The Churchill Cup was an annual rugby union tournament, held in June, contested by representative men's (and formerly women's) teams from Canada , England , the United States , and other invited teams (originally one and later three) from a wide array of countries.
43-585: It began in 2003 as an initiative of the governing bodies of the three regular participants— Rugby Canada , the Rugby Football Union (RFU), and USA Rugby —in cooperation with the sport's worldwide governing body World Rugby (at the time called the "International Rugby Board" (IRB)).The main intent was to provide the US and Canada with regular international competition. The final edition in 2011 featured invited teams from Italy , Russia , and Tonga , and
86-665: A knockout stage (finals), hosted by Japan or the United States , to decide the tournament winner, unlike the previous format. In August 2024, it was revealed that the 2025 edition (finals hosted by the United States) of the Pacific Nations Cup would double as the qualification tournament for the newly-expanded 2027 Rugby World Cup , merging North America and the Asia-Pacific regions, replacing
129-795: A bar and spectator seating for hundreds of people Twin Elm Rugby Park is situated in South Nepean, in the City of Ottawa. The facility is home to several local clubs, including the Ottawa Harlequins , the representative side for Eastern Ontario. Home of the Chicago Fire Soccer Club . Hosted the final of the Churchill Cup in 2008 A multi-use facility including a 5,000-seat rugby stadium currently used by
172-502: A round-robin format, with some games being held in Australia. The Junior All Blacks won all of their matches en route to winning the 2006 tournament. The inaugural tournament was a success in providing a platform for Pacific states and Japan in gaining valuable exposure. Australia A joined an expanded competition for the 2007 season. The inclusion of Australia A meant that the tier 2 teams would have an even greater number of matches in
215-695: Is also the home of the Canadian Football League's Edmonton Eskimos . Named after former Santa Clara football coach, Lawrence T. "Buck" Shaw. The stadium has seen many of that university sporting's achievements. Serving as the home for the Bronco soccer team, the 6,800-seat facility also housed Santa Clara baseball and football historically. Since 2008, it has also been home to the San Jose Earthquakes of Major League Soccer . With five rugby fields, 12 changing rooms, two lounges,
258-576: The 2019 Rugby World Cup . As part of the Oceanian qualification, places at the 2019 Rugby World Cup were awarded to the two top teams of the 2016 and 2017 PNC (on aggregate), whereas the bottom team played a repechage match against the second best Rugby Europe Championship team. Georgia was invited for the 2018 tournament hosted in Suva. For 2019, Canada, Japan and the United States returned to
301-533: The British and Irish Lions . There was no women's competition in either 2005 or 2006, largely because of Canada's preparations to host the Women's Rugby World Cup in 2006 . Originally, the competition was scheduled only to 2007, as the original contract between Rugby Canada , the Rugby Football Union (England) and USA Rugby was a five-year deal. Under the agreement, Canada would host the first three events, while
344-740: The Canada national rugby union team and sanctions the Rugby Canada National Junior Championship , a national competition for under-20 men's teams. It previously sanctioned the Super League as the premier level of men's competition in the country, but scrapped that league after the Americas Rugby Championship was created in 2009 as a two-stage competition in which the first involved only Canadian teams. The Canadian Rugby Football Union
387-632: The Pacific Nations Cup . Pool matches were held in Ottawa on June 7, Kingston on June 11, and Toronto on June 14. The finals were held at Toyota Park in Chicago on June 21. The 2009 competition, the first to be held entirely in the US, was held in the Denver area. In addition to the three permanent competitors of Canada, the US, and England Saxons, Ireland A returned. The Argentina side
430-596: The United States . First held in 2006, the tournament is intended to strengthen the Tier 2 rugby teams by providing competitive test matches in a tournament format. Former teams include the Junior All Blacks (2006, 2007, 2009), Australia A (2007, 2008, 2015), Georgia (2018) and the Māori All Blacks (2008). The inaugural tournament was the only one that carried the title of IRB Pacific 5 Nations; from 2007
473-678: The World Rugby Sevens Series . National teams National 7s teams Canada has four Rugby Teams that are also part of International Gay Rugby ; Montreal Armada , Toronto Muddy York , Ottawa Wolves , and the Vancouver Rogues . In 2022 the international Bingham Cup was held in Ottawa , Ontario . Pacific Nations Cup The Pacific Nations Cup is an international rugby union competition held between Fiji , Samoa , Tonga , Canada , Japan and
