What s the difference football and rugby

Rugby vs Football

There are a couple of differences between the sports of rugby and football; differences worth knowing in order to have a better understanding of the sports. First off, the game of rugby requires a much wider field compared to football. There are also some differences in the number of players for both sports. For example, in rugby you need to have thirteen players to get the game going. In football however, you only need eleven players. The nature of their roles on the field also has differences. In rugby, any player can perform the role of attacking and defending whenever there is a need for it. In football, all eleven players have very specific roles on the field, to which they should strictly adhere.

The way the ball moves around the field is also different for the two sports. In football, the players can only pass the ball in a direct forward manner. On the other hand, the game of rugby entitles the players to keep passing the ball in other directions namely, backwards and sideways. Differences are also apparent in the way the games are scored. To make a point, rugby players need to have the ball touch the field, which will earn them a total of 5 points to make the ‘try’ (term for the score).

In football, the players will only need to cross designated end-zones to earn them six points for the ‘touchdown‘ (the term for this sport’s score). Both games allow goal-over kicks, but in rugby, the value of the score is double that of football’s. And finally, football players always aim to make field goals, while such an act is not worth making in rugby, since it will only garner them a single point. Basically, these are the differences worth knowing about the two sports of rugby and football.

1. Rugby uses a much wider playing field compared to football.

2. A football game can commence with eleven players, while you need thirteen to start a rugby match.

3. In football, ball movement is only directly forward; in rugby it is only sideways and backwards.

4. The difference in points is such that a score in rugby is worth four points, while a score in football is worth six points.

5. Football players always aim for the field goal, while rugby players have a tendency to avoid this because of its low score.

What’s the Difference Between American Football and Rugby?

American football and rugby are in many ways similar sports, both featuring a great amount of physicality, running, and aggression.

This is not unsurprising when you realise that American football and rugby are related with American football developing from rugby in the 19th century. However, there are some fundamental differences between the games.

Geographic Spread

Although American football is played in many different countries across the world, by far the most players are in the USA. Rugby however has a far bigger geographical spread. Rugby is popular in European countries such as England, Scotland, Ireland Wales and France, as well as southern hemisphere countries such as Australia, New Zealand, South Africa and Argentina. It is also one of the fast growing team sports in the USA.

Object of the Game

The object of American football is to score more points than the opposition team by carrying the ball behind the opponents touch line (called a touchdown). Teams can also score points by kicking the ball between the posts which is known as a field goal.

The object of rugby is very similar, but the ball must be carried behind the opponents touch line and then placed down which is called a try. Points can also be scored by kicking the ball between the goalposts (known as a conversion/drop goal/penalty kick) depending upon the circumstances.

American footballs and rugby balls look similar at first glance but they are different. Rugby balls are about 27cm long and weigh about 1lb whereas American footballs weigh a few ounces less but are slightly longer at 28cm. American footballs also feature more pointy ends and a seam, both of which make it easier to throw.

Number of Players

Rugby teams are much larger than their American football counterparts. Rugby teams have fifteen players on the pitch at any one time whereas American football teams have just eleven.

Substitutions

In rugby, teams are allowed to make up to seven substitutions in a game (dependent upon specific league/tournament rules) and once a player has left the pitch, they cannot return to the field of play except if there is an injury and there are no other substitutes available. In American football, however, teams are allowed an unlimited number of substitutes.

Field

American football fields are shorter than rugby pitches, having a total length of 109.73m compared to rugby’s 120m. Rugby pitches are much wider too at 70m compared to 48.77m in American football.

Protective Equipment

Rugby players play with the minimal of protective equipment, most playing only with a gum-shield. In American football, however, a large amount of equipment is worn including a helmet, shoulder and chest pads, leg protectors, in addition to the gum-shield. These are not optional and must be worn by all players.

Physical Contact

Both American football and rugby are games that feature a huge amount of physical contact and are physically demanding to play. Impacts in American football can often be heavier thanks to the amount of protective equipment worn.

However rugby players make many more tackles than their American counterparts, averaging sixteen per game compared to American football’s average of just four.

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Rugby vs Football – The Key Differences Explained

There is an ongoing debate between two great sports – rugby vs American football.

