flag of Bulgaria.svg Bulgaria[lower-alpha 3] |
2018–19 | File:Flag of Georgia.svg Georgia | File:Flag of Spain.svg Spain | File:Flag of Romania.svg Romania | File:Flag of Germany.svg Germany | File:Flag of Portugal.svg Portugal[lower-alpha 4] | File:Flag of the Netherlands.svg Netherlands | File:Flag of Switzerland (Pantone).svg Switzerland | File:Flag of the Czech Republic.svg Czech Republic | File:Flag of Ukraine.svg Ukraine[lower-alpha 1] | File:Flag of Malta.svg Malta | File:Flag of Moldova.svg Moldova | File:Flag of Bosnia and Herzegovina.svg Bosnia and Herzegovina | File:Flag of Latvia.svg Latvia[lower-alpha 2] | File:Flag of Slovenia.svg Slovenia[lower-alpha 2] | File:Flag of Slovakia.svg Slovakia | File:Flag of Turkey.svg Turkey[lower-alpha 3] |
2019–20 | File:Flag of Georgia.svg Georgia | File:Flag of Spain.svg Spain | File:Flag of Romania.svg Romania | File:Flag of Belgium (civil).svg Belgium | File:Flag of the Netherlands.svg Netherlands[lower-alpha 4] | File:Flag of Switzerland (Pantone).svg Switzerland | File:Flag of Ukraine.svg Ukraine | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
2020–21 | File:Flag of Georgia.svg Georgia | File:Flag of Romania.svg Romania | File:Flag of Portugal.svg Portugal | — | Not held | |||||||||||
2021–22 | File:Flag of Georgia.svg Georgia | File:Flag of Romania.svg Romania | File:Flag of Spain.svg Spain | File:Flag of Russia.svg Russia[lower-alpha 5] | File:Flag of Belgium (civil).svg Belgium[lower-alpha 4] | File:Flag of Poland.svg Poland[lower-alpha 4] | File:Flag of Germany.svg Germany[lower-alpha 4] | — | File:Flag of Sweden.svg Sweden[lower-alpha 1] | File:Flag of Croatia.svg Croatia[lower-alpha 1] | — | — | File:Flag of Moldova.svg Moldova[lower-alpha 2] | File:Flag of Bulgaria.svg Bulgaria[lower-alpha 2] | — | File:Flag of Slovakia.svg Slovakia |
Second Format
Year | Championship | Trophy | Conference 1 | Conference 2 | Development | |||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Winner | Runner-up | Third | Relegated | Winner | Relegated | Winners | Relegated | Winners | Relegated | Winner | ||||
2022–23 | File:Flag of Georgia.svg Georgia | File:Flag of Portugal.svg Portugal | File:Flag of Romania.svg Romania | — | File:Flag of Switzerland (Pantone).svg Switzerland | — | File:Flag of the Czech Republic.svg Czech Republic[lower-alpha 1] | File:Flag of Israel.svg Israel | — | — | File:Flag of Finland.svg Finland | File:Flag of Serbia.svg Serbia | File:Flag of Montenegro.svg Montenegro[lower-alpha 2] | File:Flag of Austria.svg Austria[lower-alpha 3] |
Third Format
Year | Championship | Trophy | Conference | Development | |||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Winner | Runner-up | Third | Relegated | Winner | Relegated | Winners | Relegated | Winner | Runner-up | ||||
2023–24 | File:Flag of Georgia.svg Georgia | File:Flag of Portugal.svg Portugal | File:Flag of Spain.svg Spain | File:Flag of Poland.svg Poland | File:Flag of Switzerland (Pantone).svg Switzerland[lower-alpha 1] | File:Flag of Ukraine.svg Ukraine | File:Flag of Latvia.svg Latvia | File:Flag of Luxembourg.svg Luxembourg[lower-alpha 2] | File:Flag of Moldova.svg Moldova | File:Flag of Malta.svg Malta | — | File:Flag of Montenegro.svg Montenegro[lower-alpha 3] | File:Flag of Kosovo.svg Kosovo[lower-alpha 3] |
Fourth Format
Year | Championship | Trophy | Conference | ||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Winner | Runner-up | Third | Relegated | Winner | Relegated | Winners | |||||
2024–25 | |||||||||||
2025–26 |
Statistics (2000–present)
All-time table
Nation | Pld | W | D | L | PF | PA | PD | AVPPG | Pts | Win% | Champs |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