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#1732779680737516-571: The Cup and Plate finals live on NBC Universal. Rugby Canada Rugby Canada is the national governing body for the sport of rugby union in Canada . Rugby Canada was incorporated in 1974, and stems from the Canadian Rugby Football Union, a body established in 1884 that now governs amateur Canadian football as Football Canada ; and the now-defunct Rugby Union of Canada, established in 1929. Rugby Canada administers
559-719: The Glendale Raptors. Used for all pool matches in 2009 and 2010. Home of the Colorado Rapids soccer team. Hosted all the finals of the 2009 Churchill Cup. Home of the New York Red Bulls soccer team. Hosted all finals in the 2010 Churchill Cup. In Australia the Churchill Cup is broadcast on Setanta Sports . In recent years with the tournament in Glendale, CO many games have been broadcast on delay on Fox Sports Rocky Mountain. In 2010 NBC covered
602-582: The IRB announced that both the United States and Canada teams would be joining the 2013 competition on a permanent basis. For the first time, the reigning champion Samoan team did not compete as they took part in a competition in South Africa . The Pacific Nations Cup was downscaled for 2016 and 2017 with these two editions featuring only Fiji, Samoa and Tonga. The sides from Canada, Japan and United States played in their respective regional qualifiers for
645-600: The June mid-year international test window. The tournament was played mainly throughout June, with the last round in early July. The revised tournament begins in May due to pre-existing Test commitments and concludes in late June. The Pacific Nations Cup was funded as an International Rugby Board (IRB) tournament which was part of the $ US50 million, three-year, global strategic investment programme launched in August 2005. The competition
688-531: The Junior All Blacks," said Mark Egan , the IRB's Head of Rugby Services. In the first year only it was called the Pacific 5 Nations and did not include Australia. Australia had been invited to take part in the inaugural 2006 tournament but decided against sending a team stating that they wanted to focus on their domestic competition. The inaugural tournament kicked off 3 June 2006 and was played in
731-521: The New Zealand Māori needed to play more matches at home and that the Junior All Blacks would not be assembled in 2008 for reasons of "player welfare." The Junior All Blacks returned for the 2009 tournament, but no New Zealand team has participated since then. From 2010 to 2012, the Pacific Nations Cup was a four-team tournament, contested by Japan, Fiji, Samoa and Tonga, with Samoa winning in 2010 and 2012, and Japan winning in 2011. In January 2013,
774-832: The Quebec Championship played the Ontario Champion for the Club Championship of the Dominion. This organization (also known as the Canadian Rugby Union) was the forerunner of the Canadian Football League , as rugby football in Canada evolved into Canadian football with rugby union being known as English rugby . To make matters more confusing the word rugby continued to be applied to Canadian football . It
817-667: The Second World War, so it is fitting that this tournament bears his name. Born of an English tour of North America in 2001, the Churchill Cup of Rugby came to fruition in 2003, in Vancouver. The tournament arises out of a 5-year agreement between Rugby Canada , Rugby USA and the Rugby Football Union (England) to hold an annual rugby tournament in North America originally intended to be played between
860-559: The US are left to schedule one off invitational games with other Nations, subject to other nations being able to accommodate such games in their schedules. In the Men's competition, the middle-power Canadian and American sides were able to test their mettle against some of the best players England and Ireland had to offer, and later New Zealand and Argentina with the inclusion of an invitational side. The competition also allowed England and Ireland to develop players who did not regularly participate in
903-768: The USA had an option to host in 2006 and 2007. However, because USA Rugby became involved in hosting the USA Sevens tournament in the IRB Sevens World Series , it allowed Canada to be the principal host in 2006, although that competition saw matches in the US for the first time, in San Jose (more precisely, in the Silicon Valley city of Santa Clara ), and three Canadian cities hosted matches: Edmonton , Toronto , and Ottawa . The organizers increased
