I play and coach rugby for a local team and having made the transition from football (soccer) (county level), via badminton (reasonably high local level) to rugby (local level) I have to say for me Rugby is the winner, not necessarily because of the physical side of the sport, but because of the social aspects. I have never been in an environment more open, warm and giving as rugby. Football I found to be full of 'chavs' and thugs, badminton full of people who have ideas way above their station in life and whilst I will admit rugby is a little 'posh' it is a growing and evolving sport which is branching out within the communities it touches in many many ways. My side for example have hosted five local events at the club as well as a further six community events for the rest of this year (out of season).
Yes rugby IS a physical sport and in contact sports people get injured, but that is true in EVERY contact sport. The kind of injuries you see on the football pitch are just as serious as the ones you see on the football pitch (American) which are as serious as the ones you see on a rugby pitch, they are just different for example so far in 2009 there have been two professional footballers (soccer) die on the pitch of heart failures...There is a lot of stigma that surrounds all these kind of sports with little niche saying like;
“Football is a gentleman’s game played by thugs and rugby is a thug’s game played by gentlemen.”
During my time playing football I was threatened several times (by players and parents), during my time playing rugby I have been given a nice shiny black eye on the pitch and a pat on the back and a drink in the clubhouse so for me from the guy who did it. So for me the above statement is very true...but that is MY experience of rugby.
The physical aspects of rugby are fantastic I can not think of another sport where so many varying types of physical motions are required...one minute your jumping for a high ball, then side stepping to avoid someone, the next your making contact with someone, then pushing/pulling, then sprinting and that is all within one or two phases of play. The continuity that the laws try to adhere to regarding open play make the physical demands are great, also very rewarding!
So my suggestion is go for rugby. You might like it, you might not, maybe you’re supposed to be a footballer (in either sense) or maybe you’re the next gymnastics star of your country but you need to find out for yourself and not listen to other people from other sports lay down their version of rough justice on any sport!