Samoa were awarded 'second tier' status by the International Rugby Board which entitles them to funding from the IRB.

On August 18, 1924 Western Samoa played its first international against Fiji in the capital Apia, the visitors winning 6–0.

[3] For many years, Western Samoa's international contact was confined to the other South Sea islands of Fiji and Tonga.

[3] This was also seen as a major turning point as previously there had been a debate as to whether to have an international team at all, as many players had traditionally defected to New Zealand.

[3] This led to a massive campaign to build up a side good enough to qualify for the 1991 Rugby World Cup.

[3] They selected Bryan Williams, who had been a winger for the All Blacks to be their coach, and using a mixture of home grown backs such as Brian Lima and Mathew Vaea, and no nonsense New Zealand based forwards such as Mark Birtwistle, Pat Lam Mat Keenan, and Peter Fatialofa, he wielded a disparate group of talented individuals into a side which quickly came to dominate Fiji and Tonga and gain access to the world cup.

[3] Samoa's performance at the 1991 Rugby World Cup was superb, and proved that they were an international force to be reckoned with.

Prominent Samoan players include Eliota Fuimaono-Sapolu Alesana Tuilagi Freddie Tuilagi, Apollo Perelini, Lome Fa'atau, Lolani Koko, Pat Lam, Brian Lima, current sevens captain Lolo Lui, and two winners of the IRB International Sevens Player of the Year Award in Uale Mai and Mikaele Pesamino.

The huge numbers of players playing professionally abroad can work to Samoa's disadvantage when it comes to team training as it is difficult to get them all together as a squad.

The national team known as Manu Samoa have competed at every Rugby World Cup since 1991, and have made the quarter-finals in 1991, 1995 and 1999.

The inaugural competition in 2006, known as the IRB Pacific 5 Nations, featured New Zealand's "A" side, the Junior All Blacks.

Long a solidly competitive side, Samoa Sevens burst into prominence in 2006–07, when they ran traditional favourites New Zealand and Fiji very close for the title.