Wales national rugby union team
 |
|
| Emblem | Prince of Wales's feathers |
|---|---|
| Union | Welsh Rugby Union |
| Head coach | Warren Gatland |
| Captain | Alun Wyn Jones |
| Most caps | Gethin Jenkins (129) |
| Top scorer | Neil Jenkins (1,049) |
| Top try scorer | Shane Williams (58) |
| Home stadium | Principality Stadium |
| World Rugby ranking | |
| Current | 5 (as of 21 March 2016) |
| Highest | 2 (2015) |
| Lowest | 10 (2007) |
| First international | |
|
England 8–0 Wales (19 February 1881) |
|
| Biggest win | |
|
Wales 98–0 Japan (26 November 2004) |
|
| Biggest defeat | |
|
South Africa 96–13 Wales (27 June 1998) |
|
| World Cup | |
| Appearances | 8 (First in 1987) |
| Best result | Third place, 1987 |
| Website | www.wru.co.uk |
The Wales national rugby union team (Welsh: Tîm rygbi'r undeb cenedlaethol Cymru) represent Wales in international rugby union. They compete annually in the Six Nations Championship with England, France, Ireland, Italy and Scotland. Wales have won the Six Nations and its predecessors 26 times outright. Wales' most recent championship win came in 2013.
The governing body, the Welsh Rugby Union (WRU), was established in 1881, the same year that Wales played their first international against England. Wales' performances in the Home Nations Championship (now the Six Nations) continued to improve, experiencing their first 'golden age' between 1900 and 1911. They first played New Zealand, known as the All Blacks, in 1905, when they defeated them 3–0 in a famous match at Cardiff Arms Park. Welsh rugby struggled between the two World Wars, but experienced a second 'golden age' between 1969 and 1980 when they won eight Five Nations Championships.
Wales played in the inaugural Rugby World Cup in 1987 where they achieved their best ever result of third. Following the sport allowing professionalism in 1995, Wales hosted the 1999 World Cup and, in 2005, won their first Six Nations Grand Slam. That was the first Grand Slam won by a team playing most of the matches away from home. Wales won two more Grand Slams in 2008 and in 2012, and in 2011 came fourth in the Rugby World Cup.
Their home ground is the Millennium Stadium, currently known for sponsorship reasons as Principality Stadium, completed in 1999 to replace the National Stadium at Cardiff Arms Park. Eight former Welsh players have been inducted into the World Rugby Hall of Fame; ten were inducted into the International Rugby Hall of Fame prior to its 2014 merger into the World Rugby Hall.
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