From The Vaults

18 September 2023

Where It All Started by Karl Quinney

Not everyone can lay claim to having the birthplace of a worldwide sport close to where they live. Born and bred in the town of Rugby, freelance travel writer Karl Quinney explores the scene where sporting history was made 200 years ago...

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18 September 2023

Where It All Started by Karl Quinney

Not everyone can lay claim to having the birthplace of a worldwide sport close to where they live. Born and bred in the town of Rugby, freelance travel writer Karl Quinney explores the scene where sporting history was made 200 years ago...

08 September 2023

France at the men's Rugby World Cup 1987-2023

Successive French teams have enriched each of the men’s Rugby World Cup tournaments in their own inimitable style since the historic initial tournament in Australia and New Zealand in 1987. And now in September 2023 the tournament returns to France and the nation's hopes are high that this will be their year...

04 September 2023

#FromTheVaults - A Letter from a Rugby Schoolboy, 1811

It is 200 years since William Webb Ellis is said to have run carrying a football on the playing fields at Rugby School. This letter from our collection contains one of the earliest references to Rugby football...

29 August 2023

Juan Arzuaga: an Iberian sporting legend

Sporting and Social historian Keith Gregson delves into the story of Juan Arzuaga, the Spanish football star who cut his teeth on the rugby fields of North-East England...

21 August 2023

#FromTheVaults - All Blacks and Springboks

With New Zealand and South Africa preparing for a Rugby World Cup warm-up match at Twickenham on Friday, we’re highlighting two items which have recently been loaned to the World Rugby Museum.

07 August 2023

Joe Brunton – a great rugby stalwart of the north

English Rugby throughout the amateur era always relied on charismatic loyal figures who gave great service to their clubs and rugby in their counties and regions long after their playing careers had ended...

31 July 2023

A Street Through Time

Charles Street, the former Groundsman of Blackheath Football Club, witnessed many of the finest rugby players of the late 19th and first half of the 20th Century. Here we share an audio interview by the BBC that we hold in our collection...

24 July 2023

The Varsity Match: A Story of Twists and Turns by Paul Chéhère

Since the beginning of rugby’s history, students have often been at the cutting edge of English rugby, contributing greatly to the development of the game in the UK...

18 July 2023

Uncapped half backs in Lions tests 1891-1939

England has supplied some distinguished half backs to the ranks of British and Irish Lions in recent test series, but surprisingly there were relatively few capped English players selected for Lions test matches prior to 1939...

10 July 2023

Allez Les Bleus: A Brief History of France at the Women’s Rugby World Cups

As one of the driving forces behind the development of the women’s game, it is not surprising that France has consistently entered one of the strongest teams in the women’s Rugby World Cup.

03 July 2023

Allez les Bleus illustrations

The illustrations and cartoons reproduced in our current exhibition, Allez Les Bleus, chart the growing popularity of rugby in France during the late-nineteenth and early-twentieth centuries. This week’s blog explores the stories behind some of these illustrations. The images were kindly supplied by Frederic Humbert.

26 June 2023

The Ghost Player by Andrew Rishworth

‘The Roses Match’ by William Barnes Wollen hangs on the wall of the President’s Suite in the West Stand of Twickenham Stadium. In this article, Andrew Rishworth shares an extract of his research on the subject...