70-468: England Rugby may refer to: England national rugby union team England women's national rugby union team England national rugby league team England women's national rugby league team England national wheelchair rugby league team Rugby Football Union the governing body of rugby union in England Rugby Football League
140-447: A 57-15 victory at Twickenham before defeating Italy 37-0 at St James' Park . In the 2019 Rugby World Cup , England became the first team to qualify for the quarter-finals following a 39-10 win over Argentina in Chōfu . After their final match was cancelled due to Typhoon Hagibis , England topped Pool C and faced Australia in the quarter-finals. England won the quarter-final 40-16, recording
210-474: A 69-3 victory over Tonga, recorded their eighth successive victory against Australia and defeated world champions South Africa 27-26. England finished third in the 2022 Six Nations Championship after defeating Italy and Wales but losing to Ireland, France and Scotland. England ended fourth in the 2023 Six Nations Championship . England defeated Italy (31-14) and Wales (10-20) but was beaten by Scotland (23-29), France (10-53) and Ireland (29-16). Twickenham
280-419: A goal, a drop goal and two tries to Scotland's one drop goal. The early matches did not use a structured points system; this would not be introduced until after 1890 when a suitable format for the scoring system had been devised. Up until 1875, international rugby matches were decided by the number of goals scored (conversions and dropped goals), but from 1876 the number of tries scored could be used to decide
350-544: A historic match at Croke Park which England lost 43–13, their heaviest defeat against Ireland. At the 2007 World Cup , England were grouped in Pool A with Samoa, Tonga , South Africa, and the United States. They progressed to the knockout stage despite a heavy 36–0 loss to South Africa, and narrowly defeated Australia 12–10 in the quarter-finals. England then faced hosts France in the semi-finals and triumphed 14–9 to qualify for
420-439: A home ground for English Rugby. The land for the ground was purchased in 1907 for £ 5,572 12 s and 6 d , and construction began the following year. The first international match at Twickenham took place on 15 January 1910 between England and Wales. The home team ran out winners 11–6, beating Wales for the first time since 1898. The stadium was expanded in 1927 and again in 1932, but there were no further upgrades until 1981 when
490-689: A match if the teams were level on goals. In 1875, England played their first game against Ireland at the Oval, winning by one goal, one drop goal and one try to nil; this was Ireland's first test match. England defeated Scotland in 1880 to become the first winners of the Calcutta Cup . Their first match against Wales was played on 19 February 1881 at Richardson's Field in Blackheath , where England recorded their largest victory, winning by seven goals, six tries, and one drop goal to nil, and scoring 13 tries in
560-561: A new South stand was built and the 1990s when new North, East and West stands were built; the South stand was replaced in 2005 and 2006 to make the stadium into a complete bowl. England played their first test match at the redeveloped Twickenham on 5 November 2006 against the All Blacks, who won the match 41–20, dominating the England team in front of a record crowd of 82,076. The pitch at Twickenham
630-517: A number of versions recorded and the version released did reach the top 40 in the UK Singles Chart during the competition. England rugby union players typically wear all-white jerseys and white shorts, with predominantly navy blue socks. The emblem on the jerseys is a red rose . As of July 2023, the strip is manufactured by Umbro and the shirt sponsor is O 2 . The away strip is usually red or dark grey (described as "anthracite"); prior to
700-706: A seventh successive victory over Australia in the Wallabies' largest-ever Rugby World Cup defeat. England then defeated New Zealand in the semi-final, equalling their largest Rugby World Cup defeat with a 19-7 victory in which the All Blacks were kept scoreless for 57 minutes. On 2 November 2019, England were defeated 12-32 by South Africa in the 2019 Rugby World Cup final . In the 2020 Six Nations Championship , England were defeated 24-17 in their opening game against France in Paris before recording victories against Scotland at Murrayfield and Ireland and Wales at Twickenham. The tournament
770-549: A skin-tight strip. This was intended to make it more difficult for the opposition to grasp the shirt when tackling. England competes annually in the Six Nations Championship , which is played against five other European nations: France , Ireland , Italy , Scotland , and Wales . The Six Nations started out as the Home Nations Championship in 1883 which England won with a Triple Crown . England have won
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#1732847627215840-569: A spirited challenge from Italy 46–15, and winning a tight contest against Wales 12–6 in the first two rounds of the Six Nations . However, it wasn't until June before England recorded another win, as the team lost their remaining games against Scotland (25–13), France (22–16) and eventual Grand Slam winners Ireland (24–15) at home at Twickenham. A non-test loss against the Barbarians (63–45) followed. On their summer tour of South Africa , England lost
