Rugby World Cup 1987

The inaugural Rugby World Cup, won by New Zealand in 1987.

The 1987 Rugby World Cup was the first Rugby World Cup, co-hosted by New Zealand and Australia. New Zealand hosted 21 matches (17 pool stage matches, two quarter-finals, the third-place play-off and the final) while Australia hosted 11 matches (seven pool matches, two quarter-finals and both semi-finals). The tournament was won by New Zealand, who defeated France 29–9 in the final at Eden Park in Auckland.

Quick Facts

Coach: Brian Lochore
Key try scorers: John Kirwan and Craig Green (6 tries each)

Lore & Background

The tournament comprised the seven members of the IRFB (New Zealand, Australia, England, Scotland, Ireland, Wales and France) and nine invited teams: Argentina, Fiji, Italy, Canada, Romania, Tonga, Japan, Zimbabwe and the United States. South Africa was excluded due to its pro-apartheid policies. The Soviet Union were to be invited but declined on political grounds. Western Samoa was controversially excluded despite their better playing standard than some invited teams. There was no qualification process.

Reader's Guide

The 16 teams were divided into four pools of four, each playing the others once. Two points for a win, one for a draw, none for a loss. Ties on points were separated by tries scored. The top two from each pool advanced to the quarter-finals, followed by a single-elimination knockout stage, with a third-place play-off for the losing semi-finalists. A total of 32 matches were played over 29 days from 22 May to 20 June 1987.