Which is better? Tougher? Cooler?

We’ll focus on the differences between the two so that you can form your own opinion on the questions above.

I have played both these sports and I love watching and playing them equally. I have played football in the North of England town where I grew up. I also played a little rugby league, with the days in between spent throwing the ball around at a local park.

Let’s get into the differences…

Pitch vs field

Rugby pitches (often called fields) are bigger than American football fields. They also vary in size, just like soccer pitches, something that Americans on my teams have always found weird. An American football gridiron is always the exact same shape and size. It is 100 yards long and 53 1/3 yards wide, with two 10 yard end zones on the end. This means that no matter if you are in high school, college, or the NFL, you are going to be playing on the field with the same dimensions regardless.

A rugby pitch is 112-122 meters (122.5-133.4 yards) long and 68m (74.3 yards wide). Attached to the ends of this pitch are a pair of in-goal areas, the equivalent of an end zone, which can be from 5-22 meters (5.4-24.1 yards) deep.

Rugby Field vs Football Field

These differences in size may not sound like much, but they make a big difference to how each game is played. My current club has a pitch that is actually longer AND wider than the legal limits, so we make sure to exploit the extra spaces by playing an attacking style using lots of width.

American Football vs Rugby Ball

A rugby ball is similar to an American football. An NFL football is 11.25″ long. A rugby ball must be between 280-300mm (11-11.8″) according to law #2 of the World Rugby laws. Both balls weigh around 15 ounces.

Rugby ball vs football size comparison

A rugby ball is more rounded, which gives it a more predictable bounce. An American football has pointier ends and by rule must be the “form of a prolate spheroid.”

Buying a rugby ball? Check out our list of the best rugby balls.

A football has laces, which the quarterback uses to grip the ball. A combination of those two factors make an football much easier to throw than a rugby ball.

Differences in protective equipment

One of the most obvious differences between the two sports is the equipment required. In the rugby vs football debate, many point to the fact that rugby players wear far less equipment.

Protective equipment is mostly standard for football players regardless of position. However, your position in rugby will sometimes determine what equipment you’ll use.

The first time I saw all the padding required to play American football I had no idea where all the foam pieces went. Eventually I worked out how to put them on. The first time you take a helmet to the kneecap, you understand why that piece of foam is necessary.

The padding is certainly a necessary evil because of the difference in contact styles between the two sports. We will get into this more later, but realistically the only equipment similarities are mouth guards and footwear, with even American football cleats and rugby boots sharing very different stud patterns for optimum grip.

It is worth noting that the longer I have played the more I have seen rugby players wearing ‘contact vests’ which is essentially a much lower end version of a football set of shoulder pads.

Playing the game

A big difference: American football is played 11 vs. 11. Rugby is played 15 vs. 15. (Rugby ‘sevens’ is also popular)

In football there is a roster of seemingly endless people who with sub in and out in an unlimited fashion. In rugby you have a match day squad of 23 people and when you are subbed out for another player you are done for the day (with minor exceptions for injury/blood).

This leads to an interesting situation where rugby players have to, and can do, everything, while American football players tend to be far more specialized within the parameters of their position.

A rugby fullback (my position) for example will have to run, pass, kick, tackle, ruck, and so on. An American football free safety (also my position) will be much more specialized and training will focus on tackling, reading the game, and being fast over the ground.

When it comes to gameplay, the same basic idea is behind both games. Namely that you use whatever methods are legal within the game to move the ball down the field into your opponent’s end zone/in goal to score points.

“Rugby is a game for barbarians played by gentlemen. Football is a game for gentlemen played by barbarians.”

Touch down or touchdown?

One note here is that in football you just half to have part of the ball over the goal line (in the air) to score, while in rugby part of the ball has to be touched down to the ground (with downward pressure) on or beyond the goal line to score.

Completing the act, and not spiking the ball, is known as a try in rugby which gives you five points. In football a touchdown, even though the ball isn’t touched down (confusing!) is worth six points.

Conversions and extra points

These are then followed by a conversion/extra points that are worth two and one points respectively, making the whole act worth seven points.

