[1] Rugby union was introduced to Madagascar in the 1890s by French railroad workers who played the game in the capital, Antananarivo, during the colonial period.
[6] The Madagascar team, locally referred to as the Makis (a Malagasy word for the ring-tailed lemur), reached the finals of the 2005 Africa Cup, increasing nationwide interest in the sport.
The Top 8 has average attendance figures of over 10,000, whilst the league final, and most international fixtures, attract crowds upward of 40,000 at the Stade Municipal de Mahamasina in the capital.
Madagascar triumphed over Namibia in front of 40,000 fans to stay in the qualification process for the 2015 Rugby World Cup to be held in the United Kingdom.
The girls from Sapphire Coast and their captain Marcelia, backed by the French NGO Terres en Mêlées are emerging as models for the development of women rugby in poor areas outside the capital city.