910-593: A two-test series, this match was originally scheduled to be held in Argentina but moved by the Argentine Rugby Union for financial reasons. This was a Pool A match at the 2015 Rugby World Cup . England also played a Five Nations match against Wales at Wembley Stadium on 11 April 1999. Wales was the "home team" on this occasion because Wembley was being used as a temporary base while their new stadium in Cardiff
980-608: A victory over the Springboks. In the lead up to the 1995 World Cup in South Africa, England completed another Grand Slam – their third in five years. In the World Cup, England defeated Argentina , Italy and Samoa in pool play and then defeated Australia 25–22 in their quarter-final. England's semi-final was dominated by the All Blacks and featured four tries, now worth five points each, by Jonah Lomu ; England lost 45–29. They then lost
1050-606: A white shirt with a rose embroidered on the chest, white shorts, and navy blue socks with a white trim. England's home ground is Twickenham Stadium where they first played in 1910. The team is administered by the Rugby Football Union (RFU). Four former players have been inducted into the International Rugby Hall of Fame ; one of these is also a member of the IRB Hall of Fame . Seven other former players are members of
1120-600: A win and a draw, or three draws). However, England retained the Calcutta Cup by defeating Scotland 38–18 at Twickenham. Lancaster took an experimental side on a summer tour of Argentina in 2013 ; after beating a South American select XV on 2 June, England achieved a 2–0 series victory over Argentina, their first away series win against the Pumas for 32 years. In 2015, England hosted the Rugby World Cup , but were eliminated in
1190-466: Is different from Wikidata All article disambiguation pages All disambiguation pages England national rugby union team The England national rugby union team represents the Rugby Football Union in men's international rugby union . They compete in the annual Six Nations Championship with France , Ireland , Italy , Scotland and Wales . England have won the championship on 29 occasions (as well as sharing 10 victories), winning
1260-499: Is the largest dedicated rugby stadium in the world. In the early years, the English rugby team used a number of venues in several different locations around England before settling at Twickenham Stadium in 1910. After sell-out matches at Crystal Palace against New Zealand in 1905 and South Africa in 1906, the Rugby Football Union (RFU) decided to invest in their own ground and arranged for sportsman and entrepreneur Billy Williams to find
1330-462: The 2004 Six Nations Championship after losing their matches to both France and Ireland. Clive Woodward resigned as head coach on 2 September and Andy Robinson was appointed to replace him. Robinson's first Six Nations campaign in 2005 resulted in fourth place for England, and although they defeated Australia 26–16 at Twickenham in the Autumn internationals , this was followed by a 23–19 loss to
1400-648: The Grand Slam 14 times and the Triple Crown 26 times, making them the most successful outright winners in the tournament's history. They are currently the only team from the Northern Hemisphere to win the Rugby World Cup , having won the tournament in 2003 , and have been runners-up on three further occasions. The history of the team extends back to 1871 when the English rugby team played their first official test match , losing 1–0 to Scotland. England dominated
1470-720: The International Championship (known from then as the Five Nations) for the first time since 1892 . Although England did not retain the Five Nations title in 1911, they did share it (with Ireland) in 1912. England then achieved their first Five Nations Grand Slam in 1913, another in 1914, and a third in 1921 after the First World War. A further two consecutive Grand Slams followed for the England team in 1924 and 1925, this despite having started 1925 with an 17–11 loss to
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#17328476272151540-459: The Rugby Football Union also sent her a "full and unreserved apology". Having dismissed it at the time as "a fuss about nothing", Johnson later explained ahead of meeting the president again in Ireland for the 2011 Championship that he had lined up on that side as it was customary to line up on the side you warmed up on, that he had no prior knowledge of the protocol, and his subsequent refusal to move
1610-476: The United States . England lost their first game 19–6 against Australia. They went on to defeat Japan and the United States, and met Wales in their quarter-final, losing the match 16–3. In 1989, England won matches against Romania and Fiji , followed by victories in their first three Five Nations games of 1990. They lost to Scotland in their last game however, giving Scotland a Grand Slam. England recovered in
1680-594: The " Invincibles " in front of 60,000 fans at Twickenham. After winning a sixth Grand Slam in 1928, England were subjected to a 7–0 defeat by the Springboks in front of 70,000 spectators at Twickenham in January 1932. Following the expulsion of France from the International Championship in 1931 due to professionalism, which reverted the Five Nations tournament back to the Home Nations, England proceeded to win
