New Zealand national rugby union team

The All Blacks (Ōpango in Māori) are New Zealand’s men’s national rugby union team. Rugby union is the country’s national sport, and the All Blacks are widely seen as one of the most successful sports teams ever. They have won the Rugby World Cup three times: in 1987, 2011, and 2015, and were the first team to win back-to-back titles. Since their first test match in 1903, they have played against 19 nations, and 12 of those have never beaten them. Their overall winning record in test matches is 76%, and they have a winning record against every opponent they have faced. Since the World Rugby Rankings began in 2003, New Zealand has held the number-one spot longer than all other teams combined. They also share the men’s record for the most consecutive test wins by a tier-one nation, alongside England.

In the Rugby Championship—which also includes Argentina, Australia, and South Africa—the All Blacks have won the trophy 20 times in the competition’s 30-year history. They have completed a Grand Slam (beating all four Home Nations on a single tour) four times: in 1978, 2005, 2008, and 2010. Since World Rugby started naming a Team of the Year in 2001, New Zealand has won that award ten times. Over the same period, an All Black has been named World Rugby Player of the Year ten times. Nineteen former All Blacks are in the World Rugby Hall of Fame.

The team’s first match was in 1884, in New South Wales. Their first official test was in 1903 against Australia in Sydney, which they won 22–3. The following year, they hosted their first home test, playing a British Isles side in Wellington. In 1905, they toured Europe and North America, playing 34 games (including five tests) and losing only once—their first test loss, to Wales. Early uniforms were a black jersey with a silver fern and white shorts. By the 1905 tour, the kit was all black except for the silver fern, and the name “All Blacks” dates from that time. The team performs a haka before every match; traditionally it is Te Rauparaha’s “Ka Mate,” though “Kapa o Pango” has also been used since 2005.

Rugby was introduced to New Zealand by Charles Monro in 1870, after he learned the sport at school in England. The first recorded game in New Zealand was in May 1870 in Nelson, between the Nelson rugby club and Nelson College. The first provincial union, Canterbury, formed in 1879. New Zealand’s first internationals came in 1882, when New South Wales’s “Waratahs” toured and played seven provincial sides, winning four and losing three. In 1884, the first New Zealand team to travel overseas toured New South Wales and won all eight matches. A privately organized British team (later the British & Irish Lions) toured New Zealand in 1888, but only played provincial sides; no tests were held.

The New Zealand Rugby Football Union (NZRFU) was formed in 1892, after provincial administrators were canvassed by Ernest Hoben. It included most provinces but not Canterbury, Otago, or Southland. The first officially sanctioned New Zealand side toured New South Wales in 1893, captained by Thomas Ellison, winning nine of ten matches. In 1894, New Zealand played its first home “international,” losing 6–8 to New South Wales. The first true test was against Australia on 15 August 1903 at the Sydney Cricket Ground, in front of over 30,000 spectators; New Zealand won 22–3.

The 1905 tour of the British Isles is known for the “Originals.” The name “All Blacks” emerged during this tour. According to player Billy Wallace, a London newspaper reported that the New Zealanders played as if they were “all backs,” but a typographical error turned it into “All Blacks.” This story is likely a myth—the side was probably called the Blacks before leaving New Zealand because of their black kit. Still, the tour popularized the name. The Originals played 35 matches, winning all but a 0–3 loss to Wales in Cardiff, a game known as “The match of the Century.” The tour also caused friction: some Home Nations administrators and the press complained that the All Blacks did not play in the amateur, gentlemanly spirit promoted by the International Rugby Football Board. That criticism followed New Zealand teams until the 1930s.

The success of the Originals created problems for the amateur NZRFU. In 1907, a professional team (the “All Golds”) toured the British Isles to play rugby league. When they returned, they established rugby league in New Zealand, and many players switched codes.