Back Rugbywêreldbeker 2015 Afrikaans كأس العالم للرغبي 2015 Arabic Copa del Món de Rugbi de 2015 Catalan Mistrovství světa v ragby 2015 Czech Cwpan Rygbi'r Byd 2015 Welsh Rugby-Union-Weltmeisterschaft 2015 German Παγκόσμιο Κύπελλο Ράγκμπι 2015 Greek Copa Mundial de Rugby de 2015 Spanish 2015eko Munduko Errugbi Kopa Basque Rugbyn maailmanmestaruuskilpailut 2015 Finnish
 | |
| Tournament details | |
|---|---|
| Host nation |  England |
| Dates | 18 September – 31 October (44 days) |
| No. of nations | 20 (96 qualifying) |
| Final positions | |
Champions  |  New Zealand (3rd title) |
Runner-up  |  Australia |
Third place  |  South Africa |
| Tournament statistics | |
| Matches played | 48 |
| Attendance | 2,477,805 (51,621 per match) |
| Top scorer(s) |  Nicolás Sánchez (97) |
| Most tries | Julian Savea (8) |
← 2011 2019 → | |
The IRB 2015 Rugby World Cup was the eighth Rugby World Cup, the quadrennial rugby union world championship. The tournament was hosted by England[nb 1] from 18 September to 31 October.[2] Of the 20 countries competing in the World Cup in 2011, there was only one change: Uruguay replaced Russia. This was the first World Cup with no new teams to the tournament.
Reigning champions New Zealand won the cup and defended their title by defeating Australia 34–17 in the final; South Africa defeated Argentina to take third place. This was the first Rugby World Cup where no Northern Hemisphere team got beyond the quarter-finals.[3] New Zealand were the first team to retain their title and the first to win for a third time.[4]
The highly contested match between Japan and South Africa on the opening weekend, in which Japan scored the winning try in the final minute, was widely considered the biggest upset in the history of rugby.[5] Hosts England were eliminated at the pool stage, after defeats by Wales and Australia; this was the first time the knockout stage did not feature a host nation.
- ^ Written Statement – Celebrating the Rugby World Cup 2015 in Wales
- ^ "September 18 start date for RWC 2015". International Rugby Board. 15 May 2012. Archived from the original on 21 June 2015. Retrieved 15 May 2012.
- ^ "Rugby World Cup 2015: Rugby Championship downs Six Nations". The New Zealand Herald. 18 October 2015. Retrieved 18 October 2015.
- ^ Rees, Paul (31 October 2015). "New Zealand retain Rugby World Cup with ruthless display against Australia". The Guardian. Retrieved 2 November 2015.
- ^ "Rugby World Cup 2015: South Africa 32–34 Japan". BBC Sport. 19 September 2015. Retrieved 19 September 2015.
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