We bring you some interesting statistics on past finals at the World Rugby U20 Championship to whet your appetite for the 2023 decider between Ireland and France at Athlone Sports Stadium in Cape Town.

  • Seven teams have reached an U20 Championship final in New Zealand, England, Australia, South Africa, Wales, Ireland and France.

  • Four teams have lifted the coveted trophy in New Zealand (2008-11, 2015 and 2017), South Africa (2012), England (2013-14 and 2016) and France (2018-19).

  • New Zealand, South Africa and France all won their first U20 Championship finals. 

  • Australia have reached two finals, both in Argentina, but lost them both, 62-17 to New Zealand in Rosario in 2010 and 24-23 to France in the same city in 2019.

  • England have reached the final nine times, but their win ratio is only 33.3 per cent after losing five times to New Zealand and once to France in the title decider

  • 2018 was England’s sixth successive appearance in a final, surpassing the record New Zealand set of five from 2008-12.

  • This will be the fourth all-northern hemisphere final. The previous three all included England, who beat Wales in 2013 and Ireland in 2016 but lost to France in 2018

  • The 12 captains to have lifted the coveted trophy are Chris Smith (New Zealand, 2008), Aaron Cruden (New Zealand, 2009), Tyler Bleyendaal (New Zealand, 2010), Luke Whitelock (New Zealand, 2011), Wiaan Liebenberg (South Africa, 2012), Jack Clifford (England, 2013), Maro Itoje (England, 2014), Atu Moli (New Zealand, 2015), Harry Mallinder (England, 2016), Luke Jacobson (New Zealand, 2017), Arthur Coville (France, 2018) and Arthur Vincent (France, 2019).

  • This will be only the sixth U20 Championship final in 13 years that has not featured New Zealand after 2013, 2014, 2016, 2018 and 2019.

  • Iconic rugby venues to have hosted a World Rugby U20 Championship final include Newlands in Cape Town in 2012 and Eden Park in Auckland in 2014.

  • The 2023 final will be the 410th match in U20 Championship history.

  • A total of 653 points have been scored in the 12 previous finals.

  • Seventy-five tries have been scored in finals, all bar 39 of them by six-time champions New Zealand. Fifty-two of these tries – or 69.33 per cent – have been turned into seven pointers.

  • Two players have scored hat-tricks in an U20 Championship final – Telusa Veainu in New Zealand's 62-17 win over Australia in 2010 and Asafo Aumua in their 64-17 win over England in 2017.

  • Nine players have also scored a brace of tries in a final. New Zealand's Aaron Cruden and Zac Guildford (2009), England's Christian Wade (2011), Wales’ Ashley Evans (2013), South Africa's Jesse Kriel (2014), England's Harry Mallinder and Joe Marchant (2016), New Zealand’s Luke Jacobson (2017) and England’s Jordan Olowofela (2018).

  • The first player to score a try in an U20 Championship final was New Zealand winger Kade Poki, after 17 minutes of the 2008 title decider with England at the Liberty Stadium in Swansea, Wales.

  • The last player to score a try was Australia’s Harry Wilson in their 24-23 defeat by France in the 2019 final.

  • All nine tries scored in the 2016 final were converted, the first time this has happened in an U20 Championship title decider.

  • The fastest try in an U20 Championship final was scored by New Zealand hooker Liam Coltman after 33 seconds in 2010 against Australia. Nine years later, in the same Argentine city of Rosario, Australia’s Mark Nawaqanitawase scored the second quickest after 49 seconds against France.

  • By contrast, the longest wait for a try in an U20 Championship final was 34 minutes in 2012, the time it took for New Zealand's Milford Keresoma to dot down at Newlands.

  • Sixty-two players have scored a try in an U20 Championship final to date.

  • The first points scored in an U20 Championship final were by New Zealand full-back Trent Renata with a penalty after five minutes in 2008 against England.

  • Thirteen is the most tries scored in an U20 Championship final during New Zealand's 64-17 win over England in 2017. The champions scored 10 of them.

  • The winning team has scored the most tries in seven of the 12 finals. England were involved in four of the exceptions – in 2011, 2013 and 2014 when tries where level and in 2018 when they outscored France three tries to two. France were also outscored by this margin by Australia in 2019.

  • The most points scored in a single U20 Championship final is 81 in New Zealand's scintillating 64-17 defeat of England in 2017. The lowest total is 37 in the 2015 decider between the same sides, won 21-16 by New Zealand.

  • The fewest points scored by any team in an U20 Championship final are the three England managed against New Zealand in the inaugural title decider in 2008.

  • The most points scored by a losing team in an U20 Championship final is the 28 by England in their loss to New Zealand in 2009.

  • The smallest winning margin in an U20 Championship final is the single point that separated England and South Africa in 2014 and France from Australia in 2019.

  • Dave Rennie is the most successful coach in U20 Championship final history, overseeing New Zealand’s first three titles between 2008 and 2010.

  • Sixteen players have won more than one winners' medals: Zac Guildford (2008-09), Willie Ioane (2009-10), Luke Whitelock and Glen Robertson (2010-11) for New Zealand and England’s Callum Braley, Joel Conlon, Danny Hobbs-Awoyemi, Ross Moriarty, Harry Sloan and Tom Stephenson (2013-14), England’s Jack Walker (2014 and 2016) and France’s Jean-Baptiste Gros, Killian Geraci, Jordan Joseph, Louis Carbonel and Arthur Vincent (2018-19).

  • The top points-scorer in an U20 Championship final is Tyler Bleyendaal, the New Zealand captain in 2010 contributing 28 points to their cause in the 62-17 win over Australia.

  • There have also been 57 penalties kicked with the most in a single final being nine in the 2018 showdown between England and France. By contrast, none were kicked in the 2017 title decider.

  • The only person to slot a drop goal between the posts in an U20 Championship final is South Africa fly-half Handré Pollard in 2012.

  • There have been three red cards and seven yellow cards in U20 Championship finals. Two of the red cards came in 2012 with New Zealand’s Ofa Tu’ungafasi and South African Paul Willemse dismissed just before the hour mark. The other came in the inaugural final in 2008 when England’s Calum Clark saw red.