The Rugby World Cup 2023

Taking place in France from 8th September to 28th October, the 2023 Rugby World Cup is the ongoing tenth men’s Rugby World Cup. It’s the first to take place entirely in France, and is being held in nine venues across the country. Significantly, this year’s tournament is in the bicentenary year of the sport’s ‘invention’ by William Webb Ellis.

As proud flag (and rugby!) enthusiasts at Brook International, we’d like to take you through all twenty flags of the competing countries.

Let’s get started!

Argentina

A triband, composed of three equally wide horizontal bands coloured light blue and white, with a yellow Sun of May in the center.

Australia

Based on the British Blue Ensign – a blue field with the Union Jack in the upper hoist quarter – with a large white seven-pointed star (the Commonwealth Star) and a representation of the Southern Cross constellation.

Chile

Two equal-height horizontal bands of white and red, with a blue square the same height as the white band in the canton, with a white five-pointed star in the center, representing Venus.

England

Derived from Saint George’s Cross, the flag is a white field with a centered red cross.

Fiji

A defaced cyan Blue Ensign with the shield from the national coat of arms.

France

A tricolour featuring three vertical bands coloured blue, white, and red. Adopted after the French Revolution, the flag is inspired by the flag of the Netherlands.

Georgia

Also known as the five-cross flag, it was originally a banner of the medieval Kingdom of Georgia, and repopularised in the late 20th and early 21st centuries during the Georgian national revival.

Ireland

A vertical tricolour of green, white and orange. It was intended to symbolise the inclusion and hoped-for union between Roman Catholics (green) and Protestants (orange), with the white in the center signifying ‘a lasting truce’.

Italy

Three equally-sized pales of green, white and red, inspired by the French flag.

Japan

Called the Nisshōki (日章旗, ‘flag of the sun’), the flag is a rectangular white banner with a crimson-red circle at its centre.

Namibia

A white-edged red diagonal band radiating from the lower hoist-side corner. The upper triangle is blue, charged with a gold sun with 12 triangular rays, representing the twelve ethnicities of Namibia.

New Zealand

There is much debate over whether the New Zealand should be changed, due to the inclusion of the Union Jack, and the similarities to the Australian flag.

Portugal

The red and green are popularly propagandised as representing the hope of the nation (green) and the blood of those who died defending it (red). 

Romania

A tricolour with blue, yellow and red, the flag is in line with the meaning ‘Liberty, Justice, Fraternity’.

Samoa

Consisting of a red field with a blue rectangle, bearing the Southern Cross, those who deface or wilfully insult the flag can be imprisoned for up to six months.

Scotland

A white Saltire extending over a blue field, the use of the flag is first recorded in 1542.

South Africa

At the time of its adoption in 1994, this flag was the only national flag in the world to have six colours in its primary design, and without a seal or brocade.

Tonga

Tonga’s constitution states that the national flag can never be changed. The flag has remained the same since its adoption in 1875.

Uruguay

The horizontal stripes represent the nine original departments of Uruguay. The Sun of May in the center represents the May Revolution, as well as Inti, the sun god and mythological founder of the Incan Empire.

Wales

The red dragon passant on a green and white field personifies the fearlessness of the Welsh nation. Many renderings of the dragon exist, as it is not standardised in law.

The History of National Flags

Currently, there are 193 national flags in the world. The Union Jack found its origins during the age of sail in the early 17th century, representing the regal union of England and Scotland. Then, in the late 18th century, national flags began to be displayed in civilian contexts, with distinctions between use on land and sea. They can be powerful symbols of unity and national pride, and originally served for identification purposes, but in a modern context, they represent identity as well as national values, history, and aspirations.

At Brook International, we sell a range of fabric for flags! See our range here.

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Are you a flag and banner manufacturer? Contact our sales team today.

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