soccer is a game for gentlemen played by rowdies.

Rugby is a popular sport played by men -- and yes, even women -- in more than 100 countries around the world.

And in some countries rugby is not just a sport -- it is a religion.

The game is said to have originated in 1823 at Rugby School in England when a student, William Webb Ellis disregarded the rules of soccer and took the ball in his arms and ran with it.

Over the years, the craze grew in British private schools and universities and in 1871 the first Rugby Union was founded in London.

In 1895, as a result of players losing wages for playing Saturday matches, a professional version of the game -- Rugby League -- was introduced with slightly modified rules.

From that time forward there has been Rugby Union and Rugby League. While the Union code was originally amateur, both are now professional. The rules for each vary slightly but both are played on similar fields.

The World Rugby Classic features Rugby Union teams from as far away as Argentina, South Africa and New Zealand. Teams from France, USA, Canada and Bermuda will round out the group.

For those who aren't rugby-mad, here are a few need-to-know facts to help guide you through the games without embarrassment.

Each team has 15 players on the field; Play is continual and free-flowing with little stoppage; The oval-shaped ball, which is slightly larger than a football, can never be passed forwards. It can be carried, kicked ahead or passed behind and if it is passed or knocked forward then the other team gets a penalty; Tries: Scoring five points by touching the ball down past the goal line. Two points can be scored by kicking the ball through the goal posts from a spot win line with where the try was scored. Three-points can be scored if a player drop-kicks the ball through the goal posts while in play or from a penalty; A line out: Members of the two teams line up perpendicular to where the ball went off the side of the field and play is restarted by players in the two parallel lines jumping for the ball which is thrown between them; A scrum: Both teams interlock while facing each other and the ball is put in the middle by the scrum half. Each team's forwards attempt to heel the ball to the back of their side of the scrum from where it is passed out to the backs; A ruck: The player with the ball is tackled to the ground and both sides converge to fight for possession. It is not as organised as a scrum; and A maul: A player with possession of the ball is tackled but stays on his feet.

His team attempts to get the ball from him the opposition also fights for it.