SINGAPORE — While most Asian nations, save for Japan, have yet to make their mark on the world of rugby, this is likely to change in the coming years as World Rugby (WR), the sport’s governing body, sets its sights on aggressively growing the game in the continent.

WR chairman Bernard Lapasset said the conditions are ripe for a massive boom for the Asian game, thanks to Japan’s stunning 15-a-side Rugby World Cup (RWC) campaign last October, during which they shocked South Africa 34-32 and won three of their four group matches.

Add to that the inclusion of rugby sevens in this year’s Olympic Games, Japan’s hosting of the 2019 RWC, and Alisports’ multi-million-dollar 10-year deal with World Rugby to develop and broadcast rugby union in China, and Lapasset believes the time is perfect for World Rugby to focus their efforts on developing the sport in Asia.

“We have already experienced strong improvement in terms of the popularity of rugby in Asia over the past year,” said Lapasset on the sidelines of the Asia Rugby Conference at Novotel yesterday. “So right now, Asia is the most important region, which is very young, that we are focusing on in terms of spreading the love of the game to the next generation.”

According to WR, there are currently 400,000 rugby players in Asia. Lapasset and his team aim to grow this figure to 1 million by the time the 2019 RWC rolls around.

This ambitious target will definitely be helped by WR’s deal with Alisports, the sporting arm of China’s e-commerce and entertainment giant Alibaba, which is owned by Jack Ma, China’s second richest man with an estimated net worth of US$22.7 billion (S$30.8 billion).

Under the agreement, Alisports hopes to develop 1 million rugby players in China in the next 10 years and raise the sports’ profile in the country. It will also host more international rugby events. It helps, too, that there are now two Asian legs on the HSBC World Rugby Sevens Series — Hong Kong and Singapore.

“Having the World Rugby Sevens Series come to countries like Singapore will play a part in that, because this format is fast, exciting and easy to grasp in terms of the rules, which will help attract more people to the sport,” said Lapasset.

However, Asia Rugby chairman Koji Tokumasu believes that more still needs to be done to elevate the playing standards of Asian nations. In particular, he hopes to see national teams in the region playing against one another more frequently.

“The reason why Japan managed to beat South Africa was because they had regular domestic tournaments,” explained Tokumasu, referring to the country’s Top League.

“Players need a chance to constantly participate in competitive events, and have to try and aim to play against the better teams if they want to improve.

“So we’re encouraging tournaments among countries in the same region, which is easier in terms of travel and logistics. That is the vision to encourage more participation, where (non-rugby centric nations like) Laos, Indonesia and Brunei get a chance to play competitively as well.”

Lapasset said the increased attention on rugby in Asia will also lead to an improvement in coaching, as well as the way the sport is governed and supported in various parts of the continent.

“As the game in Asia grows, I’m sure that professional coaches will also be coming here, from Europe, from South Africa or New Zealand,” said Lapasset. “It’s important to develop the overall quality of the game in all areas, not just on the playing side. So having top coaches in the region will improve the players here, as well as the overall quality of the game.

“I’m sure that Asian countries will soon be able to bridge the gap with the current top teams in the world, and I don’t see why Asia can’t eventually be the new superpower region of rugby.”