Rugby | Sports Avenue

When the 80th minute hit when South Africa versus England struck in Japan, everyone was shocked to see the final score was 32-12 Springboks. Not because they are not good, but they dominated the third ranked team in the world! Watching the game, England would move the ball, but they could not just get the try when needed. All in all, it was a great World Cup tournament; although, some matches cancelled due to the typhoon.

Now, the question is, how does Rugby continue to grow and build momentum following this World Cup?

Simple, it has to be easily accessible for everyone. In America, NBC Sports was the only “mainstream” sports platform I could find to watch Rugby. Here is the catch, unless you have NBC Sports on cable, it costed roughly $200 to watch the tournament. Unfortunately, not many people care enough about Rugby to pay a good amount of money to watch it, so there has to be a way for Americans to be exposed to it… right?

The best option I have found so far (for price) would be ESPN+ because it is $5 dollars a month for all the sports ESPN cover. Its main knock is that it does not live stream games often, so that is a turn off for many. Personally, if I pay for a sports app, I would like to watch games live. I can watch many NFL games live for free with the Yahoo Sports app and it is great. I would love to watch on the TV, but it is better than nothing and the quality is worth it.

To capitalize off the downturn of American Football due to decreasing numbers in youth leagues and health concerns. Rugby has to heavily target the youth. That will be their only way of allowing the sport to hit the mainstream and become the most popular contact sport. Is that a long shot considering the NFL is a juggernaut currently? Totally, but lets not ignore that the league product is not what it used to be. In the 2000’s, there were stars everywhere throughout the league, and now defense is limited with contact limitations.

I would like to see how many wide receivers could take a hit like that coming across the middle…

Rugby has been a sport for a longer time than American football, but it is in its adolescence in the worldwide scheme of things. It will take time and a targeted approach to the youth to get them to play rugby. Then, the quality will get better as these athletes will be playing throughout their childhood learning the fundamentals which will in-turn strengthen the national team and the professional leagues.

I discuss the growth of Rugby on the podcast as well with two fellows from Wales! It was great to hear how the country rallies around the sport!

Let me know your thoughts! Do you like Rugby? What does America need to do to allow Rugby to grow?

Japan is hosting the 9th edition of the Rugby World Cup which starts this Friday, September 21st, and it will be a great event. There are twenty teams in the tournament; although New Zealand has won the two prior World Cup’s and the favorites for this year, it will not be an easy task. Let’s take a look at three teams that are underdogs to win it all.

Japan: Walking in as the home team for the biggest event in Rugby is an advantage that cannot be downplayed. Not to mention this will be the first World Cup to be hosted in Asia, so expect a huge crowd for this team from the moment they touch the pitch on Friday against Russia. The Cherry Blossoms have had a solid 2019 up to this point. They went undefeated and won the Pacific Nations Cup, and 34 or more points in those games, but their downfall was losing to South Africa 41-7. Yikes. They are underdogs going into this, but offense must generate enough points to avoid a defensive collapse. Update: Beat Russia 30-10, great play by the backs.

Wales: Coming in as the highest ranked team in their pool (5th). Wales has had a really good 2019 with winning the Six Nations Championship tournament; however, it has come with some bumps in the road as they are walking into the World Cup losing three out of their last four games, one against England (3rd) and twice against Ireland (1st). Being in a weaker pool does give this team an advantage if they find their hot streak and take it past pool play. Only concern is if they are good enough to beat the top dogs of the tournament. Update: Won 43-14 against Georgia.

Argentina: This is the team that is against all odds, they lost all four games they played in 2019 against Australia (6th), South Africa (twice) (4th), and New Zealand (2nd). That is being put through the ringer, but three of the losses came within a possession (try and kick), so they very well can compete and go far. The Pumas last played on August 17th, so they have had a good month of rest and preparation. Their bracket is tough with England leading the pack, along with France, Tonga, and the United States. As I stated, odds are against them, but I would not rule them out. Update: Lost a tough game to France, 23-21.

I played my first year of Rugby last spring, and I genuinely enjoy this sport. The popularity in the United States is continuing to grow, and after playing football for 9 years of my life. It is a great alternative and recommend anyone to try the sport. Following that, the World Cup this year is going to be the best one yet, with great competition across the board. It will be nothing less than great and a key stepping stone for the rising popularity of Rugby!

To stay updated with the World Cup, I will put the Twitter and website down below! (Not sponsored by the way)

Tweets by rugbyworldcup

https://www.rugbyworldcup.com/

See you on the pitch this Friday!

Sources used: ESPN Scrum, and Rugby World Cup