Russia national rugby union team
National rugby union team
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Russia national rugby union team (Russian: Сборная России по регби), nicknamed the Bears (Russian: Медведи, romanized: medvedi), represents Russia in international men's rugby union and is administered by the Rugby Union of Russia. It is considered the successor of the Soviet Union and the CIS by World Rugby. Since 1992, the team has played as Russia.
| |||
| Nicknames | Медведи (Medvedi, Bears) | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Emblem | Russian Bear | ||
| Union | Rugby Union of Russia | ||
| Head coach | Aleksandr Pervukhin | ||
| Captain | Victor Gresev | ||
| Most caps | Yuri Kushnarev (120) | ||
| Top scorer | Yuri Kushnarev (797) | ||
| Top try scorer | Vasily Artemyev (29) | ||
| Home stadium | Various | ||
| |||
| World Rugby ranking | |||
| Current | 32 (as of 6 January 2025) | ||
| Highest | 16 (2007, 2008, 2009, 2010) | ||
| Lowest | 26 (2005) | ||
| First international | |||
 Soviet Union 28–0 Czechoslovakia  (Soviet Union; 31 August 1975) as Russian Federation Unofficial  Russia 27–23 Barbarians(Moscow, Russia; 6 June 1992) Official  Belgium 11–17 Russia (Brussels, Belgium; 11 October 1992) | |||
| Biggest win | |||
 Denmark 7–104 Russia  (Copenhagen, Denmark; 13 May 2000) | |||
| Biggest defeat | |||
 Japan 75–3 Russia (Tokyo, Japan; 6 November 2010) | |||
| World Cup | |||
| Appearances | 2 (first in 2011) | ||
| Best result | Pool stage (2011, 2019) | ||
| Website | rugby.ru | ||
The history of the sport in Russia goes back to the late 19th century, but a national team was not established until 1975, in the Soviet Union. The USSR took part in international competition, but declined an invitation to the inaugural 1987 Rugby World Cup for political reasons. The team's first test match as Russia was against Barbarian FC in Moscow in June 1992. The country's first test against an IRB nation was against Belgium four months later, during the 1992–1994 FIRA Trophy. That was also Russia's first participation in Rugby World Cup qualifying. Russia is seen as a Tier 2 union by World Rugby, and after the reorganization in 2000, Russia's regular international competition was the FIRA-AER European Nations Cup – often referred to as the Six Nations B. In 2017 it became known as the Rugby Europe International Championships. In addition, the team participated in World Rugby-run summer tournaments including the Nations Cup, the dormant Churchill Cup, and other international fixtures.
Russia competed in their first Rugby World Cup in 2011 in New Zealand, after qualifying as Europe 2 through their second-place finish in the 2009–2010 European Nations Cup. Russia played in Pool C and finished fifth, after losing all four matches and only getting one competition point, which was during its match with the United States. They competed in 2019 in Japan by qualifying as Europe 1 as a result of Spain, Romania and Belgium being eliminated during the 2017–2018 Rugby Europe International Championships. Playing in Pool A, Russia finished in fifth place with zero competition points. After the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine, World Rugby and Rugby Europe suspended Russia from international and European continental rugby union competition. In addition, the Rugby Union of Russia was suspended from World Rugby and Rugby Europe.