In football, unless you are a low end college team, this kick should be automatic as it is right in front of the posts. In rugby, the kick is taken anywhere the player wants on a line directly back from where the ball was put down. This means that often a player will try to ‘center the ball’ running to the middle before putting it down and scoring a try.

In theory this is great. In practice there have been plenty of people made to look stupid as they are chased down and tackled while trying to center the ball. Back playing schoolboy rugby we had a player try to do this running around in goal trying to make the conversion better. He didn’t see an opponent coming from his blindside, a player who smashed the ball from his grip and three teeth from his mouth, one of which was never found.

That was the last game I ever played without a mouth guard.

Tackles and flow of play

For two games that are similar in physicality, football and rugby play in very different ways. Having always been a rugby player I found the stop start nature of football to be difficult to adjust to.

In rugby a tackled player must release the ball making it live and, within a set of complicated rucking rules, available for both teams to play at. In football a tackled player signals the end of the play and both times are given time to reset and call/run another play.

This means that in rugby you see attacks consisting of 15 or 20 tackles (or phases) before the play is stopped because of an infraction or foul play. Going from that, where the ball can be in play for minutes at a time to the 10 second and restart nature of football isn’t easy.

In American football a team has four attempts to make 10 yards. If they fail the ball is turned over, hence why on fourth down teams will often punt for field position. This is a concept that is similar in rugby, a game where any player can kick the ball at any time. The theory here is that it is harder for the opposition to score coming out of their own end than it would be if they gained possession of the ball close to your own goal line.

The kicking game

A big difference in the games is that in rugby all kicks are live balls for both teams to attack and win. Thus a game may be turned by a great kick and chase. When a punt is boomed off in football, the defending team is the one with the rights to the ball and it cannot be contested by a player rushing downfield.

The two biggest differences between football and rugby are that in rugby you cannot pass forwards and also that you can’t block for a teammate.

The passing game

The first rule is what creates the fundamental pattern in which each game is played. In rugby it is illegal to pass the ball forwards at any point. You can run it forwards, you can kick it forwards, but any pass has to be lateral or backwards. In football you can pass forwards once a play, as long as the pass is made from behind the line of scrimmage, then lateral or back as much as you like.

This is why it is ironic that some of the most fun plays in American football history have come from panic based, rugby style passing at the end of the game. The famous example is ‘The Play’ where Cal beat Stanford and when “The band is on the field” became one of the most legendary lines in American sports announcing.

Blocking

The reason that we don’t see a lot of rugby style passing in American football is because of blocking and, specifically, the ability to hit a player who doesn’t have the ball. In rugby, this is illegal both offensively and defensively. The only players allowed to be contacted in open play (rucks are different) is the player with the ball.

The flip side of this is that the ball carrier cannot run behind a wall of blockers, because an offensive player cannot contact a defender in that way. This is another rule new players in the US, usually old football players, struggle to deal with as the instinct is there to go and light up anyone not paying attention on the pitch.

Difference in physicality

Rules and laws aside, the most interesting difference between the two games, in my opinion, is how they work physically. People often ask which is tougher, with the answer being that they simply both are in their own way.

Rugby is great. The players don’t wear helmets or padding; they just beat the living daylights out of each other and then go for a beer. I love that.

-Joe Theismann, Former NFL Quarterback

The hardest I have ever been hit was in an American football game. I was scraping over to make a tackle as the opposition running back turned the corner when out of nowhere. I was hit by what I assume to this day was a vending machine travelling at warp speed. If the hit had been to the head I would have had 17 concussions all at once, but instead I was granted with the inability to breathe for the rest of the day.

The way football is played, the way the players line up, and the fact that in general it is a game of tunnel vision as opposed to the 360 degree vision of rugby, means that the one-off hits in football are uncompromisingly brutal.

The flip side of that is that I have never been as all over tired and physically beaten up as after a rugby game. Football may have the bigger hits, though as rugby players continue to get on the strength and conditioning programs the difference is shrinking, but for the sheer number of hits in a game, rugby hurts in a very different way.

It is worth noting too that this is spoken from the point of view of a fullback. Players in the scrum have a far worse time of it, with everything they do during a game being highly attritional.

