Wales or Cymru, whose name comes from the Anglo Saxon term ‘waleas’ meaning foreigner, reached a accord with England in 1284 under the Statute of Rhuddlan and today has a population of some three million people.
Rugby has been the national sport in Wales for well over a century, the first clubs born in the mid 1870s only a few years before the Welsh Rugby Union was formed in 1881.
Wales played its first ever Test in February 1881 against England at Blackheath, a match Wales lost 30-0, with entry into the Home International Championship – now the Six Nations – coming late the following year.
The national side enjoyed great success in the early 20th Century and again in the 1970s, the Welsh having been the first nation to promote the use of replacements on the international scene towards the end of the previous decade.
The Welsh domestic scene, which boasts more than 200 clubs and 20,000 registered players, has undergone a massive change this year with the switch from nine Premier clubs with rich traditions to five regional franchises.
These regional teams will be known as Cardiff Blues, Llanelli Scarlets, Gwent Dragons, Neath-Swansea Ospreys and Celtic Warriors.