Historical Background
Rugby union was first introduced to Japanese students at Keio University in Japan by Professor Edward Bramwell Clarke (who was born in Yokohama) and Tanaka Ginnosuke, both graduates of Cambridge University, in 1899. It had been played at the treaty ports (Kobe and Yokohama especially) before that, between teams of long-term foreign residents and visiting ships' crews, garrisons etc.
Read more about this topic: Japan Rugby Football Union
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