A wide receiver may only be in contact four or five times a game, especially if he is one that only blocks when he has to, while a prop will be in countless collisions over the course of 80 minutes.

Put simply, both sports hurt.

Both are brutal and physical, yet both have their moments of elegance and skill that mean that 26 years into a career, and with Sunday/Monday mornings being almost unbearable, there is still zero thought of hanging up the boots.

Three reasons why football is better than rugby

Three reasons why rugby is better than football

Football or Rugby, What’s better?

In conclusion, these are both great sports and there is no clear “winner.” Like most things in life, it’s all a matter of personal preference. Which sport do you prefer, rugby or football? Let us know in the comments below!

Steve Wright is an active rugby and former football player. He has been playing rugby for two and a half decades, both 15s and 7s, and he is involved in the administration of the game along with being a player and a coach. His teams have been successful over the years, with his Wichita Barbarians squad being crowned D3 National Champions in 2015.

5 Differences Between Rugby Union and American Football

Written By:
Sue Longstone

Last Updated: March 17, 2021

Reading Time:
5 Minutes

Did you know English rugby is believed to date back to 1823 at the school of Rugby in Warwickshire, England?

Have you ever looked at American football and thought that looks very similar to English rugby?

Well if you take a close look there are certainly many similarities between the two.

Both games aim to score points by getting the ball into the end zones or through the uprights and over the crossbar.

However, a deeper look shows us how very different these two sports are.

American Football and how rugby started.

We all know American football is one of the most popular sports in the country.

The game currently has 32 teams who compete in the National Football League (NFL).

The regular NFL season culminates each February with the Super Bowl, a huge 4-hour event anticipated by many US sports fans but also by an ever-growing UK fanbase.

So, what about rugby? Well, the first game of rugby is widely believed to have been played in 1823 at the school of Rugby in Warwickshire, England.

It started when a chap named William Webb Ellis first ran with the ball in hand.

There is no substantial evidence to support this theory but it is the most popular view, and the Rugby World Cup is named by the international committee after Ellis.

There are also two types of rugby, Rugby Union and Rugby League and even these two have a fair few intricate differences but let’s take a look at 5 differences between Rugby Union and American football.

Now let’s look at the 5 differences.

Difference #1 – The number of players in a team.

The first and most obvious difference between American football and Rugby Union is the number of players on the field.

Rugby has a field of 15 players who stay on the pitch for the entire game, whereas in American football there are only 11 players on the pitch at any one time.

Football teams are also primarily made up of 2 teams of 11 players, 11 who play offense and another team of 11 who play defense with the entire team switching when play turns-over.

A third, specials team can also be utilized, normally when there is a kick involved.

Difference #2 – Team make up.

Due to the fundamental difference in gameplay, the rugby team set up must cater to both attack and defense at all times on the field whereas each football team is set up entirely for attack or defense.

In American football, the most prominent player is the Quarterback as he makes all the tactical decisions on the field.

So, the offensive team has two main objectives; protect the Quarterback and progress 10 yards down the field.

The defense must stop this from happening by attacking the Quarterback and stopping the other players running up the field.

The only exception to this is when the special team comes on during a kick play.

Rugby, however, is made up of eight forwards and seven backs.

The forwards are normally the taller and more physical players who compete for the ball and the backs tend to be more agile and faster.

Generally, the fastest runners and kickers of the team are the ones who score many of the points.

Difference #3 – Game flow.

The next biggest difference is the game flow and how this affects strategy.

In American football you are much more likely to see short, fast and tactical plays led by the Quarterback.

This is contrary to rugby which is more of a slower build with an emphasis on slow progression down the field, looking for a gap to run through and score points.

This could be down to the difference in plays.

In American football, the ball must travel at least 10 yards in four downs for the offensive team to keep possession.

The ball cannot touch the ground before it is caught (except for a fumble) or go out of play for this to be successful.

If the defensive team manages to prevent this, play starts again and the offense loses one down.

If the 10-yard threshold is not met by the fourth down possession is turned over.

This is dissimilar to rugby union where play continues regardless of how many times the team has been tackled.

Also, unlike in American football where the Quarterback will often throw the ball forward during a play, in rugby, the ball can only be thrown sideways or backward.