History
Background and development
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Rugby football was played in the Russian Empire from the late 19th century, and was the first form of football played in Russia. Rugby was later banned by the Tsarist government for its brutal nature and the possibility of inciting riots, but people continued playing it. The first official match was played in the Soviet Union in 1923. The Rugby Union of the USSR was founded in 1936, and the first All-Union championship was held that year. The effects of World War II and the temporary banning of the sport by Soviet government caused the sport to decline until the 1960s. In the early 1970s, there were over 10,000 registered players in the Soviet Union, and 20 teams in the national championship. In 1975 the Soviet Rugby Union was admitted to the International Amateur Rugby Federation (FIRA).[1]
The Soviet Union national team took time to establish itself, but by the mid-1980s was regularly beating the likes of Italy and Romania. In 1988, the team defeated the United States by 31–16 in Moscow.[2] The Soviet Union was invited to the inaugural 1987 Rugby World Cup, but declined on political grounds, not least the continued International Rugby Board (IRB) membership of apartheid South Africa. After the breakup of the Soviet Union, Russian players were part of the Commonwealth of Independent States team.[1]
The first game played by the new Russian national team took place on 6 June 1992, when Russia beat Barbarian FC by 27–23. Russia's first game against a full IRB member was against Belgium four months later, as part of the 1992–1994 FIRA Trophy. This was Russia's first participation in Rugby World Cup qualifying. The tournament also saw the team secure its first win over its rival Georgia. Russia continued to participate until the realignment of FIRA-AER competitions in 2000.[1] There was a decline in rugby union during the 1990s, when only Olympic sports continued to receive funding from the Russian government. Professional clubs in Moscow and elsewhere closed down, and the sport largely became limited to Krasnoyarsk in Siberia, the traditional heartland of Russian rugby. There was also a lack of qualified coaches and referees.[2]
Russia is designated as a Tier 2 union,[3] and has played its regular competitive rugby in FIRA-AER's European Nations Cup from 2000, the second level mirror tournament to the Six Nations.[1] The team has played in the now-defunct Superpowers Cup, winning the tournament once, the Nations Cup, the Churchill Cup, and most recently the IRB's International Rugby Series.[4] The Rugby Union of Russia attempted to gain greater participation in the autumn test window, and was being integrated into World Rugby's global test match schedule.[3] Russia initially qualified for the 2003 Rugby World Cup by defeating Spain in the repechage, but was disqualified by the IRB for having three South Africans on the squad who were not eligible to represent Russia. The RUR claimed they were eligible by ancestry, but did not produce documentation deemed acceptable by the IRB, and Spain were re-instated in qualification in Russia's place.[5] The team did well enough in regionals to reach a play-off with Italy for the 2007 Rugby World Cup, but lost the match.[4]
First World Cup appearance (2011)
In 2008 the former England player and coach Steve Diamond was hired as Russia's director of rugby to assist the team with qualifying for the next World Cup. During the Europe qualification for the 2011 Rugby World Cup, Russia won against Germany, Romania, Spain, and Portugal in the 2009–2010 European Nations Cup First Division, finishing as the runners-up after a loss to Georgia. Russia's second-place finish in the European Nations Cup qualified the nation for its first World Cup appearance, as Europe 2. Russia was placed in Pool C at the 2011 World Cup in New Zealand, where they faced Ireland, Australia, the United States, and Italy.[6][7] Although most did not consider Russia to be a serious contender for the World Cup,[6] the team's goal was to try hard, make it to the World Rugby highlights reel, and use this as an opportunity to raise the popularity of the sport in their country.[2] Russia lost their first World Cup match to the United States, but won their first World Cup competition point because they lost by a margin of less than seven points.[8] Russia went on to lose all four matches in Pool C and finished in fifth place, with only one competition point.
| Match results | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Date | Opponent | Score | Venue | Source |
| 15 Sep 2011 |  United States |
13–6 | Stadium Taranaki, New Plymouth | Report |
| 20 Sep 2011 |  Italy |
53–17 | Trafalgar Park, Nelson | Report |
| 25 Sep 2011 |  Ireland |
62–12 | International Stadium, Rotorua | Report |
| 1 Oct 2011 |  Australia |
68–22 | Trafalgar Park, Nelson | Report |
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | PF | PA | PD | T | B | Pts | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Ireland |
4 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 135 | 34 | +101 | 15 | 1 | 17 | Advanced to the quarter-finals and qualified for the 2015 Rugby World Cup |
| 2 | Australia |
4 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 173 | 48 | +125 | 25 | 3 | 15 | |
| 3 | Italy |
4 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 92 | 95 | −3 | 13 | 2 | 10 | Eliminated but qualified for 2015 Rugby World Cup |
| 4 | United States |
4 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 38 | 122 | −84 | 4 | 0 | 4 | |
| 5 | Russia |
4 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 57 | 196 | −139 | 8 | 1 | 1 |
Second World Cup appearance (2019)
The team's 2011 World Cup appearance, and the broadcasting in Russia of the 2003 and 2007 editions before that, led to increased interest in rugby union. However, in the years leading up to their qualification for the 2019 Rugby World Cup, Russia was only able to win a match against one World Cup contender, Canada.[2] When Spain, Belgium, and Romania were disqualified for having had ineligible players during the 2017–2018 Europe Championships, part of the Europe qualification, Russia advanced enough in the rankings to qualify as Europe 1.[9] Lyn Jones became the coach of the Russia squad ahead of the World Cup, and led the team during another tournament, the 2019 World Rugby Nations Cup, where they achieved wins over Namibia and Argentina XV. Russia faced host nation Japan in the opening match of the 2019 World Cup, playing in Pool A along with Ireland, Scotland, and Samoa.[10] Kirill Golosnitsky scored the fastest ever try in a World Cup opening match, giving Russia an early lead in the first five minutes, but they went on to lose to Japan.[11] Russia lost all four matches and finished in fifth place, with zero competition points.
