The 2020 World Rugby Under 20 Championship was to have been the thirteenth version of the head age-grade rugby rivalry. The competition was to be in Italy for the third time, already being held in 2011 and 2015. Second-time champions France would have been the shielding champions.
On 20 March 2020, World Rugby declared that the title was dropped because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
| Host nation | Italy |
|---|---|
| No. of nations | 12 |
World Rugby Under 20 Championship Facts
| Sport | Rugby union |
|---|---|
| Instituted | 2008 |
| Number of teams | 12 |
| Country | International (World Rugby) |
| Holders | France (2nd title) |
| Most titles | New Zealand (6 titles) |
Tournament Results
| Year | Host | Final | Third place match | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Winner | Score | Runner-up | 3rd place | Score | 4th place | ||||
| 2008 | Wales | New Zealand | 38–3 | England | South Africa | 43–18 | Wales | ||
| 2009 | Japan | New Zealand | 44–28 | England | South Africa | 32–5 | Australia | ||
| 2010 | Argentina | New Zealand | 62–17 | Australia | South Africa | 27–22 | England | ||
| 2011 | Italy | New Zealand | 33–22 | England | Australia | 30–17 | France | ||
| 2012 | South Africa | South Africa | 22–16 | New Zealand | Wales | 25–17 | Argentina | ||
| 2013 | France | England | 23–15 | Wales | South Africa | 41–34 | New Zealand | ||
| 2014 | New Zealand | England | 21–20 | South Africa | New Zealand | 45–23 | Ireland | ||
| 2015 | Italy | New Zealand | 21–16 | England | South Africa | 31–18 | France | ||
| 2016 | England | England | 45–21 | Ireland | Argentina | 49–19 | South Africa | ||
| 2017 | Georgia | New Zealand | 64–17 | England | South Africa | 37–15 | France | ||
| 2018 | France | France | 33–25 | England | South Africa | 40–30 | New Zealand | ||
| 2019 | Argentina | France | 24–23 | Australia | South Africa | 41–16 | Argentina | ||
| 2020 | Italy (cancelled) | Cancelled | Cancelled | ||||||
| 2021 | United States | TBD | TBD | ||||||
Team records
| Team | Titles | Runners-up | Third | Fourth |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| New Zealand | 6 (2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2015, 2017) | 1 (2012) | 1 (2014) | 2 (2013, 2018) |
| England | 3 (2013, 2014, 2016) | 6 (2008, 2009, 2011, 2015, 2017, 2018) | – | 1 (2010) |
| France | 2 (2018, 2019) | – | – | 3 (2011, 2015, 2017) |
| South Africa | 1 (2012) | 1 (2014) | 8 (2008, 2009, 2010, 2013, 2015, 2017, 2018, 2019) | 1 (2016) |
| Australia | – | 2 (2010, 2019) | 1 (2011) | 1 (2009) |
| Wales | – | 1 (2013) | 1 (2012) | 1 (2008) |
| Ireland | – | 1 (2016) | – | 1 (2014) |
| Argentina | – | – | 1 (2016) | 2 (2012, 2019) |
Participating nations
| Team | 2008 | 2009 | 2010 | 2011 | 2012 | 2013 | 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Argentina | 8th | 11th | 6th | 9th | 4th | 6th | 9th | 9th | 3rd | 11th | 6th | 4th | q | 13 |
| Australia | 5th | 4th | 2nd | 3rd | 8th | 7th | 5th | 5th | 6th | 6th | 5th | 2nd | q | 13 |
| Canada | 12th | 14th | WT | WT | WT | WT | WT | WT | – | WT | WT | WT | – | 2 |
| England | 2nd | 2nd | 4th | 2nd | 7th | 1st | 1st | 2nd | 1st | 2nd | 2nd | 5th | q | 13 |
| Fiji | 14th | 12th | 8th | 6th | 11th | 11th | 12th | WT | WT | WT | WT | 11th | q | 8 |
| France | 6th | 5th | 5th | 4th | 6th | 5th | 6th | 4th | 9th | 4th | 1st | 1st | q | 13 |
| Georgia | WT | – | – | WT | WT | – | WT | WT | 10th | 10th | 9th | 10th | q | 5 |
| Ireland | 9th | 8th | 9th | 8th | 5th | 8th | 4th | 7th | 2nd | 9th | 11th | 8th | q | 13 |
| Italy | 11th | 13th | WT | 11th | 12th | WT | 11th | 11th | 11th | 8th | 8th | 9th | q | 11 |
| Japan | 15th | 15th | WT | WT | WT | WT | WT | 10th | 12th | WT | 12th | WT | q | 6 |
| New Zealand | 1st | 1st | 1st | 1st | 2nd | 4th | 3rd | 1st | 5th | 1st | 4th | 7th | q | 13 |
| Samoa | 7th | 7th | 12th | WT | 10th | 9th | 8th | 12th | WT | 12th | WT | – | – | 8 |
| Scotland | 10th | 9th | 10th | 10th | 9th | 10th | 10th | 8th | 8th | 5th | 10th | 12th | WT | 12 |
| South Africa | 3rd | 3rd | 3rd | 5th | 1st | 3rd | 2nd | 3rd | 4th | 3rd | 3rd | 3rd | q | 13 |
| Tonga | 13th | 10th | 11th | 12th | WT | WT | WT | WT | – | – | – | WT | – | 4 |
| United States | 16th | WT | – | WT | WT | 12th | WT | – | WT | – | – | – | – | 2 |
| Uruguay | WT | 16th | WT | WT | – | WT | WT | WT | WT | WT | WT | WT | – | 1 |
| Wales | 4th | 6th | 7th | 7th | 3rd | 2nd | 7th | 6th | 7th | 7th | 7th | 6th | q | 13 |
| Total | 16 | 16 | 12 | 12 | 12 | 12 | 12 | 12 | 12 | 12 | 12 | 12 | 12 |
- Legend
- = Hosts
- 1st = Champions
- 2nd = Runners-up
- 3rd = Third place
- 4th = Fourth place
- Place = Relegated to World Rugby Under 20 Trophy
- WT = Competed in the World Rugby Under 20 Trophy
- q = Qualified
- – = Did not qualify
World Rugby Junior Player of the Year
| Year | Name | Nation |
|---|---|---|
| 2008 | Luke Braid | New Zealand |
| 2009 | Aaron Cruden | New Zealand |
| 2010 | Julian Savea | New Zealand |
| 2011 | George Ford | England |
| 2012 | Jan Serfontein | South Africa |
| 2013 | Sam Davies | Wales |
| 2014 | Handré Pollard | South Africa |
| 2015 | James Chisholm | England |
| 2016 | Max Deegan | Ireland |
| 2017 | Juarno Augustus | South Africa |
| 2018 | Jordan Joseph | France |
| 2019 | Juan Pablo Castro | Argentina |
| 2020 | cancelled | cancelled |