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#1732779680737946-750: The Women's component, with Canada being awarded the 2006 Women's World Cup of Rugby, to be played in Edmonton and the Ottawa/Montreal region, it was felt that for 2005 and 2006 the Women's component should be removed, with the Women playing in the Canada Cup of Women's Rugby in Ottawa/Montreal in July 2005 and the Women's World Cup itself in September 2006 in Edmonton and Ottawa/Montreal. In addition to
989-542: The buildup to the 2007 Rugby World Cup . For Australia, it provided a stepping stone for Wallaby selection. Following the 2008 tournament, however, the ARU announced Australia A would not play in 2009 due to the current economic environment. Australia has not participated since then. In 2008, the New Zealand Māori team replaced the Junior All Blacks in the competition. The New Zealand Rugby Union (NZRU) had decided that
1032-432: The championship this time, ahead of Samoa who narrowly edged-out Japan for second place. In October 2023, World Rugby announced that beginning in 2024 the Pacific Nations Cup will be contested by six permanent teams from North America , the Pacific , and Asia : Canada , Fiji , Japan , Samoa , Tonga , and the United States . The competition format would, however, be staged with a round-robin pool stage followed by
1075-470: The changes with respect to the Women's component, in 2004 the decision was made to expand the competition to four Nations with the inclusion of an invitational side, which in 2004 was the New Zealand Maori, who won the title in a spectacular overtime match with England. In 2005 Argentina were invited and sent their A side, which provided great entertainment for the fans and a true test of rugby for
1118-651: The competition was known as the IRB Pacific Nations Cup and subsequently the World Rugby Pacific Nations Cup. The tournament is a round-robin, where each team plays one match against each of the other teams. There are four points for a win, two points for a draw and none for a defeat. There are also bonus points offered with one bonus point for scoring four or more tries in a match and one bonus point for losing by 7 points or fewer. The tournament generally occurs every year in
1161-519: The expansion of the tournament in 2006 and logistical issues related to the 2007 Rugby World Cup. The three founding members ( Rugby Canada , USA Rugby and England Saxons ) were permanently placed in the Churchill Cup with three additional teams selected for each tournament year. The other teams: Located in Edmonton, the capital city of Alberta, Commonwealth Stadium is the venue for the Barclays Churchill Cup finals. Commonwealth
1204-506: The former regional qualification method. With this announcement, five of the six teams that compete in the Pacific Nations Cup will automatically qualify for the 2027 Rugby World Cup as Fiji and Japan had qualified via the 2023 Rugby World Cup Pool stage . The teams in the Pacific Nations Cup and their finishing positions are as follows: The teams in the Pacific Nations Cup from the 2024 season and their finishing positions are as follows: Notes: ^ * The 2014 tournament
1247-406: The founding Nations in the Churchill Cup. Beyond 2005 there was talk of further expanding the event to perhaps six Nations, with three invitational sides participating. This expansion indeed occurred in 2006. North American rugby has often despaired in the lack of high quality competition in the continent. As other countries participate in the annual Tri-Nations or Six Nations tournaments, Canada and
1290-576: The full England men's side; however, the full England women's side participated. In 2004, New Zealand were invited, being represented by the New Zealand Māori men's team and the women's representative team, the Black Ferns . In 2005, the Argentine Rugby Union (UAR) sent its B side, Argentina XV , to the men's competition. Originally, New Zealand Māori had been invited, but they declined because it would clash with their fixture with
1333-565: The national squad. The 2003 inaugural tournament was played in Vancouver at Thunderbird Stadium . The 2004 Churchill Cup traveled east across the Canadian Rockies to Alberta where games were played in Calgary on the opening weekend and Edmonton for the finals. For 2005 the Churchill Cup was played entirely at Edmonton's 60,000 seat Commonwealth Stadium. The same was initially contemplated for 2006 and 2007, but that plan changed due to
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1376-628: The nations Senior Men's and Women's sides. Canada will host the event from 2003 to 2005, in 2003 and 2004 the event was held in Edmonton, Alberta. While the US will have the option of picking up hosting the last two years of the tournament in 2006 and 2007, with the advent of the USA Sevens in San Diego and the reality of moving such an event, it is entirely likely that the event will remain in Canada, specifically Edmonton, through 2007. With respect to