| Match results | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Date | Opponent | Score | Venue | Source |
| 20 Sep 2019 | Japan |
30–10 | Tokyo Stadium, Tokyo | Report |
| 24 Sep 2019 |  Samoa |
34–9 | Kumagaya Rugby Stadium, Kumagaya | Report |
| 3 Oct 2019 | Ireland |
35–0 | Kobe Misaki Stadium, Kobe | Report |
| 9 Oct 2019 |  Scotland |
61–0 | Shizuoka Stadium Ecopa, Fukuroi | Report |
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | PF | PA | PD | T | B | Pts | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Japan |
4 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 115 | 62 | +53 | 13 | 3 | 19 | Advanced to the quarter-finals and qualified for the 2023 Rugby World Cup |
| 2 | Ireland |
4 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 121 | 27 | +94 | 18 | 4 | 16 | |
| 3 | Scotland |
4 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 119 | 55 | +64 | 16 | 3 | 11 | Eliminated but qualified for 2023 Rugby World Cup |
| 4 | Samoa |
4 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 58 | 128 | −70 | 8 | 1 | 5 | |
| 5 | Russia |
4 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 19 | 160 | −141 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
Suspension (since 2022)
In 2022 World Rugby and Rugby Europe suspended Russia from international and European continental rugby union competition due to the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine. In addition, the Rugby Union of Russia was suspended from World Rugby and Rugby Europe.[12][13]
Team records
World Cup record
| Rugby World Cup record | Qualification | ||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Round | Pld | W | D | L | PF | PA | Squad | Pos | Pld | W | D | L | PF | PA | ||
 1987 |
Declined invitation | – | |||||||||||||||
   1991 |
Did not enter | ||||||||||||||||
 1995 |
Did not qualify | 2nd | 4 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 125 | 49 | |||||||||
| 1999 |
P/O | 4 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 85 | 92 | ||||||||||
| 2003 |
Expelled from competing at tournament after qualification | P/O | 6 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 176 | 114 | |||||||||
| 2007 |
Did not qualify | 3rd | 14 | 6 | 1 | 7 | 382 | 323 | |||||||||
| 2011 |
Pool stage | 4 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 57 | 196 | Squad | 2nd | 10 | 7 | 1 | 2 | 291 | 175 | ||
| 2015 |
Did not qualify | P/O | 12 | 7 | 0 | 5 | 269 | 300 | |||||||||
| 2019 |
Pool stage | 4 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 19 | 160 | Squad | 1st | 8 | 4 | 0 | 4 | 226 | 144 | ||
| 2023 |
Disqualified | 5th | 10 | 2 | 0 | 8 | 159 | 217 | |||||||||
| 2027 |
– | ||||||||||||||||
| 2031 |
To be determined | To be determined | |||||||||||||||
| Total | — | 8 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 76 | 356 | — | — | 68 | 33 | 2 | 33 | 1391 | 1150 | ||
| |||||||||||||||||
Europeans record
| Years | Division | W–L (Pts Diff) | Position | Promotion / Relegation |
| 1992–1994 | Pool for Title | 1–3 (–36) | 4th | – |
| 1995–1997 | First Division | 2–2 (–58) | 3rd | – |
| 1998–1999 | Second Division | 3–0 (+128) | 1st | – |
| 2000 | Second Division | 4–0 (+249) | 1st | Promoted |
| 2001 | First Division | 3–2 (+9) | 3rd | — |
| 2002 | First Division | 3–1–1 (+93) | 3rd | — |
| 2003 | First Division | 3–6 (+23) | 4th | — |
| 2004–2006 | First Division | 4–5 (+88) | 4th | – |
| 2006–2008 | First Division | 8–2 (+165) | 2nd | – |
