Australia at the Rugby World Cup


The Australia national rugby union team, known as the Wallabies, has played in all ten Rugby World Cup tournaments. They have won the World Cup on two occasions; only New Zealand and South Africa have won more. Australia has hosted or co-hosted the tournament twice – in 1987 and 2003, and is scheduled to host it in 2027.

By tournament

[1987 [Rugby World Cup|1987 New Zealand & Australia]]

Pool 1
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Quarter-final
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Semi-final
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'''Third place play-off'''

[[1991 Rugby World Cup|1991 UK, Ireland and France]]

Pool 3
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Quarter-final
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Semi-final
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'''Final'''

1995 South Africa">1995 Rugby World Cup">1995 South Africa

Pool A
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'''Quarter-final'''

1999 Wales">1999 Rugby World Cup">1999 Wales

Pool E
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Quarter-final
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Semi-final
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'''Final'''

2003 Australia">2003 Rugby World Cup">2003 Australia

Pool A
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Quarter-final
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Semi-final
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'''Final'''

2007 France">2007 Rugby World Cup">2007 France

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'''Quarter-final'''

2011 New Zealand">2011 Rugby World Cup">2011 New Zealand

Pool C
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Quarter-final
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Semi-final
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'''Third place play-off'''

2015 England">2015 Rugby World Cup">2015 England

Pool A
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Quarter-final
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Semi-final
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'''Final'''

2019 Japan">2019 Rugby World Cup">2019 Japan

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'''Quarter-final'''

Hosting

1987

Australia hosted the first Rugby World Cup in 1987 along with New Zealand. Two stadiums in Australia were used.
CityStadiumCapacity
BrisbaneBallymore Stadium24,000
SydneyConcord Oval20,000

Most of the pool games were in New Zealand, but the semi-finals, and one of the quarter-finals, were played in Australia.

2003

Australia won the right to host the World Cup in 2003 without the involvement of New Zealand after a contractual dispute over ground signage rights between the New Zealand Rugby Football Union and Rugby World Cup Limited. The overall stadium capacity was reduced from the 1999 Rugby World Cup in Wales.
The Adelaide Oval underwent a A$20 million redevelopment for the 2003 Rugby World Cup, financed entirely by the South Australian Cricket Association, with two new grandstands built adjacent to the Victor Richardson Gates. Lang Park in Brisbane was a new venue designed specifically for rugby, built at a cost of A$280 million, and was opened just before the start of the 2003 World Cup. The Central Coast Stadium was also a newly built venue, and opened in February 2000 at a cost of A$30 million.
The Sydney Football Stadium was one of two venues in Sydney that were used for football during the 2000 Olympic Games. The other venue in Sydney was the Stadium Australia which was the centrepiece of the 2000 Olympic Games. Also known as Stadium Australia, Telstra Stadium was built at a cost of over A$600 million and was the biggest stadium used in the 2003 World Cup. The only stadium with a retractable roof used was the Docklands Stadium in Melbourne.
StadiumGamesCityStateCapacityHighest attendance
Stadium Australia7SydneyNew South Wales83,50082,957
Sydney Football Stadium5SydneyNew South Wales41,15937,137
Central Coast Stadium3GosfordNew South Wales20,11919,653
Wollongong Showground2WollongongNew South Wales18,48417,833
Lang Park9BrisbaneQueensland52,50048,778
Willows Sports Complex3TownsvilleQueensland24,84321,309
Docklands Stadium7MelbourneVictoria53,37154,206
Subiaco Oval5PerthWestern Australia42,92238,834
Canberra Stadium4CanberraAustralian Capital Territory24,64722,641
Adelaide Oval2AdelaideSouth Australia33,59733,000
York Park1LauncestonTasmania19,89115,457

Australia intended to bid for the 2015 and 2019 Rugby World Cups, but withdrew from the bidding. The bids were awarded to England and Japan respectively.

2027

Australia won their bid to host the 2027 Rugby World Cup on 12 May 2022. The tournament will take place between 10 September and 27 October, 2027.

Team records

Most points in a tournament
  • 345 – 2003
  • 225 – 2007
  • 222 – 2015
  • 221 – 1999
  • 211 – 2011
Most points in a game
  • 142 – vs, 2003
  • 91 – vs, 2007
  • 90 – vs, 2003
  • 68 – vs, 2011
  • 67 – vs, 2011
  • 66 – vs, 2015
  • 57 – vs, 1999
  • 55 – vs, 1999
  • 55 – vs, 2007

Individual records

Most World Cup matches
Most points overall
Most individual points in a game
Most tries overall
Most tries in a game
Most penalty goals overall
Most penalty goals in a game
Most drop goals

Portrayal on screen

Australia can be seen playing South Africa in the feature film Invictus based on the 1995 Rugby World Cup.