The Rugby World Cup extravaganza that had begun in 1987 was carried forward with full glory and enthusiasm to the 1991 Rugby World Cup . The Rugby World Cup of 1991 was hosted by England along with Ireland, Scotland, Wales and France. New Zealand, the former Rugby World champions participated with a determination of retaining the cup.
In the 1991 Rugby World Cup , qualifications were made on the basis of qualification matches . The quarter finalists of 1987 Rugby World Cup were automatically selected leaving place for eight other teams. The event began from 3 rd October, 1991 and ended on 2 nd November, 1991. There were total of sixteen teams who were divided into four pools and each pool had four members under it. Top two members from each team progressed to the quarter-finals. The quarter-finals were a knock-out game and the four top-scoring teams reached the semi-finals. The final match was played between Australia and England, with Australia clinching the winners' tag.
Sixteen teams participated in 1991 Rugby World Cup. The teams were Zimbabwe, Argentina, Canada, United States, Australia, Fiji, New Zealand, Western Samoa, Japan, England, France, Ireland, Italy, Romania, Scotland and Wales.