| 2008–2010 | First Division | 7–1–2 (+112) | 2nd | – |
| 2010–2012 | Division 1A | 2–3 (+2) | 4th | — |
| 2012–2014 | Division 1A | 3–2 (–6) | 3rd | – |
| 2014–2016 | Division 1A | 6–4 (−3) | 3rd | — |
| 2017 | Championship Division | 2–3 (−10) | 4th | — |
| 2018 | Championship Division | 2–3 (+58) | 2nd[a] | — |
| 2019 | Championship Division | 2–3 (+45) | 4th | – |
| 2020 | Championship Division | 2–3 (−46) | 5th | — |
| 2021 | Championship Division | 2–3 (−46) | 5th | — |
| 2021 | Championship Division | 2–3 (−46) | 5th | — |
| 2022 | Championship Division | 0–5 (−13) | N/a | Suspended |
| 2022 | Suspended due to the invasion of Ukraine | |||
| 2023 | ||||
| 2024 | ||||
| 2025 | ||||
Overall record
| Rank | Change[i] | Team | Points |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  | South Africa | 93.96 |
| 2 | | New Zealand | 92.28 |
| 3 | | Ireland | 88.08 |
| 4 | | France | 87.43 |
| 5 | | England | 85.68 |
| 6 | | Scotland | 84.78 |
| 7 | |  Argentina | 83.13 |
| 8 | | Australia | 81.61 |
| 9 | |  Fiji | 78.00 |
| 10 |  1 | Japan | 76.42 |
| 11 | 1 | Wales | 76.38 |
| 12 |  2 | Italy | 76.30 |
| 13 | |  Georgia | 73.94 |
| 14 | | United States | 70.22 |
| 15 | |  Portugal | 69.39 |
| 16 | 2 |  Chile | 66.94 |
| 17 | 1 |  Spain | 66.83 |
| 18 | 1 |  Uruguay | 65.75 |
| 19 | 1 |  Tonga | 65.14 |
| 20 | 1 | Samoa | 64.73 |
| 21 | 1 |  Romania | 62.45 |
| 22 | 1 | Belgium | 61.03 |
| 23 | 1 |  Hong Kong | 60.74 |
| 24 | 1 |  Canada | 60.37 |
| 25 | |  Zimbabwe | 57.68 |
| 26 | |  Namibia | 56.96 |
| 27 | |  Netherlands | 56.44 |
| 28 | |  Switzerland | 55.47 |
| 29 | | Czech Republic | 54.78 |
| 30 | |  Poland | 54.54 |
- Change from the previous week
| Russia's historical rankings |
Below is a table of the representative rugby matches played by a Russia national XV at test level up until 12 February 2022, updated after match with Spain.[15]
| Opponent | Played | Won | Lost | Drawn | Win % | For | Aga | Diff |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Argentina Jaguars | 5 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 0.00% | 58 | 200 | –142 |
| Argentina XV | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 100% | 87 | 78 | +9 |
| Australia | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0.00% | 22 | 68 | –46 |
 Basque Country | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 50.00% | 52 | 42 | –10 |
| Belgium | 8 | 7 | 1 | 0 | 87.5% | 275 | 148 | +127 |
| Canada | 5 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 20% | 91 | 157 | –66 |
| Chile | 5 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 20% | 154 | 155 | -1 |
 Croatia | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0.00% | 16 | 23 | –7 |
| Czech Republic | 8 | 6 | 2 | 0 | 75% | 309 | 104 | +205 |
| Denmark | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 100% | 191 | 28 | +163 |
| England A | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0.00% | 17 | 49 | –32 |
| France XV | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0.00% | 21 | 87 | –66 |
| French Military | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0.00% | 12 | 33 | –21 |
| Georgia | 25 | 1 | 23 | 1 | 4% | 273 | 621 | –348 |
 Germany | 11 | 11 | 0 | 0 | 100% | 528 | 140 | +388 |
| Hong Kong | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 100% | 144 | 62 | +82 |
| Ireland | 3 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0.00% | 15 | 132 | –117 |
| Emerging Ireland | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0.00% | 0 | 66 | –66 |
