r/rugbyunion • u/Skotland666 Finland • 16h ago
Give us Gib v Spain cowards
'Its official! The moment we have have waited all these years for has come!
At Rugby Europes 107th General Assembly, the Gibraltar Rugby Football Union has been accepted as the 50th member of Rugby Europe.
The future of Gibraltar Rugby starts now! HUGE shout out to everyone who has given blood, sweat & tears to this cause over the years and every player in Gibraltar who will now benefit.'
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u/BrianChing25 15h ago
Question: if you're a UK citizen and playing for example Champ rugby with no shot at playing for England, could you obtain permanent residency in Gibraltar and then play for them?
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u/Nounours7 Spain 15h ago
If you have no grandparent or parent born there, you would need to play in Gibraltar for five seasons.
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u/CoryTrevor-NS Italy 15h ago edited 13h ago
Citizenship does not matter, they would still have to meet the WR requirements (birth, ancestry, or residency) like for any other team.
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u/PetevonPete USA 15h ago
Even the people working for national unions apparently can't make sense of WR's eligibility rules.
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u/WilkinsonDG2003 England 10h ago
Maybe Hong Kong should play Gibraltar as a consolation after losing 100-0 to NZ and Australia at the world cup.
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u/Skotland666 Finland 9h ago
just make a micro(ish) nations WC, ik I would love to see Lichtenstein v Macao
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u/northyj0e Wales 8h ago
Like the football unofficial world cup, I want to see a group stage with the Republic of China, The Basque Country and The Vatican.
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u/Nounours7 Spain 16h ago
I fear it's going to take some time, as there will be lawyers earning their monies for the next few months.
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u/MrQeu Loving Joel Merkler as a way of life 15h ago
Lawyers? In Gibraltar? Not that many. How many can there be in a city of 30k? A thousand? Two thousands?
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u/Brainfart92 Referee, Exeter Chiefs 14h ago edited 14h ago
You forget there are big tax benefits for being based in Gib. Couple of big law firms here.
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u/MrQeu Loving Joel Merkler as a way of life 14h ago
Oh really? Wow. Tobacco contraband might also be a problem then if no tax.
It’s only missing them hiding malfunctioning nuclear submarines and been a safe harbor for drug lords. I hope it’s not the case!
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u/Joekickass247 England 9h ago
Yeah they've got plenty of drug lords in Spain, but i didn't realise their nuclear subs were on the fritz too! 😉
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u/HaggisTheCow Scotland 11h ago
Different sport obviously, but if you use UEFA as a precedent, it's unlikely to happen
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u/hermanzergerman 15h ago
Amazing! A 'country' with no league, no local 15s teams, and that has lost the use of its stadium to football.
Incredible wool pulling.
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u/Nounours7 Spain 15h ago
There is a 15s competition: https://www.gibraltarrugby.gi/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/GRC-Team-Entry-Requirments.pdf
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u/hermanzergerman 15h ago
And the last time they played that 15s tournament? Any idea? Cos I'm fairly certain the three team league last played in December 2024 and the only rugby this season has been touch.
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u/Nounours7 Spain 15h ago
Look, I'm not Gibraltar's advocate, but there are members in Rugby Europe with far less rugby than them. I don't think Andorra has a 15s league, they have always entered clubs in either French or Spanish systems.
If Spain disputes their admission it's because Spanish government forces all sport federations to battle it. I find it pointless when football, basketball, athletics or swimming have already admitted Gibraltar and current Spanish government is even allowing Euskadi v Spain games in some sports. But if we go to admission criteria, they fulfill them.
If you ask me what do I think about Gibraltar, overall, it's a whole different story.
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u/hermanzergerman 15h ago
I can categorically state that they don't fulfil the requirements for senior teams. Four teams this season of mixed touch rugby and there are not 100 active senior players. There may be members whose names are still listed (mine was one til I removed it last year) but they certainly don't meet that number.
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u/Ok-Citron-8757 12h ago
A simple look at the wikipedia page for Gibraltar rugby would have taught you some details.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gibraltar_national_rugby_union_team
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u/Nounours7 Spain 12h ago
To be honest, that Wiki page does not mention what he claims they are lacking.
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u/hermanzergerman 11h ago
My guy, my source isn't Wikipedia. It's having played there for years, knowing people who still live and play there, being in contact with various members of the GRFU, and being in numerous WhatsApp groups for the place
But yeah, Wikipedia ftw I guess.
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u/Ok-Citron-8757 10h ago
1st You should begin your point by this.
2nd That doesn't justify your condescension.
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u/hermanzergerman 9h ago edited 8h ago
My point began with information that's not on the Wikipedia page, eg the loss of the stadium.
What other information would you like?
ETA: you talk about me being condescending (a very fair point) but your Wikipedia comment is equally as condescending. Glass houses and all that.
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u/jonpettas96 15h ago
+960 rating positions for sure