THE NUMBERS GAME

WORLD CUPRECORDS

5 World ferocious Cup tackler tournamentsBrian ‘Thefor Chiropractor’ Lima, of Samoa.

15 tries by New Zealand winger Jonah Lomu.

22 appearances by England’s Jason Leonard.

40 years and 26 days — Uruguayan Diego Ormaechea is the oldest player to appear.

45 points scored by Simon Culhane when New Zealand beat Japan 145-17 in 1995.

277 points scored by England hero Jonny Wilkinson — the World Cup’s all-time leading points scorer (1 try, 28 cons, 58 pens and 14 drop goals).

WORLD CUPFLOPS

2 tournaments at which the hosts have failed to at least reach the final (Wales in 1999 and France in 2007).

2 red cards for Canada against South Africa in 1995, making them the only team to lose two players in a game (Gareth Rees and Rod Snow).

10 occasions when a team have failed to score, including England against South Africa in France in 2007 (36-0).

15 defeats in a row is the longest losing streak. The record, held by Namibia, is still active and could be extended this autumn.

142 points is the biggest margin of defeat. Not surprisingly, Namibia were the victims as they were thrashed 142-0 by Australia in 2003.

WORLD CUPCASH

£715 is the price of the most expensive World Cup Final ticket. Children’s tickets will be as cheap as £7 for selected games.

£15,000 per Test for England’s players at this year’s tournament.

£5m is estimated to be shared by the England squad if they win the World Cup.

£131m was raised in gate receipts at the last World Cup, in New Zealand, £16m down on the record set in France in 2007. The total is expected to top £160m this time.

£869m is expected to be generated for the British economy as a result of the World Cup being staged here.

WORLD CUPFANS

4 World Cup fanzones in London during the tournament: Trafalgar Square, Wembley Park in Brent, the Olympic Park in Newham and Old Deer Park in Richmond.

15 countries visited by the Webb Ellis Cup during its 115,000-mile international tour, attracting more than 70,000 fans. A 100-day tour of the UK and Ireland starts today.

92 per cent of grounds were filled in France in 2007, a record for the tournament. At the inaugural World Cup in Australia and New Zealand in 1987, it was only 60 per cent.

2.3m tickets were on sale for this year’s tournament and two million have already been snapped up. Organisers hope to break the 2.26m record set in 2007.