1419-463: The number of men's teams competing from four to six, effective with the 2006 competition. South Africa and Wales had expressed an interest, but Ireland and Scotland accepted invitations for 2006. Both sent A sides to the competition, and the New Zealand Māori returned that year as well. In 2007, the Churchill Cup was held in England for the first time. Both Rugby Canada and USA Rugby agreed to
1462-469: The one-time move largely because both countries' national teams would be competing in the 2007 Rugby World Cup in France . The 2008 tournament returned to North America, according to tournament organizers. The participants were Canada, USA Eagles, England Saxons, Ireland A, Scotland A, and an Argentina XV (essentially a 'B', or third string team) replacing the New Zealand Maori, who as of 2008 participate in
1505-481: The relevant year's tournament's article. The Churchill Cup event, named after former British prime minister Winston Churchill , "Britain's Man of the Century", sees a five-year agreement amongst England, Canada and the US with each forming part of the new company, "Churchill Cup Inc.". Former Prime Minister Churchill shared close ties with the United States - his mother was American - and obviously with Canada during
1548-487: The tournament, serving as a prelude to the 2019 Rugby World Cup. Japan won without losing a match. The tournament was not held in 2020 or 2021, largely due to the COVID-19 pandemic and other related logistical issues. It was revived in 2022, with the ever-present Fiji, Samoa and Tonga being joined by Australia A. Samoa won all three matches, ahead of Australia A. The 2023 version saw Australia A replaced by Japan. Fiji won
1591-409: Was a new national selection, named " Jaguares ", initially a major component in the development of a professional player pool for the national team which soon absorbed the country's previous "A" national side. Scotland A was replaced by newcomers Georgia. The winners of the 2009 Churchill Cup was Ireland A . For detailed results from a given year's competition (including the current year's), please see
1634-426: Was aimed at developing the Pacific rim sides in the second tier of the rugby countries: Fiji , Japan , Samoa and Tonga . The Junior All Blacks were also invited to compete, who are New Zealand's second XV. "The IRB Pacific 5 Nations is a tournament that will provide more certainty for Fiji, Japan, Samoa and Tonga in terms of regular high level Test match rugby, while also providing a high level of competition for
1677-824: Was established in 1884 with the specific purpose of organizing play-off games between various union champions. Representatives from the Montreal Football club (now known as the Westmount Rugby Club ), the Toronto Rugby Football Club and the Hamilton Rugby Football Club, had meetings in Toronto and Montreal. The union continued to use the English rugby rules, and at the end of the season the winning club of
1720-573: Was first held in 2003 with only Canada , England and the USA taking part. The tournament was set up to improve the calibre and profile of rugby in North America , and also to help develop English players not yet part of the full national team . Because of the gap in skill levels, the England A side (second level, despite the 'A' moniker), rebranded in 2006 as England Saxons , took part instead of
1763-566: Was not until 1967 that the original CRU finally cleared up this confusion by renaming itself the Canadian Amateur Football Association; it adopted its current name of Football Canada in 1986. The Rugby Union of Canada, re-formed in 1965 and incorporated in 1974, is affiliated to World Rugby . It has competed in nine out of ten Rugby World Cups (the first in 1987 in Australia and New Zealand ) and in
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1806-665: Was split into conferences without crossover matches or finals. Samoa and Japan won their respective conference titles. On 20 June 2008 the International Rugby Board announced that regional financial institution ANZ had agreed to become presenting sponsor of the competition, as well as the FORU Oceania Cup and the Pacific Rugby Cup . On 16 August 2024, World Rugby and Asahi Breweries Limited announced that Asahi Super Dry would be
1849-451: Was won by England Saxons (that country's "A", or developmental, national team). All three governing bodies of the permanent participants agreed to end the tournament after its 2011 edition, as World Rugby will include the US and Canada in its international Test calendar from 2012. Canada and the USA will, however, continue to be supported by the RFU. The tournament was named after British prime minister Winston Churchill . The tournament
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