1750-491: The 1934 and 1937 championships with a Triple Crown , and achieved their first victory over the All Blacks at Twickenham in January 1936. When the Five Nations resumed with the readmission of France in 1947 after the Second World War, England shared the championship with Wales. The early Five Nations competitions of the 1950s were unsuccessful for England, winning one match in the 1950 and 1951 championships. England won
1820-539: The 1953 Five Nations, and followed this up with a Grand Slam in 1957, and win in 1958. England broke France's four-championship streak by winning the 1963 Championship. After this victory, England played three Tests in the Southern Hemisphere and lost all three: 21–11 and 9–6 against the All Blacks, and 18–9 against Australia. England did not win a single match in 1966, and managed only a draw with Ireland. They did not win another Championship that decade. Don White
1890-573: The 1970s; with victories over South Africa in 1972, New Zealand in 1973 and Australia in 1973 and 1976. The 1972 Five Nations Championship was not completed due to the Troubles in Northern Ireland when Scotland and Wales refused to play their Five Nations away fixtures in Ireland. England played in Dublin in 1973 and were given a standing ovation lasting five minutes. After losing 18–9 at Lansdowne Road ,
1960-474: The All Blacks. A 25–14 loss to South Africa in the 2006 Autumn internationals was England's eighth defeat in nine test matches, their worst losing streak. Andy Robinson resigned as head coach after this run, and attack coach Brian Ashton was appointed as his replacement in December. England started the 2007 Six Nations Championship with a Calcutta Cup victory over Scotland. That year's championship included
2030-520: The England captain, John Pullin famously stated, "We might not be very good but at least we turned up." England started the following decade with a Grand Slam victory in the 1980 Five Nations – their first for 23 years. However in the 1983 Five Nations Championship , England failed to win a game and picked up the wooden spoon . In the first Rugby World Cup in New Zealand and Australia, England were grouped in pool A alongside Australia, Japan and
2100-582: The England team dominated the match and completely outplayed the All Blacks, who had been unbeaten in 20 matches. At the 2013 Six Nations Championship , England again finished in second place behind Wales, and were deprived of the opportunity to win the Grand Slam for the first time since 2003 when defeated by Wales in Cardiff 30–3. It was the first time since 1974 that every team in the Six Nations managed to win at least three competition points (the equivalent of
2170-556: The Grand Slam by losing 20–14 to Ireland in a postponed match at Lansdowne Road. Although France won the 2002 Six Nations Championship , England defeated the other Home Nations teams to win the Triple Crown. In 2002, England beat Argentina 26–18 in Buenos Aires, and in the Autumn internationals they defeated New Zealand 31–28, Australia 32–31, and South Africa 53–3 at Twickenham. At the 2003 Six Nations Championship , England won
England Rugby - Misplaced Pages Continue
2240-457: The Grand Slam for the first time since 1995, followed by wins over Australia and the All Blacks on their June summer tour . Going into the 2003 World Cup as one of the tournament favourites, England reached the final on 22 November 2003 against host Australia. The game went into extra time with the score tied at 14–14; after one penalty apiece and with just seconds to spare, a match-winning drop goal by fly-half Jonny Wilkinson brought
2310-526: The Home Nations trophy with Scotland in 1890. England first played New Zealand (known as the "All Blacks") in 1905 at Crystal Palace in London. New Zealand scored five tries, worth three points at the time, to win 15–0. England played France for the first time in March 1906 in Paris, winning 35–8, and later that year they first faced South Africa (known as the "Springboks"), again at Crystal Palace. James Peters
2380-478: The IRB Hall – four solely for their accomplishments as players, two solely for their achievements in other roles in the sport, and one for achievements both as a player and administrator. The expansion of rugby in the first half of the 19th century was driven by former pupils from many of England's public schools , especially Rugby , who, upon finishing school, took the game with them to universities, to London, and to
2450-560: The RFU stated that they had requested approval from the New Zealand Union, which said "it has no qualms with England wearing the strip". The Rugby Football Union (RFU) had created the national side's emblem prior to an English team being sent to Edinburgh to play a Scottish side. A red rose was chosen to be the side's emblem. The white kit worn by the national team was taken from the kit used at Rugby School . Alfred Wright, an employee of
