Zimbabwe Rugby Union
Encyclopedia
The Zimbabwe Rugby Union was founded in 1895 as the Rhodesia Rugby Football Union, and is the governing body of rugby union
in Zimbabwe
.
When the Pioneer Column
arrived in Rhodesia
from the Cape Province
in 1890 it brought with it the country's first rugby players. The oldest clubs in the country were formed in 1894 in Bulawayo
and the Rhodesia Rugby Football Union was founded one year later in 1895.
In 1980 the Rhodesia Rugby Football Union was renamed the Zimbabwe Rugby Union when the country's name changed as well.
Today, rugby union is a popular minority sport in Zimbabwe
, though nowhere near as popular as football
or cricket
.
Rugby union
Rugby union, often simply referred to as rugby, is a full contact team sport which originated in England in the early 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand...
in Zimbabwe
Zimbabwe
Zimbabwe is a landlocked country located in the southern part of the African continent, between the Zambezi and Limpopo rivers. It is bordered by South Africa to the south, Botswana to the southwest, Zambia and a tip of Namibia to the northwest and Mozambique to the east. Zimbabwe has three...
.
When the Pioneer Column
Pioneer Column
The Pioneer Column was a force raised by Cecil Rhodes and his British South Africa Company in 1890 and used in his efforts to annex the territory of Mashonaland, later part of Southern Rhodesia ....
arrived in Rhodesia
Rhodesia
Rhodesia , officially the Republic of Rhodesia from 1970, was an unrecognised state located in southern Africa that existed between 1965 and 1979 following its Unilateral Declaration of Independence from the United Kingdom on 11 November 1965...
from the Cape Province
Cape Province
The Province of the Cape of Good Hope was a province in the Union of South Africa and subsequently the Republic of South Africa...
in 1890 it brought with it the country's first rugby players. The oldest clubs in the country were formed in 1894 in Bulawayo
Bulawayo
Bulawayo is the second largest city in Zimbabwe after the capital Harare, with an estimated population in 2010 of 2,000,000. It is located in Matabeleland, 439 km southwest of Harare, and is now treated as a separate provincial area from Matabeleland...
and the Rhodesia Rugby Football Union was founded one year later in 1895.
In 1980 the Rhodesia Rugby Football Union was renamed the Zimbabwe Rugby Union when the country's name changed as well.
Today, rugby union is a popular minority sport in Zimbabwe
Zimbabwe
Zimbabwe is a landlocked country located in the southern part of the African continent, between the Zambezi and Limpopo rivers. It is bordered by South Africa to the south, Botswana to the southwest, Zambia and a tip of Namibia to the northwest and Mozambique to the east. Zimbabwe has three...
, though nowhere near as popular as football
Football (soccer)
Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a sport played between two teams of eleven players with a spherical ball...
or cricket
Cricket
Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of 11 players on an oval-shaped field, at the centre of which is a rectangular 22-yard long pitch. One team bats, trying to score as many runs as possible while the other team bowls and fields, trying to dismiss the batsmen and thus limit the...
.