William Webb Ellis
#106498 Most Popular
About
Anglican priest who allegedly invented the sport of rugby. The winner of the Rugby World Cup receives the William Webb Ellis Cup, a prize named in Ellis' memory.
Before Fame
He was a cricketer while studying at the Rugby School in Warwickshire, England. He went on to play the sport at Brasenose College, Oxford.
Trivia
One of Ellis' Rugby School classmates, Matthew Bloxam (an amateur historian and archaeologist), claimed that Ellis had been the originator of the game of rugby.
Family Life
His father died in combat during the Peninsular War of 1811.
Associated With
Like Abner Doubleday, who possibly invented baseball, Ellis was a potential founder of a popular sport.
