FIRA – Association Of European Rugby

Rugby Europe is the administrative body for rugby union in Europe. It was formed in 1999 to promote, develop, organise, and administer the game of rugby in Europe under the authority of World Rugby (the sport's global governing body). However, it is not responsible for the organisation of the Six Nations Championship or the competitions run by European Professional Club Rugby (the European Rugby Champions Cup and Challenge Cup).

The predecessor to Rugby Europe was the Fédération Internationale de Rugby Amateur (FIRA), which was established in 1934 to administer rugby union in Europe outside the authority of the International Rugby Football Board (as World Rugby was then called), and came to spread outside the continent. FIRA agreed to come under the auspices of World Rugby in the 1990s, and appended 'Association Européenne de Rugby' to its name in a return to being a European body. In 2014 the organisation was renamed Rugby Europe as part of a re-branding.

After the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine, Rugby Europe suspended Russia from international and European continental rugby union competition. In addition, the Rugby Union of Russia was suspended from Rugby Europe.

Member unions

Rugby Europe has 47 member unions as of December 2021. Not all European member unions are members of World Rugby. Rugby Europe's members are listed below, with the year each union joined World Rugby shown in brackets.

Forty World Rugby members are part of Rugby Europe:

Seven members of Rugby Europe are not affiliated with World Rugby:

Six European nations are not currently affiliated with Rugby Europe or World Rugby:

Notes:

History

FIRA (1934–1999)

In 1931, the French Rugby Federation (FFR) was suspended from playing against the other IRFB nations, because the sport's authorities had suspected for many years that the (FFR) was allowing the abuse of the rules on amateurism.
As a result, Fédération Internationale de Rugby Amateur (FIRA) was founded in 1934.
It was designed to organise rugby union outside the authority of the ''International Rugby Football Board'' (as it was known at the time). The founder members were Italy, France, Spain, Belgium, Portugal, Catalonia, Romania, Holland and Germany. In 1941 the Spanish dictator Francisco Franco forcibly merged Catalonia's team into the Spanish rugby team. Nowadays the Catalan Federation is trying unsuccessfully to reverse this decision, claiming the historical rights as a founder member.

In 1965, FIRA inaugurated the FIRA Nation's Cup, and in 1974 the FIRA Championship, later renamed the European Nations Cup (ENC). The ENC provided international competition for European countries outside the Five Nations. The ENC was played in three divisions, comprising most countries in Continental Europe. The ENC later expanded its horizons, taking in Morocco and Tunisia.
The ENC first division competition was won most often by France, but Romania won it five times, and Italy once, in its last edition, in 1995–1997. France and Italy no longer play in the ENC, as both countries now play in the Six Nations Championship.

FIRA–AER (1999–2014)

In the 1990s, FIRA recognised the IRB as the governing body of rugby union worldwide and after negotiations with the IRB, it agreed to integrate itself within the organisation. In 1999, it changed its name to "FIRA – Association of European Rugby" (FIRA–AER), to promote and rule over rugby union in the European area and to run the junior world championship. FIRA-AER organised both the under-19 and under-21 world championships until IRB folded them into the competitions now known as the World Rugby Under 20 Championship and World Rugby Under 20 Trophy in 2008.

Rugby Europe (2014–present)

In June 2014, during the annual convention of FIRA-AER in Split, it was decided to rename the organisation to Rugby Europe to provide it with a shorter, more recognisable name.

Rugby Europe international competitions

The highest level of rugby competition played among European countries is the Six Nations Championship, contested every year in February and March by the tier-1 European nations: England, France, Ireland, Italy, Scotland and Wales. The tournament is the oldest international rugby tournament in the world, having begun in 1883, and has been known as the Six Nations Championship since 2000, when Italy joined; it had previously been known as the Home Nations and the Five Nations. There is no promotion or relegation, and since 2000, no country has entered or left the Six Nations. Rugby Europe is not responsible for the organisation of the Six Nations Championship, which is run by the national unions of its participating nations.

The next level of international rugby, played by tier-2 and tier-3 European countries, is the Rugby Europe International Championships. It is made up of five levels or divisions: Championship, Trophy, Conference 1, Conference 2 and Development. Each division consists of five or six teams, and is played on a round robin format for a one-year cycle, with promotion and relegation between levels and the end of the season. As of 2020, the top division Rugby Europe Championship is contested by six countries – Belgium, Georgia, Portugal, Romania, Russia and Spain. Of these countries, all but Belgium have played in a Rugby World Cup and are routinely ranked in the Top 30 in the world. Other countries that have participated in past editions include Germany, Ukraine, Czech Republic and the Netherlands. However, according to a statement released by the Polish Rugby Union in December 2021, the Rugby Europe championship will be expanded to consist of eight teams for the 2023 season.RE:Championship z 8 drużynami! (Championship with 8 teams)
(in Polish). (3 December 2021) Polski Zwiazek Rugby (Polish Rugby Union). Retrieved 8 February 2022.

Other international competitions

Senior Men

Men XV
* Rugby Europe International Championships
** Championship
** Trophy
** Conference 1 (2 Conferences: North and South)
** Conference 2 (2 Conferences: North and South)
** Development
* Rugby World Cup 2023 Qualifier
Men VII
* Rugby Europe Sevens
** Championship Series
** Trophy
** Conference 1
** Conference 2
* 2020 Olympics Rugby Europe Men's Sevens Qualifier
Snow rugby
* Rugby Europe Snow Rugby Men's European Championship
Beach rugby
* European Beach Five Men's Rugby Championships

Senior Women

Women XV
* Rugby Europe Women's Championship
** Championship
** Trophy
* 2021 Rugby World Cup qualifier^{( 1)}
Women VII
* Rugby Europe Women's Sevens
** Championship Series
** Trophy
** Conference
* 2020 Olympics Rugby Europe's Women's Sevens Qualifier
Snow rugby
* Rugby Europe Snow Rugby Women's European Championship
Beach rugby
* European Beach Five Women's Rugby Championships

Youth

Men XV
* Rugby Europe Under-20 Championship
* Rugby Europe Under-18 Championship

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