How the Tier 2 nations have fared at the Rugby World Cup since its inception

David Skippers
Tier 2 RWC feature image.jpg

Fiji's Josua Tuisova in action during their win over Australia in 2023, Japan celebrate their victory against South Africa in 2015 and Tonga's players perform the Sipi Tau ahead of their triumph against France in 2011.

Fiji’s narrow defeat to England in their Rugby World Cup quarter-final in Paris last weekend means there are no more tier-two nations left in the tournament.

The following countries are viewed as the traditional powerhouses or tier one nations: England, France, Wales, Ireland, Scotland, Italy, New Zealand, Australia, South Africa and Argentina, while the tier two nations are: Canada, Fiji, Georgia, Japan, Namibia, Portugal, Romania, Russia, Samoa, Spain, Tonga, USA and Uruguay.

Over the years, several of the game’s minnows participated at the global showpiece, and here we look at how they have fared at the various Rugby World Cups since the inaugural tournament in 1987.

Canada

Known as the Canucks, Canada participated in every Rugby World Cup except the current one in France. Their best performance was in 1991, when they qualified for the quarter-finals after beating Fiji and Romania in their pool matches, but they eventually bowed out after suffering a 29-13 defeat against New Zealand.

Apart from that, Canada also registered a win over Tonga at the inaugural World Cup in 1987, but since 1991, they have found the going tough at the global showpiece as they have only won only four matches at seven World Cups.

Rugby World Cup record: Played 32, Won 7, Drawn 2, Lost 23, 22% win ratio.
Best Rugby World Cup finish: Quarter-finals (Once)
Current World Rugby ranking: 23rd

Fiji

The Flying Fijians have competed at nine Rugby World Cups of the 10 tournaments which have been hosted so far. The only year in which they did not participate at the global showpiece was in 1995, when they failed to qualify.

Renowned for their free-flowing style of play, they have been crowd favourites at the various World Cups over the years and bowed at the quarter-finals stage in 1987, 2007 and 2023. In 1999, they were involved in a play-off to advance to the quarter-finals but suffered a 45-24 defeat to England.

At the recent tournament in France, Fiji clinched arguably their best-ever World Cup result when they secured a 22-15 win over Australia.

Rugby World Cup record: Played 37, Won 13, Drawn 0, Lost 24, 35% win ratio.
Best Rugby World Cup finish: Quarter-finals (Three times)
Current World Rugby ranking: 10th

Georgia

The Lelos are one of the most improved nations at the Rugby World Cup as they made their debut at the 2003 tournament in Australia but have been ever-present at all the subsequent World Cups since then.

Their introduction to the World Cup in 2003 was forgetful as they lost all their pool matches, but four years later, in France, it was a different story as they managed to clinch their first-ever World Cup win courtesy of a triumph against Namibia.

Georgia repeated that feat in New Zealand in 2011 when they beat Romania and managed two wins – against Tonga and Namibia – in England in 2015 but failed to advance to the play-offs. In 2019, they beat Uruguay before only managing a draw with Portugal in France this year.

Rugby World Cup record: Played 24, Won 5, Drawn 1, Lost 18, 21% win ratio.
Best Rugby World Cup finish: Pool stage (Five times)
Current World Rugby ranking: 14th

Japan

Japan have been ever-present at the Rugby World Cup as they have competed at every tournament since the inaugural one in New Zealand in 1987.

After failing to win a game in 1987, the Brave Blossoms returned to the next edition of the global showpiece, which was jointly hosted by England, Scotland, Wales, Ireland and France, and they did well to beat Zimbabwe, but it was not enough to help them reach the play-offs.

Japan’s misery continued as they failed to advance beyond the pool stages in 1995, 1999, 2003, 2007, 2011 and 2015, but they were unlucky not to reach the play-offs in 2015 as they won three games, including one against the Springboks, which is widely regarded as the biggest upset in the competition’s history.

In 2019, they won all their group matches on home soil to advance to the quarter-finals, where they lost to eventual winners South Africa, while they just fell short of repeating that feat in France this year when they finished third in their pool behind England and Argentina.

Rugby World Cup record: Played 37, Won 10, Drawn 2, Lost 25, 27% win ratio.
Best Rugby World Cup finish: Quarter-finals (Once)
Current World Rugby ranking: 12th

Namibia

Namibia have found the going tough at the Rugby World Cup as they are yet to register a victory since qualifying for the global showpiece for the first time in 1999.

The closest the Welwitschias have come to victory at a World Cup was in 2015 when they suffered a 17-16 defeat to Georgia, and they also gave a good account of themselves against Uruguay last month when they lost 36-26. However, their worst-ever result was against Australia in 2003 when the Wallabies cruised to a 142-0 victory, which is the biggest ever winning margin in a World Cup match.

Rugby World Cup record: Played 26, Won 0, Drawn 0, Lost 0, 0% win ratio.
Best Rugby World Cup finish: Pool stage (Six times)
Current World Rugby ranking: 21st

Portugal

Portugal have limited experience of competing at the Rugby World Cup as they have only participated in the global showpiece on two occasions – in 2007 and 2023 – although there was a vast improvement in their performances this year compared to 16 years ago.

In 2007, Os Lobos lost all four matches but managed to score points and one try in every match, and they also gained a bonus point in defeat against Romania. However, by 2023, they showed great improvement as they secured a victory and a draw – over Fiji and Georgia, respectively – and managed to finish above the Lelos in fourth position in their pool in France.

