h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

Rugby is NOT the national sport of Wales - never was ... never will be.

Being as how rugby is played by a fraction of the population along the M4 corridor and not much elsewhere, I find it ridiculous to claim that it's the NATIONAL game.

So, at the risk of starting another Welsh Nationalist argument (), what would you propose as the National Sport instead?

B

Football

There are football clubs in every single corner of Wales, from Cemaes in the far north of Anglesey, to Wrecsam to Newport to Haverfordwest to Aberystwyth ...

There are far, far more football clubs than there are rugby clubs.
Far more people play and watch football in Wales than watch rugby - and that doesn't include the scores of coaches that leave Wales every Saturday to watch Liverpool, Man Utd, Man City, Everton etc.

The myth about rugby is perpetuated by a Cardiff-centric media run by ex-rugby internationals ... the last 7 heads of BBC Wales Sport have been former Welsh Rugby internationals.

But the LoW doesn't enjoy quite as high status in the football world as the strange Gaelic-League-thingy does in the rugby world.

B

Perhaps not, but the important word you've used there is 'world'.
Rugby isn't played in very many countries is it?
?

No, I'll grant you that.

I'm quite happy to acknowledge football as being the national sport of Wales; I just thought that the Welsh might want to state their individualism a bit more strongly. The Scots have Highland Games (and curling), the Irish have all manner of odd Gaelic games, the poor old Welsh don't seem to have anything in that vein.

B

Maybe not, but seeing as Fifa has more members than the UN, it's hardly surprising that the vast majority ofcountries have football as their national sport ... and anyway, rugby was invented by a toff at an English public school - and worse than that - he was a toff who couldn't play footy

that should have been

... and as Frank Zappa said - "You can’t be a real country unless you have beer and an airline. It helps if you have a football team or some nuclear weapons, but at the very least you need beer."

+ =

But soccer just seems so very English...

And I actually watch Rugby and not ... So I'm content to see rugby as the national game

... calling it soccer gives the game away straight away

Every civilised person calls it football, it's only Yanks, Aussies and rugby fans who call it soccer

But I fail to see how football can be 'so English' when Rugby is such a quintessencial public-school game associated with the English middle classes more than any other sport bar croquet or Eton Fives

Although my loyalties run very deeply to Scunthorpe United FC, I much prefer rugby as a game. I think the Welsh would be wise to adopt it while they can.

B

No chance - we had a decent team once (back in the 70s) and the sooner the media forget that we don't live in the 70s anymore, the better.

MTRF

Well, you're currently outdoing Scotland in the World Cup. For a smaller nation, I think that's pretty respectable.

B

Wait until Sunday - I predict 70pts against Wales at the very least

Nah - I can see them making a fight of it. 15 point loss, no more.

B

You've been living in south Wales too long, you've caught that optimism bug which afflicts every rugby fan and reporter BEFORE matches

OK - so you were right. I was 1 point out.

B

Is there an smiley ...?

... or should that be smiley seeing as how Wales were outscored 8 tries to 4 and lost by 37-53 ... yet you would think we had won by the reaction of the media here in Wales

Only in rugby could a defeat create so much positive spin ...

MTRF