File:Flag of Georgia.svg Georgia | 125 | 107 | 5 | 13 | 4003 | 1395 | +2609 | 32.02 | 454 | 85.6% | 16 |
File:Flag of Romania.svg Romania | 125 | 85 | 2 | 38 | 3045 | 1884 | +1161 | 24.36 | 347 | 68% | 5 |
File:Flag of Spain.svg Spain | 115 | 46 | 4 | 64 | 2497 | 2604 | −107 | 21.7 | 222 | 40% | 0 |
File:Flag of Portugal.svg Portugal | 110 | 48 | 4 | 58 | 2364 | 2367 | -3 | 21.5 | 221 | 43.64% | 1 |
File:Flag of Russia.svg Russia | 108 | 54 | 3 | 51 | 2526 | 2233 | +293 | 23.4 | 232 | 50% | 0 |
File:Flag of Germany.svg Germany | 45 | 6 | 1 | 38 | 600 | 1952 | −1352 | 13.2 | 36 | 13.33% | 0 |
File:Flag of Belgium (civil).svg Belgium | 40 | 9 | 1 | 30 | 644 | 1203 | −559 | 16.1 | 51 | 22.5% | 0 |
File:Flag of the Netherlands.svg Netherlands | 35 | 8 | 0 | 27 | 515 | 1188 | −673 | 14.7 | 50 | 22.86% | 0 |
File:Flag of the Czech Republic.svg Czech Republic | 29 | 6 | 0 | 23 | 362 | 1075 | −713 | 12.48 | 40 | 20.69% | 0 |
File:Flag of Ukraine.svg Ukraine | 20 | 1 | 0 | 19 | 201 | 997 | −796 | 10.05 | 15 | 5% | 0 |
File:Flag of Poland.svg Poland | 10 | 1 | 0 | 9 | 126 | 381 | -255 | 12.6 | 6 | 10% | 0 |
File:Flag of Morocco.svg Morocco | 5 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 94 | 69 | +25 | 18.80 | 11 | 60% | 0 |
File:Flag of Switzerland (Pantone).svg Switzerland | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0% | 0 |
Performance by team
Nation | Winner | Runner-up | Third Place |
---|---|---|---|
File:Flag of Georgia.svg Georgia | 16 | 5 | 1 |
File:Flag of Romania.svg Romania | 5 | 9 | 6 |
File:Flag of Portugal.svg Portugal | 1 | 2 | 4 |
File:Flag of Russia.svg Russia | 0 | 3 | 6 |
File:Flag of Spain.svg Spain | 0 | 3 | 4 |
File:Flag of Germany.svg Germany | 0 | 0 | 1 |
File:Flag of Morocco.svg Morocco | 0 | 0 | 1 |
Records (since 2000)
Updated as of 19 March 2023
Division 1A
- Titles
- Most titles: 16 – File:Flag of Georgia.svg Georgia (2001, 2007–2008, 2008–2009, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023, 2024)
- Most consecutive titles: 7 – File:Flag of Georgia.svg Georgia (2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023, 2024)
- Top division appearances
- 27 (joint record) – File:Flag of Georgia.svg Georgia (2000–present), File:Flag of Romania.svg Romania (2000–present)
- Wins
- most wins overall: 106 – File:Flag of Georgia.svg Georgia
- most home wins overall: 53 – File:Flag of Georgia.svg Georgia
- most away wins overall: 51 – File:Flag of Georgia.svg Georgia
- most consecutive wins overall: 20 – File:Flag of Georgia.svg Georgia (10 February 2018 – 26 June 2021)
- most consecutive home wins: 31 – File:Flag of Georgia.svg Georgia (14 March 2009 – 26 June 2021)
- most consecutive away wins: 17 – File:Flag of Georgia.svg Georgia (8 February 2014 – present)
- Draws
- most draws overall: 5 – File:Flag of Georgia.svg Georgia
- Losses
- most losses overall: 64 – File:Flag of Spain.svg Spain
- Points
- most points scored in a season: 389 – File:Flag of Romania.svg Romania (10 games – 2005–2006) 225 File:Flag of Georgia.svg Georgia (5 games – 2023)
- fewest points conceded in a season: 75 – File:Flag of Georgia.svg Georgia (10 games – 2015–2016) 33 File:Flag of Georgia.svg Georgia (5 games – 2016)
- most points conceded in a season: 556 – File:Flag of Ukraine.svg Ukraine (10 games – 2005–2006) 359 File:Flag of Germany.svg Germany (5 games – 2018)
- fewest points scored in a season: 58 – File:Flag of Germany.svg Germany (10 games – 2008–2009) 34 File:Flag of Germany.svg Germany (5 games – 2018)
- most points scored in a match: 101 – (File:Flag of Georgia.svg Georgia 98–3 File:Flag of the Czech Republic.svg Czech Republic 7 April 2007)