2520-527: The Rugby Football Union, is credited with the standardisation and new design of the rose, which up until 1920 had undergone many variations in its depiction. The Wright design is thought to have been used without minor alteration until the late 1990s. It was not until 1997 that the rose was modernised, when Nike became the official strip supplier (with the stem section of the rose being green rather than brown as previously). In 2003, England first used
2590-456: The Springboks during the 2007 tournament. 2003 Six Nations Championship The 2003 Six Nations Championship was the fourth series of the rugby union Six Nations Championship , and the 109th international championship overall. The annual tournament was won by England , who completed a grand slam , and went on to win the 2003 Rugby World Cup later the same year. Italy won their first match with Wales (30–22), finishing in 5th place for
2660-498: The away team. Wales were whitewashed , losing all five of their games, and earned themselves the wooden spoon as a result. Notes: The deciding game between Ireland and England was overshadowed by an incident in the pre-game ceremonies in which the President of Ireland , Mary McAleese , had to walk on the grass instead of the red carpet to meet the Irish team. England had lined up on
2730-432: The championship, Welsh centre Scott Gibbs sliced through six English tackles to score a try in the last minute, and the ensuing conversion by Neil Jenkins handed the final Five Nations title to Scotland. England commenced the new millennium by winning the inaugural Six Nations Championship , although they lost their last match to Scotland. They successfully defended their title the following year , but missed out on
2800-467: The counties. England's first international match was against Scotland on 27 March 1871; not only was this England's first match, but it is also noted as being the first rugby union international. Scotland won the match by one goal and a try to England's one unconverted try, in front of a crowd of 4,000 people at Raeburn Place , Edinburgh. A subsequent international took place at the Oval in London on 5 February 1872, when England defeated Scotland by
2870-473: The early Home Nations Championship (now the Six Nations ) which started in 1883. Following the schism of rugby football in 1895 into union and league, England did not win the Championship again until 1910. They first played against New Zealand in 1905, South Africa in 1906, and Australia in 1909. England was one of the teams invited to take part in the inaugural Rugby World Cup in 1987 and progressed to
England Rugby - Misplaced Pages Continue
2940-430: The final in the second tournament in 1991 , losing 12–6 to Australia. Following their Grand Slam in 2003 , England went on to win the 2003 Rugby World Cup , defeating Australia 20–17 in extra time. They contested the final again in 2007 in defence of their title, losing 15–6 to South Africa, and reached the final for the fourth time in 2019 , once again losing to South Africa, 32–12. England players traditionally wear
3010-415: The final match, winning 22-19 after extra time at Twickenham to secure the tournament. England finished fifth in the 2021 Six Nations Championship , beating France and Italy but losing to all three home nations for the first time since 1976 and conceding defeat to Scotland at Twickenham for the first time since 1983. In the 2021 autumn internationals England played three matches at Twickenham. They secured
3080-495: The final score to 20–17, making England rugby world champions for the first time. Not only was this England's first Rugby World Cup victory, but it was the nation's first world cup since the England national football team won the 1966 FIFA World Cup . On 8 December, the England team were greeted by 750,000 supporters on a victory parade through London before meeting Queen Elizabeth II at Buckingham Palace . England finished third in
3150-464: The final, beating Wales and France in the quarter- and semi-finals. With a drop goal in the last minute of extra time, England won the final 20–17 against Australia in Sydney on 22 November 2003. England made a poor start to their defence of the World Cup in 2007 , with a below par victory over the United States and a heavy 36–0 defeat to South Africa, leaving the title holders on the brink of elimination at
3220-593: The final, where they were subjected to a second defeat by the Springboks at this World Cup, losing the match 15–6. England followed up their World Cup disappointment with two consecutive second-place finishes in the Six Nations Championship, behind Wales ( 2008 ) and Ireland ( 2009 ). Former England team captain Martin Johnson took up the job of head coach in July 2008 but, unable to replicate his on-field success in
3290-399: The first time in the process. This was the sixth time in the Championship's history, but the first time since it became the Six Nations, that two teams met in the final round with undefeated records, both England and Ireland having won their first four games, making the final match a decider for the Grand Slam. It was also the first time Ireland had been involved: and the first that was won by
3360-468: The first two matches 42–39 and 23–12, after leading both early in the first half, before winning the third test 25–10 against a mostly second-string Springbok side. That autumn, after adding former New Zealand and United States coach John Mitchell to the coaching setup, England won the return match against South Africa by a single point at 12–11, and lost an equally close contest with New Zealand 16–15, both in controversial circumstances. England rounded out
