Rugby union in Tonga

Rugby union is the national sport of Tonga. Tonga are considered to be a tier 2 rugby nation by the International Rugby Board. Tonga has four main rugby playing islands, Vava'u (which produced players like Epi Taione), Ha'apai (which produced players like Jonah Lomu), ʻEua (which produced the Vunipola family, eight brothers who all played for the national team), and Tongatapu the major island in the Tonga island group.

Rugby union is governed by the Tonga Rugby Union who are also members of the Pacific Islands Rugby Alliance. Tonga were awarded 'second tier' status by the International Rugby Board which entitles them to funding from the IRB. The TRFU was founded in 1923, and joined the IRB, in 1987. as well as the neighbouring Pacific Islands of Samoa and Fiji, which not unlike Tonga perform far beyond their small population bases.

This is the highest level of domestic competition within Tongan rugby union and is a stepping stone for local players into international rugby.

The IRB Pacific Rugby Cup started in 2006 and involves representative teams from the three Pacific rugby unions, Tonga along with Samoa and Fiji. Tonga's Tautahi Gold team won the tournament in 2008. The aim of the competition is to improve the quality of rugby in the Pacific Islands.

The national team (Ikale Tahi) has performed quite well on the international stage. Tonga beat Fiji 9 6 in their first test in 1924 played in the capital Nukualofa. 1973 is arguably the high water mark of Tongan rugby, when they beat Australia 16 11. eventual finalist France 19 14 in the latter pool stages. However, a previous heavy defeat to the All Blacks at the tournament's opener (41 10) and a subsequent tight loss to Canada (25 20) meant that Tonga lost out to France (who also lost to NZ) for the quarter finals due to 2 bonus points and a points difference of 46. Tonga's best results prior to 2007 came in 1995, when they beat Ivory Coast 29–11, and 1999 when they beat Italy 28–25 (although with only 14 men they lost heavily to England, 101–10). Tonga emerged victoryless in the 1987 and 2003 Rugby World Cups, and did not qualify for the 1991 Rugby World Cup. Tonga used to compete in the Pacific Tri Nations against Samoa and Fiji, which has now been replaced by the IRB Pacific Nations Cup, which now also involves Japan, Canada, and the United States. At club level, there are the Datec Cup Provincial Championship and the Pacific Rugby Cup. Rugby union is governed by the Tonga Rugby Football Union, which was also a member of the Pacific Islands Rugby Alliance, and contributed to the Pacific Islanders rugby union team, before both were disbanded in 2009. Tonga performs the Kailao (Sipi Tau) before its matches.

The Pacific Tri Nations was a series between Tonga, Fiji and Samoa. It had been played from 1982 to 2006.

The IRB Pacific Nations Cup (formerly the Pacific 5 Nations, Pacific Tri Nations) is a competition held between six Pacific rim sides; Japan, Fiji, Canada, Tonga, Samoa, and the United States.