Today in history: Rugby World Cup 2007 kicks off in France
Twenty nations competed for the Webb Ellis Cup.
On 7 September 2007, the opening match of the Rugby World Cup, hosted by France, was played at the Stade de France between the host nation, France, and Argentina. Four of the matches of the tournament were played in Cardiff, Wales, and two in Edinburgh, Scotland.
The 2007 Rugby World Cup was the sixth Rugby World Cup, a quadrennial international rugby union competition inaugurated in 1987.
Twenty nations competed for the Webb Ellis Cup, with South Africa winning it after beating England 15–6 in the final at Stade de France. South Africa became the second country to win the World Cup twice.
Springbok Percy Montgomery finished the tournament as the top points scorer with 105, Bryan Habana’s eight tries were the most by any player (and equalled Jonah Lomu’s World Cup record), and Frans Steyn became the youngest player to lift the Webb Ellis Cup, aged only 20 at the time.
Information sourced from: South African History Online.