3430-496: The following year by winning their first Grand Slam since 1980. England hosted the 1991 World Cup and were in pool A, along with the All Blacks, Italy and the United States. Although they lost to the All Blacks in pool play, they qualified for a quarter-final going on to defeat France 19–10. England then defeated Scotland 9–6 to secure a place in the final against Australia which they lost 12–6. The next year, England completed another Grand Slam and did not lose that year, including
3500-654: The governing body of rugby league in England Rugby, England a town in Warwickshire Topics referred to by the same term [REDACTED] This disambiguation page lists articles associated with the title England Rugby . If an internal link led you here, you may wish to change the link to point directly to the intended article. Retrieved from " https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=England_Rugby&oldid=1260037081 " Category : Disambiguation pages Hidden categories: Short description
3570-468: The ground joined in. Since then "Swing Low, Sweet Chariot" became a song to sing at England home games. In 1991, the RFU marketing director Mike Coley for the team to launch a song leading up to that year's Rugby World Cup. He had wanted to use " Jerusalem ", but it was used in the Rugby League Challenge Cup final that year, so the song was changed at short notice to "Swing Low". There were
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#17328476272153640-428: The introduction of the grey strip, red was the traditional change colour. Navy blue has also been used in the past and was reintroduced for the 2016–17 and 2020–21 seasons. Purple was used during the 2009 autumn internationals, reflecting the traditional colour of the original England tracksuits from the 1960s until the 1980s. The away strip was black for the first time during the 2011 Rugby World Cup . About that kit,
3710-534: The left-hand side when facing the tunnel, which was said to be Ireland's lucky side. When asked to move his team, England captain Martin Johnson refused, so Ireland lined up to the left of them, with no team now on the right hand side, leaving insufficient red carpet on that side. A day after the game the Irish Rugby Football Union sent a written apology to the president for the England team's failure to "follow established and communicated protocol", while
3780-554: The management role, he resigned in November 2011 following a miserable Rugby World Cup which featured a series of on- and off-field controversies and ended in quarter-final defeat by France. In March 2012, the Rugby Football Union appointed Stuart Lancaster , the former Elite Rugby Director at Leeds Carnegie , as England's head coach. He had previously been employed in the position on a short-term basis, assisted by existing forwards coach Graham Rowntree , and Andy Farrell . Lancaster
3850-440: The only team to have won more than two successive grand slams, on more than one occasion, doing so in 1913–1914, 1923–1924 and 1991–1992; while Wales and France the only other teams to have done so twice, in 1908–1909 for Wales and 1997–1998 for France. England have previously played one or more series against these nations, but have never won an overall test series against them: England have contested every Rugby World Cup since
3920-472: The pool stage. Despite this setback, and following the appointment of new head coach Eddie Jones , England won the Grand Slam in the 2016 Six Nations Championship , and remained unbeaten for the whole of 2016, including a series whitewash of Australia in Sydney. They went on to equal the world record of 18 consecutive test wins with an impressive 61–21 victory over Scotland in securing the 2017 Six Nations Championship . 2018 began well for England, seeing off
3990-414: The pool stage. Improved performances against Samoa and Tonga ensured that England again reached the knockout stage as pool runners-up, before a surprise 12–10 defeat of Australia in the quarter-finals followed by a narrow 14–9 victory over the host nation carried England to a second successive final appearance. In the final, held in Paris on 20 October, England lost 15–6 to South Africa, their second defeat by
4060-637: The process. The subsequent meeting the following year at St. Helen's in Swansea was a closer contest, with England defeating Wales by two goals and four tries to nil. Two years later, England emerged as the inaugural winners at the first Home Nations championship . In 1889, they played their first match against a non-home nations team when they defeated the New Zealand Natives at Rectory Field in Blackheath by one goal and four tries to nil. England shared
4130-425: The quarter-final stage before being beaten by the All Blacks in the semi-final. Their third-place play-off match against France was lost 19–9. In the 1999 tournament , England again finished second in their pool. Although they proceeded to win a play-off game against Fiji, they went out of the tournament in the quarter-finals, losing 44–21 to South Africa. England came top of their pool in 2003 and progressed to
