BRAZIL may be synonymous with a different ball game, but visitors from the country’s rugby community showed enthusiasm for the oval ball is growing when they came to the birthplace of the game this week.
A delegation from Alma Rugby (translation: Rugby Soul), which promotes the game in Brazil, took a tour of Rugby School and made a pilgrimage to the Webb Ellis statue.
They also met the Mayor of Rugby, Coun Richard Dodd, at the Town Hall before joining a training session at Old Laurentian Rugby Football Club, which was followed by food and drinks in the club house.
Representatives Leonardo Carvalho, Samir Trad and Giuliano Passini first visited Rugby in 2014 to film footage for a World Cup preview, which was used to promote the game back in Brazil.
The trio returned to England for the tournament kick-off in September and have attended a number of matches, including both of the semi-finals, and have coveted tickets to the Australia v New Zealand final at Twickenham on Saturday (October 31).
Coun Dodd said: “Thousands of rugby fans have made the pilgrimage to the Proud Home of the game during the World Cup and we’ve gone the extra mile to make sure all our visitors have received a warm welcome.
“I’m delighted the delegation from Alma Rugby found the time to make a return visit and help raise the profile of the birthplace of the game with rugby fans in Brazil.”
Coun Bill Lewis, who helped to arrange the visit, said: “I think what they’re doing is very commendable. There are alot more rugby clubs in Brazil than there used to be, and it also gets the name of Rugby town around as well.
“The Mayor suggested they could perhaps have a more permanent link with the Old Laurentians, and that’s possibly something that’s going to come up in the future.”
Rugby was taken to Brazil by British immigrants in the late 19th century, with the first recorded game taking place at the Sao Paulo club in 1888.
The popularity of rugby has grown in Brazil in recent years, ahead of the sport making its Olympic debut at next year’s games in Rio.
Visit www.facebook.com/ALMARugby and www.youtube.com/almarugby to follow Alma Rugby’s World Cup adventures.
