Asian Rugby Football Union
Encyclopedia
The Asian Rugby Football Union (ARFU) is the governing body of rugby union
in Asia
under the authority of the International Rugby Board
.
Founded in 1968 by eight charter nations, the Union today has 27 member unions in countries across Asia, stretching from Kazakhstan to Guam.
The aim of ARFU is: "to raise physical and moral standards in Asia by education in the healthy pursuit of Rugby Football and to promote friendship among Asian countries."
competition, women's, men's, and under 19's tournaments in sevens
and fifteen-a-side rugby.
, but at a regional level.
14 Unions are full IRB members
7 Unions are associate IRB members
6 Unions are not affiliated with the IRB
(Officers are ex officio members of the EXCO)
(Jarrad Gallagher, IRB Development Officer for Asia)
Rugby union
Rugby union, often simply referred to as rugby, is a full contact team sport which originated in England in the early 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand...
in Asia
Asia
Asia is the world's largest and most populous continent, located primarily in the eastern and northern hemispheres. It covers 8.7% of the Earth's total surface area and with approximately 3.879 billion people, it hosts 60% of the world's current human population...
under the authority of the International Rugby Board
International Rugby Board
The International Rugby Board is the governing body for the sport of rugby union. It was founded in 1886 as the International Rugby Football Board by the unions of Scotland, Wales and Ireland. England refused to join until 1890. The International Rugby Football Board changed its name to the...
.
Founded in 1968 by eight charter nations, the Union today has 27 member unions in countries across Asia, stretching from Kazakhstan to Guam.
The aim of ARFU is: "to raise physical and moral standards in Asia by education in the healthy pursuit of Rugby Football and to promote friendship among Asian countries."
Competitions
The ARFU supports regional and pan-Asian tournaments including the newly founded Asian Five NationsAsian Five Nations
The Asian Five Nations, known as the HSBC Asian 5 Nations due to its sponsorship by HSBC, is an annual international rugby union competition held between the top five Asian national rugby sides...
competition, women's, men's, and under 19's tournaments in sevens
Rugby sevens
Rugby sevens, also known as seven-a-side or VIIs, is a variant of rugby union in which teams are made up of seven players, instead of the usual 15, with shorter matches. Rugby sevens is administered by the International Rugby Board , the body responsible for rugby union worldwide...
and fifteen-a-side rugby.
Asian Sevens Series
The Asian Sevens Series is like the IRB Sevens World SeriesIRB Sevens World Series
The IRB Sevens World Series, known officially as the HSBC Sevens World Series as of the 2010-11 season, through sponsorship from banking group HSBC, and also sometimes called the World Sevens Series, is a series of international rugby union sevens tournaments organised for the first time in the...
, but at a regional level.
Member Unions
There are 27 member unions.14 Unions are full IRB members
7 Unions are associate IRB members
6 Unions are not affiliated with the IRB
- Note: The Arabian Gulf Rugby Football UnionArabian Gulf Rugby Football UnionThe Arabian Gulf Rugby Football Union was the governing body for rugby union in the Gulf Cooperation Council member countries of Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates. To begin with most matches were played on sand but today almost all matches are played on grass...
was split up in 2011. It comprised the UAEUnited Arab EmiratesThe United Arab Emirates, abbreviated as the UAE, or shortened to "the Emirates", is a state situated in the southeast of the Arabian Peninsula in Western Asia on the Persian Gulf, bordering Oman, and Saudi Arabia, and sharing sea borders with Iraq, Kuwait, Bahrain, Qatar, and Iran.The UAE is a...
, BahrainBahrain' , officially the Kingdom of Bahrain , is a small island state near the western shores of the Persian Gulf. It is ruled by the Al Khalifa royal family. The population in 2010 stood at 1,214,705, including 235,108 non-nationals. Formerly an emirate, Bahrain was declared a kingdom in 2002.Bahrain is...
, Saudi ArabiaSaudi ArabiaThe Kingdom of Saudi Arabia , commonly known in British English as Saudi Arabia and in Arabic as as-Sa‘ūdiyyah , is the largest state in Western Asia by land area, constituting the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula, and the second-largest in the Arab World...
, and KuwaitKuwaitThe State of Kuwait is a sovereign Arab state situated in the north-east of the Arabian Peninsula in Western Asia. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to the south at Khafji, and Iraq to the north at Basra. It lies on the north-western shore of the Persian Gulf. The name Kuwait is derived from the...
. The new governing body for the UAE, the United Arab Emirates Rugby Association, is already active and has its own national teamUnited Arab Emirates national rugby union teamThe United Arab Emirates national rugby union team represents the United Arab Emirates in rugby union. They compete in the annual Asian Five Nations....
. The other countries have not yet joined the ARFU.
- Several governing bodies which administer partially, or largely Asian countries, such as that of , , , and are members of the European body, FIRA - Association of European RugbyFIRA - Association of European RugbyThe FIRA - Association Européenne de Rugby is the administrative body for rugby union in Europe. It was formed in 1999 to promote, develop, organise and administer the game of rugby in Europe under the authority of the International Rugby Board .The predecessor to FIRA–AER was the Fédération...
. Moreover, the recently formed Turkish Rugby Federation is expected to join FIRA as well. Conversely, , which is administered by European associations in other sports (such as within the football governing body, FIFAFIFAThe Fédération Internationale de Football Association , commonly known by the acronym FIFA , is the international governing body of :association football, futsal and beach football. Its headquarters are located in Zurich, Switzerland, and its president is Sepp Blatter, who is in his fourth...
) is administered as part of the ARFU. In addition, the ARFU includes GuamGuamGuam is an organized, unincorporated territory of the United States located in the western Pacific Ocean. It is one of five U.S. territories with an established civilian government. Guam is listed as one of 16 Non-Self-Governing Territories by the Special Committee on Decolonization of the United...
(the organized unincorporated territory of the United StatesUnited StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
), which is arguably not in Asia, but in Oceania, and one transcontinental country, IndonesiaIndonesiaIndonesia , officially the Republic of Indonesia , is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania. Indonesia is an archipelago comprising approximately 13,000 islands. It has 33 provinces with over 238 million people, and is the world's fourth most populous country. Indonesia is a republic, with an...
.
ARFU officers
- President: Adisak Hemyoo,
Thailand - Vice President:
- Honorary Secretary General: Ross Mitchell,
Hong Kong - Treasurer: Dermot Agnew, Hong Kong
- IRB Representative:
- Executive Committee:
(Officers are ex officio members of the EXCO)
(Jarrad Gallagher, IRB Development Officer for Asia)