4200-494: The same venue the week before and by New Zealand (25–8) in Manchester two weeks previously. In 1998, England toured Australia, New Zealand and South Africa ; many of the experienced players were unavailable for what was to become nicknamed the "Tour from Hell" during which England lost all of their matches including a punishing 76–0 defeat by the Wallabies. In the last Five Nations match on 11 April 1999, with England poised to win
4270-416: The third-place play-off match against France. England won their 20th Triple Crown title in 1997, but came second in the championship after a narrow 23–20 defeat against France at Twickenham . Sir Clive Woodward replaced Jack Rowell as the England head coach later that year. On 6 December 1997, England drew 26–26 with New Zealand at Twickenham, after being heavily defeated (29–11) by South Africa at
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#17328476272154340-505: The title outright 29 times (a record for the tournament) and shared victory ten times. Their longest wait between championships was 18 years (1892–1910). During the Six Nations, England also contests the Calcutta Cup with Scotland (which England first won in 1880) and the Millennium Trophy with Ireland (which England first won in 1988). The matches between England and France are traditionally known as " Le Crunch ". Note: England are
4410-495: The tournament began in 1987, reaching the final four times and winning the title in 2003 . In the inaugural tournament , England finished second in their pool before losing to Wales in the quarter-finals. They again finished pool runners-up in 1991 but recovered to beat France in the quarter-finals, and then Scotland in the semi-finals, en route to a 12–6 final defeat to Australia at Twickenham on 2 November 1991. In 1995 , England topped their pool and defeated Australia 25–22 at
4480-517: The year with wins over Japan (35–15) and Australia (37–18). The win over Australia continued an unbroken run of victories over the Wallabies under former Australia coach Eddie Jones. England finished second in the 2019 Six Nations Championship having lost to Wales in Cardiff and drawn 38-38 with Scotland at Twickenham after leading 31-0. In the 2019 Rugby World Cup warm-up matches they defeated Wales 33-19 at Twickenham before losing 13-6 in Cardiff. They then recorded their largest win over Ireland with
4550-463: Was appointed as England's first coach in 1969. According to former Northampton player Bob Taylor , "Don was chosen because he was the most forward-thinking coach in England". His first match in charge was an 11–8 victory over South Africa at Twickenham in 1969. Of the eleven games England played with White in charge they won three, and drew one and lost seven. He resigned as England coach in 1971. England had wins against Southern Hemisphere teams in
4620-465: Was being constructed. Wales won the match 32–31. "Swing Low, Sweet Chariot" is commonly sung at England fixtures – especially at Twickenham. In the last match of the 1988 season, against Ireland, three of England's tries were scored by Chris Oti . A group of boys from the Benedictine school Douai , following a tradition at their school games, sang the song on his final try, and other spectators around
4690-410: Was considered a success in his first campaign as head coach: defending champions England took second place in the 2012 Six Nations Championship after losing 19–12 to Wales at Twickenham, but successfully defended the Calcutta Cup by defeating Scotland 13–6 at Murrayfield . England finished the year on a high when they beat World Cup holders New Zealand 38–21 at Twickenham in the Autumn internationals ;
4760-731: Was replaced in June 2012 with a hybrid 'Desso' type, which uses artificial fibres entwined with real grass. This type of pitch surface is particularly hard wearing in wet conditions. Although England have played home matches almost exclusively at Twickenham since 1910, they have occasionally used alternative English venues. England home matches have been hosted at Leicester's Welford Road (1923), London's Wembley Stadium (1992), Old Trafford (1997 and 2009), Huddersfield's McAlpine Stadium (twice in 1998), Manchester's Etihad Stadium (2015), and St James' Park in Newcastle upon Tyne (2019). The first of
4830-684: Was then halted due to the COVID-19 pandemic and resumed with the matches played in empty stadia in October. In the postponed matches, England recorded a bonus point win over Italy in Rome before France's defeat of Ireland by eight points meant that England won the championship on points difference. Due to the pandemic, the scheduled 2020 Autumn Internationals were replaced by the Autumn Nations Cup . England defeated Georgia , Wales and Ireland before facing France in
4900-556: Was withdrawn from the England squad when the South Africans refused to play against a black player; the match was drawn 3–3. England first played Australia (known as the "Wallabies") in January 1909 at Blackheath's Rectory Field, where they were defeated 9–3. The year 1909 saw the opening of Twickenham Stadium as the RFU's new home, heralding a golden era for English rugby union. England's first international at Twickenham in 1910 brought them victory over Wales on their way to winning
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