My Little Investigation into Rugby in the States
So, the other day, I was flipping channels, right? And I landed on this game, looked kinda like football but… different. Rougher, no pads, constant action. It was rugby. And it got me thinking, you know, do Americans actually play this stuff? I mean, we’re all about our NFL, NBA, MLB. Seemed like a long shot to me.
My first thought was, probably not much. We got our own brand of football, and it’s a religion for some folks here. Why would we need another one that looks kinda similar but also kinda alien, you know?
I even asked my buddy Tom, who’s usually up on all sports. His reaction? “Rugby? Like, with the scrum thing? Nah, that’s for those guys overseas, Aussies and Kiwis, right?” So, yeah, not exactly a sign it was big news on Main Street, USA.
So, I did what any curious person with too much time on their hands does. I started poking around online. Didn’t even do a proper search at first, just typed in “Americans play rugby?” and kinda waited to see if anything real even popped up.
What I Started to Uncover
And you know what? I was kinda surprised. Turns out, it’s not as dead in the water as I thought. It’s not gonna be on SportsCenter every night, not by a long stretch, but it’s definitely there. Sort of lurking in the background.
First thing I bumped into was a load of stuff about college rugby. Heaps of universities have teams, for both guys and gals. Mostly club level, not the big-money NCAA stuff, but still, people are out there playing, training, the whole deal. That made me sit up a bit. If college kids are into it, then it’s got some roots.
Then I found out about USA Rugby. They’re the main organization, apparently. And they’ve got national teams – men’s, women’s, the lot. They actually compete internationally. And then there’s Rugby Sevens, which is like a super-fast version of the game, and that’s in the Olympics! Team USA plays in that. I think I even saw a bit of that during the last Olympics but didn’t really register it was rugby, rugby.
And it didn’t just stop at amateur or college level. I actually found there’s a professional league called Major League Rugby (MLR). Right here in the US! With actual teams in different cities, playing professionally. Now that was a real shocker. I thought, “Huh, so people are actually trying to make a proper go of this.”
So, What’s the Real Story Then?
Alright, so after my bit of digging, here’s the lowdown as I see it:
- Yes, Americans do play rugby. More than I would’ve ever guessed.
- It’s more of a growing, niche sport. Kinda like how soccer was maybe 20 or 30 years back over here.
- It’s got a decent foothold in colleges, and that’s usually where sports start to get some traction in the States.
- There’s an actual pro league. It’s not the NFL, not even close, but it exists, and that’s something.
- That Olympic Sevens thing? Probably helps get a few more eyeballs on it, especially with the younger crowd.
It’s funny, really. You think you’ve got a handle on the sports your country plays, and then you discover this whole other scene just bubbling away. It’s not about to knock American football off its perch, let’s be honest. But is it played here? You betcha. And it looks pretty darn tough, I gotta say. Maybe I’ll even try and catch an MLR game if one comes near me. Just to see what all the fuss I didn’t know about is about. It’s just not shouted from the rooftops like the big three, that’s all. Took a bit of my own snooping to figure it out.
