Standing for
International Rugby Board, the IRB is the
world governing and
law-making body for the game of
Rugby Union. Founded in 1986 and headquartered in
Dublin, the IRB consists of 92
national unions and one regional association (the Federation Inter-Europeenne de Rugby Association, or FIRA-AER, based in
Paris).
Decision making occurs during the bi-annual executive council meetings, attended by two representatives of the "Foundation Unions " - Scotland, Ireland, Wales, England, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa and France, and one each from Argentina, Canada, Italy, Japan and FIRA-AER. Day to day business is dealt with by a 17 strong team at IRB Headquarters
The IRB is a member of the IOC