Pro rugby 25 years on: Was Japan a turning point?

It is a quarter of a century on Wednesday since the late Vernon Pugh, in his role as IRB chairman, declared rugby union an 'open' sport

Fans enjoying the Rugby World Cup 2019 final in November between England and South Africa in Yokohama. World Rugby CEO Brett Gosper says  that while Japan was necessarily a coming of age, it was certainly the confirmation that the RWC was a massively-global property.Picture: Getty Images

Brett Gosper believes that rugby union has "come a long way very quickly" as it reaches 25 years as a professional sport.

But World Rugby's chief executive has also outlined some of the future challenges that will need to be met. It is a quarter of a century on Wednesday that the late Vernon Pugh, in his role as International Rugby Board chairman, declared it an "open" sport.