Difference #4 – Scoring.

Whilst following a similar narrative in scoring there are many intricate differences between the two:

The best way of scoring in both games is via a touchdown in football which is worth 6 points or a try in rugby worth 5 points.

To score a touchdown the ball needs to be carried into or caught inside the end zone.

Whereas in rugby the ball has to touch the ground inside the end zone for the points to be awarded.

After this in both sports, teams have an opportunity to score further points – a kick through the uprights and over the crossbar is worth 2 points in rugby and 1 in American football.

In football, another option available after a touchdown is for the offense to try to pass and run the ball to the end zone for another 2 points.

Field goals are also prevalent in both sports and are worth 3 points.

There is one subtle difference; in football, the ball must be handed to a teammate who places the ball down on the ground for the kicker, and in rugby, the ball must bounce before being kicked.

Finally, in American football, a safety worth 2 points is awarded to the defense if the ball becomes dead or an offensive player is tackled or forced out of bounds in their own end zone.

In rugby, a team can use a penalty to try and kick the ball from where the offense occurred through the posts for 3 points.

Difference #5 – Game timings.

The game timings and stoppages in both games make for one of the biggest differences between the two.

American football is split into four quarters of 15 minutes, and Rugby consists of two 40-minute halves.

In American football, there are also allowances for three-time outs per half for a team to use.

However, there are no time outs in rugby and the only person who can stop the clock is the referee for stoppages such as serious injuries or consulting with other officials.

So, despite their shared similarities, the two games are actually very different, and both make for a compelling watch!

Rugby v Football – the 4 main differences

Football season is over, people. It was a good one. Our team watched the Superbowl this year with a core group of NFL die-hards. And understandably after a look at the Patriots’ secondary, all the old comparisons between rugby and American football came out:

With his massive achievements in 2015 and 2016, Nate Ebner went a long way to showing that, ABSOLUTELY, American Footballers can be amazing rugby players.

So for all you football players and fans who are sad to see the back of this NFL season, here’s a quick guide to what we consider to be the four main differences in the Football V Rugby discussion.

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SOME DIFFERENCES DON’T MATTER

Let’s make this easy shall we. Rugby and American Football are different in a LOT of ways. Some of those differences are big and others are so small that there’s really no point talking about them. These minor difference don’t dramatically effect game play, tactics or in-game strategy. But every article we read that compares rugby and American Football always starts with a few basic (and usually boring) facts. So let’s knock that out real quick.

Field and equipment dimensions

The rugby ball is longer, wider and rounder than an American football. The result is that its bounce is also slightly more predictable, though not as predictable as a soccer ball. Unlike the gridiron, rugby fields are not actually standardized, meaning that they can vary slightly in width and length depending on the location of the field and specific use. For example, the field used for the USA 7s in Las Vegas is one of the narrower fields on the HSBC World 7s circuit. In general though, rugby fields are wider. The posts are also inside the field of play rather than behind the end-zone.

Possession changes

In American football, possession typically changes either based on a score, fumble recovery, punt or interception. Rugby’s mostly the same except for the manner in which a team restarts play after a change in possession. When the ball goes over the sideline in rugby, the team not in possession throws in to a Lineout to restart play. When a forward fumble occurs in rugby, the team not in possession throws in to a Scrum to restart play. Our rugby friends will crucify us for saying so, but Scrums and Lineouts aren’t really all that important to understanding rugby. They’re tools to re-start the game. So if you don’t completely understand what’s going on when you watch them, seriously don’t worry about it.

Players on the field

Rugby has 15 per team. American football has 11. Canadian football has, um…. so anyway.

Who is this article for?

The remainder of this article is aimed at two groups of people:

1. THE FORWARD PASS

On the surface

This is the big one. American Football’s forward pass is the fastest way to gain territory and score points. Recent rule changes regarding pass interference have only re-enforced this, as teams move away from the run-heavy offense in favor of passing plays and play action. In American Football, the quarterback has the sole responsibility to get the ball down the field with his arm. This specialization means the offense revolves around protecting the quarterback until his receivers can get open for a pass. Or making it look like you’re doing this in order to utilize a run. There is a whole infrastructure developed in American Football to do this. Blocking, receiver routes and a run threat are all aimed at buying the quarterback time in the pocket to complete a pass.

