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Rugby Football League (RFL)
Homepage: http://www.rfl.uk.com/
Rules and regulations: http://www.therfl.co.uk/about/page.php?areaid=251
History:
It was in 1823 when a pupil at the UK Rugby School
named William Web Ellis reportedly invented rugby.
However, an inquiry in 1895 found no evidence
to support the myth the Ellis indeed revolutionized
the game of football by picking up the ball. It
was established, however, that in the 1930s, rugby
games were being played at the Rugby School with
players running with the ball. A good 20 to 30
years after, rugby became popular all throughout
UK. Around 1865, rugby clubs started surfacing
in Leeds, Huddersfield, and Hull, followed by
numerous others in Cumbria, Lancashire and Yorkshire
in the 1870s and 1880s.
Today, all rugby activities in UK are managed
and streamlined by the sport’s governing
body, the Rugby Football League (RFL). After having
joined forces with the British Amateur Rugby League
Association (BARLA) in 2003, RFL now handles coaching,
promotion, and development programs at all levels.
The unified structure also enabled RFL to administer
the game from the grassroots to the international
level.
Among its many accomplishments, RFL takes pride
in leading the Super League to break attendance
records in 2004 – achieving the highest
ever aggregate weekly gate figures at 65,547 during
the 2004 Grand Finals. There are also over 450
clubs registered with the RFL, representing over
40,000 players.
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