Rugby World Cup record: Played 8, Won 1, Drawn 1, Lost 6, 13% win ratio.
Best Rugby World Cup finish: Pool stage (Twice)
Current World Rugby ranking: 13th

Romania

The Oaks participated in every Rugby World Cup through to 2015, but were disqualified from the 2019 tournament in Japan after fielding an ineligible player during the qualification process.

Prior to that, they failed to reach the knockout rounds at the global showpiece, although they managed to notch victories in 1987 (Zimbabwe), 1991 (Fiji), 1999 (USA), 2003 (Namibia), 2007 (Portugal) and 2015 (Canada).

Ironically, in 2023, they benefitted from Spain’s disqualification for fielding an ineligible payer and were drawn in a pool alongside defending champions South Africa, Ireland, Scotland and Tonga but lost all their matches.

Rugby World Cup record: Played 32, Won 6, Drawn 0, Lost 24, 19% win ratio.
Best Rugby World Cup finish: Pool stage (Nine times)
Current World Rugby ranking: 20th

Russia

Russia made their debut at the Rugby World Cup in New Zealand in 2011 but finished at the bottom of their pool after suffering humiliating defeats against Ireland, Italy and Australia.

The Bears put up a sterner challenge in their loss to the USA as they managed to secure a bonus point in that encounter. Russia’s next appearance at a Rugby World Cup was in Japan in 2019 and it was a similar story as they lost their pool matches against Japan, Samoa, Ireland and Scotland.

In 2022, Russia were banned from Rugby World Cup 2023 qualification following the country’s invasion of Ukraine.

Rugby World Cup record: Played 8, Won 0, Drawn 0, Lost 8, 0% win ratio.
Best Rugby World Cup finish: Pool stage (Twice)
Current World Rugby ranking: 25th

Samoa

Samoa, who were known as Western Samoa until 1997, have participated in every Rugby World Cup since the 1991 tournament.

Their omission from the inaugural Rugby World Cup, which was co-hosted by New Zealand and Australia in 1987, was controversial, as there were no qualifications.

The Pacific Islanders have had a topsy-turvy history at World Cups, with their best performances registered in 1991 and 1995 – when they reached the quarter-finals- and their worst displays were in 2007, 2015, 2019 and 2023 when they finished at the bottom of their pool.

They were also involved in a quarter-final play-off in 1999 but were defeated by Scotland and also finished in third place in their pool in 2003 and 2011. They caused a major upset at the 1991 World Cup when they claimed a narrow 16-13 victory over Wales in Cardiff in their tournament opener.

Rugby World Cup record: Played 36, Won 15, Drawn 0, Lost 21, 42% win ratio.
Best Rugby World Cup finish: Quarter-finals (Twice)
Current World Rugby ranking: 15th

Spain

Spain have only participated in one Rugby World Cup – in 1999 – but they failed to live up to expectations as they lost all three of their pool matches against South Africa, Scotland and Uruguay.

In 2019, Los Leones were disqualified along with Romana after fielding an ineligible player in a qualifying match, and Spain were found guilty of a similar offence ahead of this year’s World Cup in France, which meant they suffered the same fate to the one they experienced in 2019.

Rugby World Cup record: Played 4, Won 0, Drawn 0, Lost 4, 0% win ratio.
Best Rugby World Cup finish: Pool stage (Once)
Current World Rugby ranking: 19th

Tonga

Tonga have made appearances at nine of the 10 Rugby World Cup tournaments hosted so far, and the only time they were absent from the global showpiece was in 1991 when they failed to qualify.

Despite the high number of World Cups which they participated in, Ikale Tahi have not had much to crow about as they are yet to advance to the knockout rounds.

Their best performances were achieved during the 2007 and 2011 tournaments when they claimed two victories apiece and finished in third position in the pool standings on both occasions.

Tonga caused a big upset in 2011 when they edged out eventual runners-up France 19-14 in their pool match, and they only registered one victory – against Romania – in France this year.

Rugby World Cup record: Played 33, Won 9, Drawn 0, Lost 24, 27% win ratio.
Best Rugby World Cup finish: Pool stage (Nine times)
Current World Rugby ranking: 16th

Uruguay

Los Teros have been in action at five World Cups – in 1999, 2003, 2015, 2019 and 2023 – and are yet to reach the play-offs, although they have had some memorable moments during the pool stages.

In 1999, they made their bow at a World Cup and made a bright start when they clinched a deserved victory over Spain in their tournament opener before suffering losses to Scotland and South Africa.

Since then, Uruguay have also beaten Georgia (2003), Fiji (2019) and Namibia at this year’s tournament, and they finished in fourth position in their pool behind France, New Zealand and Italy, with the Welwitschias finishing in last place.

Rugby World Cup record: Played 19, Won 4, Drawn 0, Lost 15, 27% win ratio.
Best Rugby World Cup finish: Pool stage (Five times)
Current World Rugby ranking: 17th

USA

Although they were not in action in France this year, the Eagles have a rich history at Rugby World Cups as they have participated in eight of the 10 tournaments hosted so far.

Apart from the current one, the USA did not compete at the 1995 World Cup as they failed to qualify for that competition, although they made a fantastic start in their first-ever game at the inaugural tournament in 1987 when they claimed a narrow win over Japan.

However, they suffered big losses to Australia and England in their next matches at that tournament and had to wait until 2003 for their next World Cup triumph, which was also registered against the Brave Blossoms.

Their only other World Cup victory was against Russia in 2011, and although they failed to qualify for this year’s tournament, there is plenty of optimism in their ranks as they are set to host the tournament in 2031.

Rugby World Cup record: Played 29, Won 3, Drawn 0, Lost 26, 12% win ratio.
Best Rugby World Cup finish: Pool stage (Eight times)
Current World Rugby ranking: 18th

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Canada