RUGBY

In rugby, no player is allowed to pass or kick the ball to a teammate who is down-field of them. This means that gaining territory is difficult. You need to go backwards in order to go forwards. A rugby team must effectively break the opponent’s defensive line in order to get down towards the other end of the field.

FOOTBALL

In football, you try to exploit a team’s vertical weakness by stretching the field using fast wider-receivers who can be a threat down field. In rugby, you aim to exploit the opponent’s lateral weakness by stretching their defensive line across the field and then attacking gaps that appear in the line.

A lot of people make the comparison between the American Football QB and the Rugby Fly-half (#10). They’re both key positional players who control the game with their pass. But a better comparison is between the QB and the Rugby half-back (#9). The half-back in rugby is the only player who is given a level of protection within the laws to make a pass. The difference being that the Football QB’s pass exploits vertical space in the defense while the Rugby half-back’s pass exploits lateral space.

Everyone is lateral

Rugby doesn’t allow for forward passes so no player has the unique ability to pass. We talked in the previous paragraph about lateral space across the rugby field. Exploiting a lateral weakness in your opponent’s defensive line is how a rugby team breaks the gain line and scores points. But in order to exploit lateral spaces, every rugby player must be able to catch and throw a lateral pass. Doing this while running at full speed is challenging.

You’ll notice from watching a game of rugby that hundreds of passes are thrown by both sides. Rugby players practice catching and passing to the Nth degree. At any given moment, a player might need to exploit an opportunity in the defensive line by throwing a lateral pass. As a football player transitioning to rugby, passing laterally at speed will be the first skill you need to learn. Catching will be a close second and is almost always learned at the same time.

No easy yards

Not having a forward pass means making ground is really difficult in rugby. The easiest way for an American Football player to think about the offense in rugby is to simply imagine that there is no QB in a game of football. Instead, you have a team of 15 running backs and you’re facing 15 defensive ends. What do you do? The defense is coming forward at you and taking a knee isn’t an option. This is what it feels like as a rugby player who is attacking the defensive line.

As the half-back (#9) passes the ball, the defense moves forward and the attack is immediately under pressure. Just getting back to the gain-line (similar to the line of scrimmage in Football) is hard enough, but making 20m downfield is near-impossible without exploiting lateral space using a pass.

Stretching the defense

I’ve painted a deliberately sad picture here of what it means to be attacking in rugby. But if you’re still imagining 15 D-Ends running at you, don’t stress. In rugby, you can beat them all by throwing a couple of good lateral passes. Imagine you’re the running back who is about to be swarmed by tacklers. Rather than trucking it ahead, you can throw a lateral pass to a teammate and within a few seconds the ball is 40m across the field away from where you would have been tackled.

Because anyone on the offense might throw a lateral pass at any time, the defensive team must respect that this is possible and cover all possible receivers. This creates a flat line of defenders that stretches across the field from sideline to sideline. the defense can’t all rush up at any single attacker for fear that the attacker will throw a lateral pass and they’ll be caught out of position.

Where to attack

The attacking strategy in rugby is to exploit the defensive line at points of weakness. This can be where two players are spaced too far apart (a ‘Gap’), where there’s an individual player weakness (a ‘Mismatch’) or where your team has more players to attack than there are defenders in the line (an ‘Overlap’). Offensive plays in rugby are designed to manipulate the defensive line and create Gaps, Mismatches and Overlaps. And ideally all three at the same time.

To sum up the forward pass

Allowing forward passes means that American Football is a vertically-focused game. At the same time, passing backwards means that Rugby is a horizontally-focused game. For American football players, understanding this key difference will help you get your bearings on the field. In Football, you’re trying to stretch the defense downfield and exploit weakness underneath or over the top. In rugby, you’ll be trying to stretch the defense wide and then exploit gaps through the middle or overlaps on the outside of the defensive line.

