In England, Scotland and Northern Ireland it is traditional for the Premier League, Scottish Premier League and Irish Premier League respectively, as well as the lower divisions and rugby leagues, to hold a full programme of football and Rugby League matches on Boxing Day.

They have since evolved into the London Crusaders, the London Broncos, and then into Harlequins Rugby League.

* Fulham Rugby League Club, now London Broncos, played at Craven Cottage between 1980 and 1984, hosting their largest attendance.

Fulham Rugby League Club

Cheergirls from Australia's National Rugby League

* Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs, an Australian National Rugby League team

* Cumberland ( rugby league team ), a team in the inaugural New South Wales Rugby League competition

:* Central Coast Division of Country Rugby League, an association operating junior rugby league

Compaq sponsored Bradford Bulls Rugby League club.

** Darwin Rugby League

* 1979 – Craig Wing, Australian Rugby League Player

Ireland's domestic Rugby League competition has been running since 1997.

Recent popularity has been increased with the Irish Wolfhound's success in the Rugby League World Cup which was held in Australia in 2008.

Edinburgh's professional rugby team, Edinburgh Rugby, play in the Magners League at Murrayfield.

Edinburgh Eagles are a rugby league team who play in the Rugby League Conference Scotland Division.

And also away from the world of Football there are a number of established fanzines, for example Rugby League has such notable publications as Who The Hell Was St. George Anyway?

( the world's longest-running Rugby League fanzine, by supporters of Doncaster RLFC ) and Scarlet Turkey of National League One club Salford City Reds.

* Rugby union provided a moment of magic thanks to George Gregan's last second match-winning tackle on NZ's Jeff Wilson in which Australia regained the Bledisloe Cup in 1994.

He played in the Rugby World Cup in 1995, although arguably his most memorable moment in that tournament was when his opposite number, Jonah Lomu, literally ran a ring around him, before powering straight over the tackle of full back Mike Catt to score what would be one of his four tries in that game.

A strong back-row forward with good handling skills and a superb tackle, notably against Andy Robinson the former England Coach in a European Match against Bath Rugby Club at Sardis Road.

Like all forms of Tag Rugby Mini Tag is historically based on rugby league, but under-7s Mini Tag has some rugby union features, like an unlimited tackle count.

During the Springboks ' first match of the Rugby World Cup against Samoa, Burger was cited for a high tackle on Junior Polu, and on 11 September was given a four-match suspension which would have in theory kept him out of the team until the semi-final.

* Another incident involving the South African team took place at the 2003 Rugby World Cup in Australia when an intoxicated Samoan fan, with his face painted in the red and blue of the Samoan flag, ran onto the pitch and attempted to tackle Springbok Louis Koen as he was kicking a goal in the late stages of a pool match against Samoa.

Brian Lima was selected for his record fifth Rugby World Cup in 2007 and retired after it, his swansong didn't go terribly well though as disputes about whether he should be banned ( after a dangerous tackle on Jaque Fourie marred his time on the pitch ).

The All-Party Parliamentary Rugby League Group was formed in 1987 to support the sport of rugby league and tackle the key issues facing the game in Parliament.

* The Crusher, the name given to a new kind of tackle in Australian Rugby League.

In Rugby Union the ball may be retained by the forwards and played for a time via the foot in a scrummage ( which Rugby League has as well ) or ruck, or by the hands in a maul, necessitating additional restrictions on play and player positioning during those intervals.

The origin of rugby football is reputed to be an incident during a game of English school football at Rugby School in 1823 when William Webb-Ellis is said to have picked up the ball and run with it.

Rugby union was included as an event in the Olympic Games four times during the early 1900s.

The winners are awarded the William Webb Ellis Cup, named after William Webb Ellis, the Rugby School pupil who – according to a popular myth – invented rugby football by picking up the ball during a game.

There were no standard rules for football during Webb Ellis's time at Rugby ( 1816 – 1825 ) and most varieties involved carrying the ball.

A few days previously he had experienced chest pains but had continued working and was eagerly anticipating a stay with his sister at Rugby, when he collapsed and died during a visit from his friends Elizabeth Croft and Archibald Keightley.

Rugby test matches hold a significant place in the sports calendar of Australia, and has even at times become highly politicised ; during the 1970s, in a significant move against South Africa's apartheid regime, many Australians ( including Wallabies ) demonstrated against tours by the racially selected South African team.

Canadian Rugby Union flanker Adam Kleeberger attracted much media attention before, during, and after the 2011 Rugby World Cup in New Zealand.

The flag is also seen during other sporting events in which England competes, for example during England Cricket matches ( the Cricket World Cup and The Ashes ), during Rugby Union matches and in football.

Although the town is most famous for its shrines it is also notable for its Rugby union team, FC Lourdes, which during the mid-twentieth century was one of the most successful teams in France, winning the national championship 8 times from 1948 to 1968.

The couple met during England's Rugby World Cup-winning campaign in Australia in 2003, being introduced by Zara's cousin, Prince Harry.

This tends to come to a head during each Rugby World Cup – the only time the Irish team plays a succession of matches away from home, and hence, when " Ireland's Call " is most prominently used.

The author attended Rugby School during the period when Dr. Arnold was Headmaster.

The Big Four went out of existence during the Second World War, but the Riders were able to field a club in the Eastern Rugby Football Union, along with Balmy Beach, Montreal and the Argonauts.

The Devonport Wharf / Ferry Terminal received a variety of maintenance and repairs during 2011 in advance of the Rugby World Cup.

These include the North Queensland Cowboys ( National Rugby League ), the Townsville Fire ( Women's National Basketball League ) who play at the Townsville RSL Stadium and the Townsville Crocodiles, ( National Basketball League ) who play out of the Townsville Entertainment Centre, known as The Swamp during Crocs home games.

Most national games in East London are played at the Buffalo City Stadium, which holds around 15000 people and was a host stadium during the 1995 Rugby World Cup.

They play out of Okara Park, the largest stadium in the region, which also hosted two matches during Rugby World Cup 2011.

For British players, the World Cup tournament took place during the 1954-55 Northern Rugby Football League season.