When it comes to rugby, few topics spark as much controversy as the official world rankings—especially when they don’t seem to reflect the ultimate prize: winning the Rugby World Cup. For Irish rugby fans, it’s a hard pill to swallow. Over the past five years, Ireland has been ranked as the number one team in the world on three separate occasions. Yet, when it comes to World Cup success, we’ve come up empty-handed. Meanwhile, South Africa, ranked lower than Ireland before the 2023 World Cup, now boasts four World Cup trophies, with two of those triumphs being back-to-back victories in 2019 and 2023. It raises an uncomfortable question: are the rankings meaningless?
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Does Ireland Sitting Ahead of the Springboks…
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When it comes to rugby, few topics spark as much controversy as the official world rankings—especially when they don’t seem to reflect the ultimate prize: winning the Rugby World Cup. For Irish rugby fans, it’s a hard pill to swallow. Over the past five years, Ireland has been ranked as the number one team in the world on three separate occasions. Yet, when it comes to World Cup success, we’ve come up empty-handed. Meanwhile, South Africa, ranked lower than Ireland before the 2023 World Cup, now boasts four World Cup trophies, with two of those triumphs being back-to-back victories in 2019 and 2023. It raises an uncomfortable question: are the rankings meaningless?