| Italy | 5 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 0.00% | 76 | 283 | –207 |
| Emerging Italy | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0.00% | 36 | 60 | –24 |
| Italy A | 4 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 0.00% | 66 | 129 | –63 |
| Japan | 7 | 1 | 6 | 0 | 14.29% | 118 | 299 | –161 |
 Kenya | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 100% | 31 | 10 | +21 |
 Morocco | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 66.67% | 44 | 46 | –2 |
| Namibia | 7 | 5 | 2 | 0 | 71.43% | 183 | 141 | +42 |
| Netherlands | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 100% | 243 | 47 | +196 |
 Norway | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 100% | 66 | 0 | +66 |
 Papua New Guinea | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 100% | 49 | 19 | +30 |
| Poland | 4 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 100% | 201 | 59 | +142 |
| Portugal | 21 | 14 | 6 | 1 | 66.67% | 563 | 429 | +134 |
| Romania | 25 | 7 | 17 | 1 | 28% | 375 | 634 | –259 |
| Samoa | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0.00% | 9 | 34 | –25 |
| Scotland | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0.00% | 0 | 61 | –61 |
| Scotland A | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0.00% | 7 | 49 | –42 |
| Spain | 25 | 16 | 9 | 0 | 64% | 688 | 608 | +80 |
 Sweden | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0.00% | 13 | 20 | –7 |
 Tunisia | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 100% | 57 | 41 | +16 |
 Ukraine | 9 | 9 | 0 | 0 | 100% | 439 | 115 | +324 |
| United States | 8 | 0 | 8 | 0 | 0.00% | 110 | 280 | –170 |
| USA Selects | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 100% | 30 | 21 | +9 |
| Uruguay | 9 | 4 | 5 | 0 | 44.44% | 215 | 231 | –16 |
| Zimbabwe | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 100% | 92 | 35 | +57 |
| Total | 232 | 113 | 116 | 3 | 48.71% | 5865 | 5710 | +155 |
Individual records
Most caps
| # | Player | Pos | Span | Mat | Start | Sub | Won | Lost | Draw | % |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Yuri Kushnarev | Fly-half | 2005–2021 | 120 | 101 | 19 | 55 | 63 | 2 | 47.82 |
| 2 | Victor Gresev | Flanker | 2006–2022 | 107 | 97 | 10 | 46 | 60 | 1 | 44.28 |
| 3 | Andrey Garbuzov | Lock | 2005–2020 | 100 | 76 | 24 | 45 | 54 | 1 | 45.50 |
| 4 | Vasily Artemyev | Centre | 2009–2022 | 98 | 94 | 4 | 41 | 56 | 1 | 43.68 |
| 5 | Andrei Kuzin | Centre | 1997–2011 | 78 | 68 | 10 | 38 | 37 | 3 | 50.64 |
| 6 | Alexander Khrokin | Prop | 1994–2011 | 76 | 47 | 29 | 36 | 38 | 2 | 48.68 |
| 7 | Dmitry Gerasimov | Centre | 2008-2022 | 73 | 63 | 10 | 29 | 44 | 0 | 40.84 |
| Vladislav Korshunov | Hooker | 2002–2015 | 73 | 48 | 25 | 32 | 39 | 2 | 45.20 | |
| Alexander Voytov | Lock | 2003–2014 | 73 | 67 | 6 | 29 | 42 | 2 | 41.09 | |
| 10 | Viacheslav Grachev | Flanker | 1993–2011 | 72 | 70 | 2 | 33 | 37 | 2 | 47.22 |
Most tries
| # | Player | Pos | Span | Mat | Start | Sub | Pts | Tries |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Vasily Artemyev | Centre | 2009–2022 | 98 | 94 | 4 | 145 | 29 |
| 2 | Andrei Kuzin | Centre | 1997–2011 | 78 | 68 | 10 | 130 | 26 |
| 3 | Vladimir Ostroushko | Wing | 2006–2020 | 51 | 47 | 4 | 125 | 25 |
| 4 | Victor Gresev | Flanker | 2006–2022 | 107 | 97 | 10 | 110 | 22 |
| 5 | Viacheslav Grachev | Flanker | 1993–2011 | 72 | 70 | 2 | 95 | 19 |
| 6 | Igor Galinovskiy | Wing | 2006-2019 | 50 | 43 | 7 | 90 | 18 |
