Rugby X is a variant of

rugby union Rugby union, commonly known simply as rugby, is a close-contact team sport that originated at Rugby School in the first half of the 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand. In its m ...

, or more precisely rugby sevens, in which teams are made up of five players, typically three forwards and two backs. Matches are much shorter, usually played for ten minutes, without any half-time break. The game was invented by Ben Ryan as variant of rugby sevens with more speed and action, and was first launched on 29 October 2019 as a six teams international tournament in

The O2 Arena The O2 Arena, commonly known as the O2 (stylised as The O2 arena), is a multi-purpose indoor arena in the centre of the O2 entertainment complex on the Greenwich Peninsula in southeast London. It opened in its present form in 2007. It has the s ...

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

. The rules (law variations) are similar to rugby sevens and are approved by

World Rugby World Rugby is the world governing body for the sport of rugby union. World Rugby organises the Rugby World Cup every four years, the sport's most recognised and most profitable competition. It also organises a number of other international rug ...

Rules

The game is intended as fast-paced version of sevens rugby, but contrary to this seven-a-side version, its rules vastly diverge from the

classic rules : * The pitch is half-sized compared to rugby sevens, with 55m x 32m dimensions plus 5m run offs. * There are five players per side plus seven rolling substitutes that are allowed to come in at breaks in play following tries. * There is a single scoring unit : 5 points per try without conversions, drop goals or penalties. * Kick-offs are replaced by tap starts on the 5m line, with opposing team standing 10m back. * Chip kicks allowed but not box kicks, up and unders or any kick over 10m in height (referee is supposed to receive real time notification using ball tracking technology) * Line outs are replaced by quick throws made by a substitute. * There are only three person per scrums with no pushing and hooking is allowed. * Drawn matches are settled by a ‘one on one’ involving one defender on 5m line and one attacker 30m from goal with a ball. The attacker has 10 seconds to score. It is played as per a sudden death penalty shoot out – if Team A scores, Team B must then score or Team A wins the match.

History

The project was initially launched by Ben Ryan, former Olympic gold medalist Fiji's coach, with the cooperation of both

and

RFU The Rugby Football Union (RFU) is the national governing body for rugby union in England. It was founded in 1871, and was the sport's international governing body prior to the formation of what is now known as World Rugby (WR) in 1886. It pro ...

; the first tournament being held in

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

Tournaments

2019 Rugby X Tournament The 2019 Rugby X Tournament was held on 29 October, 2019 at The O2 Arena The O2 Arena, commonly known as the O2 (stylised as The O2 arena), is a multi-purpose indoor arena in the centre of the O2 entertainment complex on the Greenwich Peninsu ...

**Sides included

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

and

national sevens teams for the women's tournament and

and

Argentina Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the second-largest country in South America after Brazil, th ...

national sevens teams plus a

Barbarian F.C. The Barbarian Football Club, known as the Barbarians is a British-based invitational rugby union club. The Barbarians play in black and white hoops, though players wear socks from their own club strip. Membership is by invitation. As of 2011, p ...

invitational team for the men's tournament. ** The women's tournament was won by

and the men's tournament by

References

External links

X {{rugbyunion-stub