Italy have competed in all the Rugby World Cup tournaments, having made their first appearance in the inaugural 1987 tournament. They have finished third in their pool at every tournament, except in 1999, the only tournament where they lost more than two games. Having never finished in the top two in their pool, they have never qualified to progress to the quarter-finals. They have won the most matches of those that have never made it to the quarter-finals.
Because they finished third in Pool C of the 2007 Rugby World Cup in France, they automatically qualified to compete in the 2011 tournament in New Zealand. A similar finishing position in that tournament saw them automatically qualify for the 2015 World Cup in England, where they retained the third place and the automatic qualification for France 2003
By position
Tournaments
1987 Rugby World Cup
1991 Rugby World Cup
1995 Rugby World Cup
1999 Rugby World Cup
2003 Rugby World Cup
2007 Rugby World Cup
2011 Rugby World Cup
All times are local New Zealand time (UTC+12 until 24 September, UTC+13 from 25 September)
2015 Rugby World Cup
2019 Rugby World Cup
Pool B
Notes: As a result of inclement weather caused by Typhoon Hagibis this match was cancelled and awarded as a 0–0 draw.
2023 Rugby World Cup
Pool A
Team records
Most points in a tournament
114 (2023 in ) 98 (2019 in ) 92 (2011 in )
Most points in a game
53 vs (2011) 52 vs (2023) 48 vs (2019)
Biggest winning margin
44 vs (2023) 41 Vs (2019) 36 vs (2011)
Highest score against
101 vs (1999) 96 vs (2023) 76 vs (2007)
Biggest losing margin
98 vs (1999) 79 vs (2023) 64 vs (1987)
Most tries in a tournament
15 (2023 in ) 14 (2019 in ) 13 (2011 in )
Most tries in a game
9 vs (2011) 7 vs (2019) 7 vs (2023) 7 vs (2019)
Individual records
Most appearances
15 Sergio Parisse ( 2003, 2007, 2011, 2015, 2019) 14 Martin Castrogiovanni ( 2003, 2007, 2011, 2015) 13 Alessandro Troncon ( 1995, 1999, 2003, 2007) 13 Mauro Bergamasco ( 1999, 2003, 2007, 2011, 2015) 12 Andrea Masi ( 2003, 2007, 2011, 2015)
Most points overall
101 Tommaso Allan ( 2015, 2019, 2023) 98 Diego Dominguez ( 1991, 1995, 1999) 50 Rima Wakarua ( 2003) 32 David Bortolussi ( 2007) 24 Mirco Bergamasco ( 2003, 2007, 2011)
Most points in a game
21 vs - Diego Dominguez ( 1995) 21 vs - Rima Wakarua ( 2003) 20 vs - Diego Dominguez ( 1999) 17 vs - Tommaso Allan ( 2015) 17 vs - Tommaso Allan ( 2023)
Most tries overall
5 Marcello Cuttitta ( 1987, 1991, 1995) 4 Paolo Vaccari ( 1991, 1995, 1999) 3 Sergio Parisse ( 2003, 2007, 2011, 2015, 2019)
Most tries in a game
2 vs - Denis Dallan ( 2003) 2 vs - Andrea Masi ( 2007) 2 vs - Giulio Toniolatti ( 2011) 2 vs - Tommaso Benvenuti ( 2011)
Most penalty goals
19 Diego Dominguez ( 1991, 1995, 1999) 14 Rima Wakarua ( 2003) 13 Tommaso Allan ( 2015, 2019, 2023) 8 Mirco Bergamasco ( 2003, 2007, 2011) 5 David Bortolussi ( 2007)
Most penalty goals in a game
6 vs - Diego Dominguez ( 1999) 5 vs - Rima Wakarua ( 2003) 5 vs - Rima Wakarua ( 2003) 4 vs - Diego Dominguez ( 1995) 4 vs - David Bortolussi ( 2007)
Hosting
The Rugby World Cup is held every four years, and tends to alternate between the northern and southern hemispheres. Every northern hemisphere tournament so far has been held in Europe, however Japan won the bid to host the 2019 Rugby World Cup. Italy has yet to host the World Cup, although the Italian Rugby Federation made unsuccessful bids for the 2015 and 2019 competitions.
References
Davies, Gerald (2004) The History of the Rugby World Cup (Sanctuary Publishing Ltd, () Farr-Jones, Nick, (2003). Story of the Rugby World Cup, Australian Post Corporation, ()