| 7 | Alexander Gvozdovsky | Wing | 2005-2010 | 31 | 28 | 3 | 75 | 15 |
| Denis Simplikevich | Wing | 2011-2021 | 30 | 25 | 5 | 75 | 15 | |
| 9 | Evgeny Matveev | Hooker | 2007-2020 | 65 | 26 | 39 | 65 | 13 |
| 10 | Anton Rudoy | Flanker | 2016-2018 | 20 | 19 | 1 | 60 | 12 |
Most points
| # | Player | Pos | Span | Mat | Pts | Tries | Conv | Pens | Drop |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Yuri Kushnarev | Fly-half | 2005–2021 | 120 | 797 | 11 | 155 | 142 | 2 |
| 2 | Konstantin Rachkov | Fly-half | 1997–2011 | 44 | 316 | 10 | 51 | 41 | 5 |
| 3 | Ramil Gaisin | Fly-half | 2012–2022 | 60 | 250 | 7 | 46 | 41 | 0 |
| 4 | Vladimir Simonov | Centre | 2001-2004 | 22 | 168 | 11 | 25 | 18 | 3 |
| 5 | Vasily Artemyev | Centre | 2009–2022 | 98 | 145 | 29 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 6 | Andrei Kuzin | Centre | 1997–2011 | 78 | 130 | 26 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 7 | Vladimir Ostroushko | Wing | 2006–2020 | 51 | 125 | 25 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 8 | Alexander Yanyushkin | Scrum-half | 2002–2015 | 70 | 116 | 10 | 9 | 16 | 0 |
| 9 | Viktor Motorin | Scrum-half | 1999–2009 | 41 | 112 | 2 | 24 | 18 | 0 |
| 10 | Victor Gresev | Flanker | 2006–2022 | 107 | 110 | 22 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Technical staff
The current coaching staff of the Russian national team:[16]
| Name | Nationality | Role |
|---|---|---|
| Aleksandr Pervukhin | | Manager |
| Alexander Yanyushkin Vakil Valeyev | | Head coach |
| Yuri Kushnarev | | Assistant coach |
| Vacant | Strength & conditioning coach | |
| Dr. Yevgeny Trofimov | | Team doctor |
| Vacant | Physiotherapist | |
Past coaches
Since 1992
Pyotr Etko (1992)- Vladimir Grachyov (1992–2000)
James Stoffberg (2001–2002)- Aleksandr Pervukhin (2003–2004)
Igor Mironov (2004–2005)- Blikkies Groenewald (2006)
- Claude Saurel (2007–2008)
Steve Diamond (Director of Rugby, 2008–2010)- Nikolay Nerush (2008–2011)
Kingsley Jones (2011–2014)- Raphaël Saint-André (interim, 2014)
- Aleksandr Pervukhin (2015–2018)
Mark McDermott (interim, 2018)- Lyn Jones (2018–2021)
- Dick Muir (2021–2022)
- Aleksandr Pervukhin (2023–present)
Players
Current squad
The following players were called up for the 2022 Rugby Europe Championship.[17][18][19][20][21][22]
Head Coach: Aleksandr Pervukhin
- Caps updated: 8 February 2022
Note: Flags indicate national union for the club/province as defined by World Rugby.
| Player | Position | Date of birth (age) | Caps | Club/province |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Shamil Davudov | Hooker | 25 April 1995 | 1 | Kazan |
| Shamil Magomedov | Hooker | 17 April 1987 | 9 | Enisey-STM |
| Dmitry Parkhomenko | Hooker | 2 November 1995 | 4 | VVA Podmoskovye |
| Azamat Bitiev | Prop | 9 December 1989 | 25 | Enisey-STM |
| Nikoloz Kazalikashvili | Prop | 6 August 1992 | 1 | Kazan |
| Tamerlan Khubaev | Prop | 25 April 1998 | 0 | Dinamo Moscow |
| Evgeny Mishechkin | Prop | 27 June 1997 | 22 | Slava Moscow |
| Nikoloz Narmania | Prop | 13 September 2000 | 0 | Carcassonne |
| Vladimir Podrezov | Prop | 27 January 1994 | 40 | VVA Podmoskovye |
| Stepan Seryakov | Prop | 26 September 1997 | 1 | Enisey-STM |
| Alexei Skobiola | Prop | 8 August 1991 | 2 | Slava Moscow |
| Nikita Bekov | Lock | 4 March 1996 | 3 | Blagnac |
| Maxim Gargalîc | Lock | 7 March 1989 | 1 | Enisey-STM |
| Anton Makarenko | Lock | 7 December 1991 | 1 | Enisey-STM |