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2. PLAY LIMITS

On the surface

In terms of game play American Football is designed around equality. That might sound strange at first, but let me explain. American Football has a series of rules that actually create less competition than many other sports and rugby in particular. To name just a few:

This last point is important enough to warrant further examination. ‘3 and Outs’ make American Football what I would call a ‘polite’ sport compared to rugby. In rugby, the referee will never tell you, “look, you’ve had 4 goes and you couldn’t get 10 meters so we’ll give them the ball now.”

Play limits in American Football put an emphasis on yards per play. Over 5 is good, less than 3 is ordinary. Without play limits, the attacking team in rugby isn’t focused on forward progress. Remember from point #1 in this article that rugby is a horizontal game. Obviously its HIGHLY preferable to be going forward, but if you’re tackled for a loss in rugby, you can continue attacking as long as you can maintain possession.

Winning possession

Possession is critical in both sports. You’re much more likely to score points with the ball than without it. For the defensive team in American Football, the easiest way to win possession is by stopping the offense from making 10 yards. There are fumbles and interceptions as well, but three and out is what you’re really aiming for. Because rugby doesn’t have play limits, the defense in rugby can’t win possession by stopping forward progress.

ASIDE: Stopping forward progress and forcing a kick from the attack can be an effective strategy in rugby. However, there is no law that requires the team to hand over possession if they aren’t going forward.

Aim of the tackle

With just 10 yards to protect, American Football defenders are tackling to stop forward progress. This is why American Football tackles have so much venom. You don’t need to put the guy on the ground and hold him there, you just need to knock him backwards. The best way to do that is with a damn big impact. The reason you see such impressive hits in football relative to rugby is that rugby tackles are designed to do something else entirely.

Stopping forward progress is just one aim of a rugby tackle, so there must be others, right? The other objective of the rugby tackle is to give the defense the opportunity to win possession. As we’ll discuss in point #3, rugby has no 35-second break when a player is tackled. So when a tackle occurs, both teams are allowed to compete physically for the ball. This creates what we call a ‘Ruck’, where players from both teams collide over the ball in an effort to win possession for their team. There are strategies the offense can employ to control the ruck situation and maintain possession. But theoretically, a tackle in rugby creates a 50/50 battle for the ball that either team can win.

Tacklers in rugby are aiming to get the ball carrier on the ground as fast as possible so their team can try to win the ball at the Ruck.

Possession and pressure

In most sports, a team can dominate the game by starving the opposition of possession. This happens in American Football when you have a team that plays with a run-heavy offense and just wears the clock down. You can see the effect this has on the defense in Football, the Defensive Ends can’t put the same level of pressure on the QB and the Linebackers start to move a bit slower in coverage. It’s the same or similar in rugby, but worse.

Not having a limit on the number of consecutive plays you can run in rugby allows the team in possession to put enormous pressure on the defense. Some teams have been known to run 20-30 consecutive plays when in possession. This means the defense needs to be continuously tackling, covering the whole field and communicating adjustments in their defensive line. This process takes its toll on even the best defensive players.

What makes rugby more challenging still is that if the defense wins possession, those same defenders need to become attackers. Imagine your team has just made 20 consecutive tackles and now needs to turn around and formulate an attack. Usually the team that wins possession under these circumstances will kick for the sideline and just try to slow the game down and take a break at the lineout.

To sum up no play limits

Because there are no play limits in Rugby, the offense is able to starve the defense of possession, giving them a better chance to score points and win the game. To combat this, the defense aims to make low tackles that create a contest for the ball at each tackle situation or ‘Ruck’. Rucks give the defense an opportunity to win possession or at least slow down the play and give them time to organize their defensive line.

3. TIME BETWEEN PLAYS

On the surface

The most crucial difference between rugby and American football occurs when a player is tackled. In American Football, the play is whistled dead and there’s a 35 second break for both teams to re-group. In Rugby, the play continues. This creates a unique set of circumstances where the team in possession is forced to produce the ball and run another play. No break. No rest. No play calls from the touchline. No time to get organized. This continuity makes rugby a more fluid game than American Football but there are a number of other situations that this also creates.