- most points scored in a match by one team 98 File:Flag of Georgia.svg Georgia (File:Flag of Georgia.svg Georgia 98–3 File:Flag of the Czech Republic.svg Czech Republic 7 April 2007)
- biggest winning margin: 97 – File:Flag of Romania.svg Romania (File:Flag of Romania.svg Romania 97–0 File:Flag of Ukraine.svg Ukraine 19 March 2005)
- most points scored by losing team: 38 (joint record) – File:Flag of Spain.svg Spain, File:Flag of Romania.svg Romania; matches (File:Flag of Spain.svg Spain 38–40 File:Flag of the Czech Republic.svg Czech Republic, 30 March 2003, File:Flag of Germany.svg Germany 41–38 File:Flag of Romania.svg Romania, 11 February 2017)
- biggest draw: 25 – (File:Flag of Georgia.svg Georgia v File:Flag of Portugal.svg Portugal 6 February 2022)
- fewest points scored in a match: 12 (joint record) – File:Flag of Portugal.svg Portugal 9–3 File:Flag of Morocco.svg Morocco 19 March 2000, File:Flag of Spain.svg Spain 6–6 File:Flag of Georgia.svg Georgia, 22 February 2004, (File:Flag of Georgia.svg Georgia 9–3 File:Flag of Russia.svg Russia, 6 March 2004)
- fewest points scored by winning team: 8 (File:Flag of Romania.svg Romania 8–7 File:Flag of Georgia.svg Georgia, 19 March 2017)
- Games without a loss
- Longest unbeaten run: 35 – File:Flag of Georgia.svg Georgia (10 February 2018 – present)
- Most consecutive games without a loss home: 52 – File:Flag of Georgia.svg Georgia (6 March 2004 – present)
- Most consecutive games without a loss away: 16 – File:Flag of Georgia.svg Georgia (17 February 2018 – present)
- Games without a win
- 17, joint record – File:Flag of Ukraine.svg Ukraine (20 November 2004 – 17 March 2012), File:Flag of Germany.svg Germany (15 November 2009 – 27 February 2016)
Other trophies
Several other trophies are contested within the main competition, mostly as long-standing fixtures between pairs of teams.
- Antim Cup: Romania versus Georgia. The most recent Antim Cup match was won by Georgia (2024)
- Viriato Cup: Portugal versus Spain. The most recent Viriato Cup match was won by Portugal (2024)
- Trophy of the Two Iberias: Georgia versus Spain. The most recent Trophy of the Two Iberias match was won by Georgia (2024)
- Coltan Cup: Portugal versus Belgium. The most recent Coltan Cup match was won by Belgium (2024)
- Trajan's Column: Spain versus Romania. The most recent Trajan's Column match was won by Spain (2024)
- Kiseleff Cup: Romania versus Russia. The most recent Kiseleff Cup match was won by Romania (2022)
- Moscow Gold: Russia versus Spain. The most recent Moscow Gold match was won by Spain (2022)
- Treasure of Lipovens: Romania versus Russia. The most recent Treasure of Lipovens match was won by Russia (2021)
- Suebi Bowl: Germany versus Portugal. The most recent Suebi Bowl match was won by Portugal (2019)
See also
- Rugby World Cup
- History of rugby union matches between Georgia and Romania
- Six Nations Championship
- Rugby Europe (formerly FIRA–AER)
- Sevens Grand Prix Series
References
- ↑ Press Release - Rugby Europe AGM Twickenham, July 25, 2015 Archived August 25, 2016, at the Wayback Machine
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 "New Format for Rugby Europe Championship". Rugby Europe. 2023. Retrieved 12 February 2023.
- ↑ RE:Championship z 8 drużynami! (Championship with 8 teams) (in Polish). (3 December 2021) Polski Zwiazek Rugby (Polish Rugby Union). Retrieved 8 February 2022.
- ↑ Was played the first round of 2003 Rugby World Cup – European qualification
- ↑ Was played as the second round of 2003 Rugby World Cup – European qualification
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 relegation and promotion on two year based ranking