Spain National Team - History
The Spanish rugby federation was founded in 1923, and the national team played their first international fixture when they defeated Italy 9-0 in 1929.
In the 1980s Spanish rugby thrived and they battled manfully against the likes of the Maori All Blacks and Argentina.
Best Ranking Ever
Their current squad, coached by Santiago Santos, includes players who play at top clubs in France and are currently ranked 15th in the world. Much of the squad plays in the Spanish top tier, otherwise known as the División de Honor de Rugby, a league dominated by Valladolid who have won the competition on nine occasions out of the past 11 seasons.
In 2022 Spain's national rugby union side won four of their five division 1A matches, their only loss coming against top-of-the-table nation Georgia.
Rugby World Cup
Spain have previously qualified for the Rugby World Cup in 1999 and efforts to replicate this success came to a nasty end in 2019 when the team made it through to the tournament only to then see points deducted due to fielding ineligible players. This means they won't get to take part in the tournament, which takes place across France at top-notch stadiums including the famous Stade de France in Paris to the Stade de Bordeaux and the Stade Pierre Mauroy.
If you want to buy tickets for any game at the 2023 Rugby World Cup, then you can a great selection here.
Ten-Point Penalty
Ahead of the 2023 tournament, they were hit with a ten-point penalty due to a player having falsified his passport. This was after the team won six of their ten matches in the Rugby Europe Championship.
In 1999, the only occasion Spain have made it to the finals of the showpiece tournament, they lost their games against Uruguay, South Africa, and Scotland and finished bottom of Pool A.