| German Silenko | Lock | 9 August 1995 | 7 | Lokomotiv Penza |
| Victor Arhip | Back row | 24 February 1990 | 1 | Krasny Yar |
| Artémy Gallo | Back row | 7 October 2000 | 2 | Suresnes |
| Vladimir Geraskin | Back row | 21 May 2000 | 1 | Lokomotiv Penza |
| Victor Gresev (c) | Back row | 31 March 1986 | 106 | Lokomotiv Penza |
| Nikita Vavilin | Back row | 13 May 1994 | 24 | Slava Moscow |
| Vitaly Zhivatov | Back row | 16 February 1992 | 19 | VVA Podmoskovye |
| Stepan Khokhlov | Scrum-half | 9 May 1998 | 6 | Slava Moscow |
| Efim Ryabishchuk | Scrum-half | 16 March 1999 | 1 | Enisey-STM |
| Alexey Shcherban | Scrum-half | 17 November 1990 | 49 | Enisey-STM |
| Gleb Farkov | Fly-half | 14 May 1997 | 1 | Dinamo Moscow |
| Ramil Gaisin | Fly-half | 26 July 1991 | 60 | Enisey-STM |
| Alexei Golov | Fly-half | 24 January 1992 | 3 | Kazan |
| Daniil Semenov | Fly-half | 27 June 2000 | 1 | CSKA Moscow |
| German Davydov | Centre | 10 March 1994 | 31 | VVA Podmoskovye |
| Dmitry Gerasimov | Centre | 16 April 1988 | 72 | Enisey-STM |
| Kirill Golosnitsky | Centre | 30 May 1994 | 23 | VVA Podmoskovye |
| Victor Kononov | Centre | 26 May 1996 | 6 | Enisey-STM |
| Vladislav Sozonov | Centre | 9 October 1993 | 13 | Lokomotiv Penza |
| Alexander Gudok | Wing | 3 June 1991 | 0 | Lokomotiv Penza |
| Andrei Karzanov | Wing | 25 November 1990 | 8 | Lokomotiv Penza |
| Alexey Mikhaltsov | Wing | 24 July 1991 | 11 | Enisey-STM |
| Daniil Potikhanov | Wing | 30 November 1999 | 8 | Lokomotiv Penza |
| Vasily Artemyev | Fullback | 24 July 1987 | 97 | CSKA Moscow |
| Maxim Shevtsov | Fullback | 9 March 2001 | 0 | Dinamo Moscow |
| Dmitry Sukhin | Fullback | 15 January 1995 | 1 | Krasny Yar |
Kit history
         2011 World Cup (first)
|
    2011 World Cup (second)
|
    2015 World Cup qualifier (first)
|
   2015 World Cup qualifier (second)
|
    2019 World Cup (first)
|
   2019 World Cup (second)
|
 Current (first)
|
Current (second)
|
Recent and upcoming fixtures
Russia hasn't played in official tests after suspension in 2022.
The following table shows fixtures of the Russian national team in not official test matches during the previous 12 months.
| Date | Opponent | Opp Rank | Result | Venue | Event |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024-10-12 | Russian Barbarians |
n/a | W 38-21 | Solidarnost Samara Arena, Samara |
Test match |
Other international teams
Sevens
Russia also has a rugby sevens team, which competes in several rounds each year on the World Rugby Sevens Series and in the FIRA-AER Grand Prix Sevens circuit, with Moscow hosting the second leg.[citation needed]
The men's first official match was played at the Sevens World Cup qualifier in Dubai, beating Botswana 38-3. Since then, Russia has played 799 matches, winning 375 and losing 409, with 15 ties.[23]
Russia Sevens team last game was at the Euro Championship in Moscow, losing the third-place game vs Germany 19-12.
Russia was crowned European Sevens Champion three times, in 2007, 2016 and 2017. In European Sevens, Russia has an impressive record of 206 victories, 85 loses and 6 ties.
Women
Russia fields women's national rugby union teams in both fifteens, where it appeared at the Women's Rugby World Cup in 1994 and 1998 as Russia and in 1991 as the USSR, and in sevens, which took part in the first Women's Rugby World Cup Sevens in 2009 and which contests the IRB Women's Sevens World Series.[citation needed]
See also
Notes
- Romania, Belgium and Spain deducted points.