What is the difference between Rugby and football?

: What is the difference between Rugby and football?
The both look the same to me, but then again I never really saw a rugby game. Which one is more challenging
im talking about american football. i wouldnt be asking what the difference is between soccer and rugby because that answer is pretty startighforward,

Answers and Views:

Answer by adseng
The spelling ?

Answer by blm
On a worldwide forum like this, the term “football” can mean a number of things. Are you asking about Association Football/soccer, American football, Gaelic football, Australian football, or some other variety? It makes a difference.

Answer by Hhh Sss
their similar but everything in american football would be considered illegal in rugby. in handegg(we already have football) you have 4 tries to get the ball carrier past the 10-20 yard line its similar to league but not union. then from what i understand is that you cant pass unlike both league and union. so in a conclusion leagues as near as it gets and the only resemblance is the ball and tackling.

Answer by Xzibit
Rugby union is played between two teams – the one which scores more points wins the game. Points can be scored in several ways: a try, scored by grounding the ball in the in-goal area (between the goal line and the dead ball line), is worth 5 points and a subsequent conversion kick scores 2 points; a successful penalty kick or a drop goal each score 3 points.

Forward passing (throwing the ball ahead to another player) is not allowed; the ball can be passed laterally or backwards. The ball tends to be moved forward in three ways — by kicking, by a player running with it or within a scrum or maul. Unlike in American football, “blocking” is not allowed, so only the player with the ball may be tackled or rucked. When a ball is knocked forward by a player with his/her arms, a “knock-on” is committed, and play is restarted with a scrum.

The aim of the defending side is to stop the player with the ball, either by bringing them to ground (a tackle, which is frequently followed by a ruck), or by contesting for possession with the ball-carrier on their feet (a maul). A player may tackle an opposing player who has the ball by holding them while bringing them to ground. Tacklers cannot tackle above the shoulder (the neck and head are out of bounds), and the tackler has to attempt to wrap their arms around the player being tackled to complete the tackle. It is illegal to push, shoulder-charge, or to trip a player using feet or legs, but hands may be used (this being referred to as a tap-tackle or ankle-tap.

A scrum is a way of restarting the game safely and fairly after a minor infringement. It is awarded when the ball has been knocked or passed forward, when a player is accidentally offside or when the ball is trapped in a ruck or maul with no realistic chance of being retrieved. A team may also opt for a scrum if awarded a penalty. A scrum is formed by the eight forwards from each team binding together in three rows. The front row consists of the two props (loosehead and tighthead) either side of the hooker. The second row consists of two locks and the two flankers. Behind the second row is the number 8. This formation is known as the 3–4–1 formation. Once a scrum is formed the scrum-half from the team awarded the feed throws the ball into the gap between the two front-rows known as the tunnel. The two hookers then compete for possession by hooking the ball backwards with their feet, while each pack tries to push the opposing pack backwards to help gain possession. The side that wins possession transfers the ball to the back of the scrum, where it is picked up either by the number 8 or by the scrum-half.

Any player may kick the ball forward in an attempt to gain territory. When a player anywhere in the playing area kicks indirectly into touch so that the ball bounces in the field of play the throw-in is taken where the ball went into touch. If the player kicks directly into touch (i.e. without bouncing in-field first) from within their own 22 metre line the lineout is taken by the opposition where the ball went into touch, but if the ball is kicked into touch directly by a player outside the 22 metre line the lineout is taken level to where the kick was taken.

When the ball leaves the side of the field, a lineout is awarded against the team which last touched the ball. The forwards of each team (though not necessarily all of them, their number is throwing-in team option) line up a metre apart, perpendicular to the touchline and between 5 m and 15 m from the touchline. The ball is thrown from the touchline down the centre of the lines of forwards by a player (usually the hooker) from the team that did not play the ball into touch. The exception to this is when the ball went out from a penalty, in which case the side who gained the penalty throws the ball in.
Both sides compete for the ball and players may lift their teammates.A jumping player cannot be tackled until they stand and only shoulder-to-shoulder contact is allowed; deliberate infringement of this law is dangerous play, and results in a penalty kick.

Games are divided into 40-minute halves, with a break in the middle. The sides exchange ends of the field after the half-time break. Stoppages for injury or to allow the referee to take disciplinary action, do not count as part of the playing time, so that the elapsed time is usually longer than 80 minutes. The referee is responsible for keeping time, even when as in many professional tournaments—he is assisted by an official time-keeper. If time expires while the ball is in play, the game continues until the ball is ‘dead’, and only then will the referee blow the whistle to signal half-time or full-time; but if the referee awards a penalty or free-kick, the the game continues.