Regional rugby

The Wellington Rugby Football Union was established in 1879 and ranks alongside Canterbury as the oldest in the country. Wellington has earned a reputation as the ‘bridesmaids’ of New Zealand rugby. Since the inception of the National Provincial Championship in 1976 Wellington has won four titles but finished runner-up 11 times, including four in a row between 2006 and 2009. The tag has carried over to the Super Rugby competition, in which the Wellington-based Hurricanes have lost five semi-finals and two finals since 1996. Long-suffering Wellington fans have also endured many years in Ranfurly Shield wilderness. Wellington has won the shield on 10 separate occasions but always struggled to hold onto it.

The Wellington Lions (as they have been marketed in the professional era) currently play in the professional ITM Cup. After a disastrous premiership season in 2014 they were relegated to the second-tier championship, which is contested by the eighth- to 14th-ranked teams. Wellington narrowly failed to return to the premiership at the first opportunity, losing the 2015 championship final to Hawke's Bay, 25–26.

Wellington won the first-ever Ranfurly Shield challenge in August 1904, defeating Auckland 6–3 at Alexandra Park in Auckland. Among the heavyweights of New Zealand rugby involved in this match were Dave Gallaher and Billy Wallace. if you can help.