Constant contest

Once a player is tackled, rugby becomes a race to secure possession. Players from the ball carrier’s team will sprint to the tackle to protect the ball so that the half-back can throw a lateral pass and in doing so move the ball away from the contest. The tackle situation also creates the opportunity for the defense to win possession. This makes getting to the tackled player first the #1 task for both teams once a tackle occurs. This ‘Race to the Ruck’ forces players in all positions to think about supporting their teammates even before a tackle occurs. At no point is it ok for one player to go “on their own”. Rugby players must anticipate the tackle situation, communicate with their teammates and support the ball carrier as they go to ground.

The feeling this creates for you as a player is one of constant contest. Even if you don’t have the ball you still have a role in the attack. Players don’t have any time to relax in rugby. The tackle is just the start of the contest, not the end. Hesitate for a second and the ball is taken away and screaming downfield in the opposite direction. Now you’re defending, and that’s shit.

Playing off the ball

Since your teammates in rugby might be tackled at any point you’ll get a sense when you’re playing that you are always in the game. Even if you don’t personally have the ball, supporting your teammates is crucial to the success of the team. It’s not enough to stand and watch. You need to protect the ruck or start calling the next play immediately. We call all of the things that a rugby player might do when they’re not in possession, “off the ball” activities. The small technical skills that can dramatically improve your game are all things you can do “off the ball”. They include small talk with your teammates, working hard to get in position early and running the correct support lines.

Less influence from coaches

Coaches in North American sports have a huge influence during games. This goes for Hockey, Baseball, Basketball and yes American Football. But because we don’t have 35 seconds between plays or TV timeouts in rugby, the role of the coach is dramatically reduced. They can’t use a playbook to call out real-time instructions to their players or make adjustments to their strategy. This lack of in-game coaching puts more emphasis on the team’s captain and the senior players. While the coaching staff will have a vision for how they want the team to play, its the role of the senior players to implement that strategy on the field.

This can be very difficult. Remember, senior players are seldom standing with a clipboard, they’re making tackles and kicks and running the ball just like everyone else. Rugby forces everyone on the team to think on their feet, to adjust their style of play to the weather conditions, game circumstances and the team’s on-field assets. The senior players on a rugby team are constantly evaluating the game situation and communicating strategy changes to their teammates. Sounds like a lot of work? It is.

Aerobic fitness

As a football player, you’ve probably become used to dozens of short anaerobic bursts. Rugby still requires these bursts, but you’ll also need to be moving constantly for 80 minutes in a number of functional ways. Running is just the start. You’ll be going forward, backward and laterally on command and without rest. You’ll need to accelerate quickly, stop on a dime and do about 100 burpees a game. One of the most difficult parts of rugby, for beginners at least, is just getting up off the ground over and over again.

Some players will be involved in a tackle or ruck situation at least once a minute during the game. That’s like a Burpee a minute for an hour and a half. Because the game is continuous, you need to be able to make a tackle, jump to your feet, skip 5 meters so you’re onside and then sprint up in defense again. All of those functional movements require rugby players to have what we commonly refer to as a big motor. Players with big motors do crazy rugby-specific cardio training and will often be the best players on the team as they’re able to continue thinking when they’re tired. For more on this checkout the great eBook on rugby 7s conditioning available through the free resources section of our site.

Lower risk plays

You’ll notice in American football that the offense is basically allowed to make certain mistakes. If the QB throws a pass that hits the ground, the play is whistled dead and the offense gets another crack. Same goes for a wild pass that goes out of the field of play. (side note, did you know that American Football is the only game in the world where you can run the ball over the sideline yourself and still retain possession?). In rugby, if the ball hits the ground, the play continues. And if you throw a pass out of the field, the other team gets it. So even though the incentive might be the same for a rugby player to throw a pass, they’re more likely not to as well. Many ruggers will refer to this as not ‘pushing the pass’, but more generally this relates to making the correct (and probably the safest) decision you can on the field.

To sum up no time between plays

While American Football involves more intense bursts of energy and action, Rugby is more fluid. Rugby newcomers will probably be shocked by just how difficult it is to simply keep getting up off the ground and back into the defensive line. The American Football players I’ve spoken to about this say that this is one of the reasons they enjoy Rugby over American Football. There’s less waiting around, which makes for a more enjoyable playing experience.