Major League Rugby

Each team will play 10 regular-season games, hosting and traveling to every opponent once. After the regular season, the top four teams will earn a spot in the 2026 MLR Playoffs.

Anthem Rugby Carolina, California Legion, Chicago Hounds, New England Free Jacks, Old Glory DC, and Seattle Seawolves will compete in the 2026 season, which will kick off in April. Five of the teams earned a berth in last year’s playoffs, setting the stage for another thrilling race to earn a playoff bid and dethrone the three-time defending champion Free Jacks.

In the playoffs, the No. 1 seed will host the No. 4 seed, and the No. 2 seed will host the No. 3 seed in the Semifinal Round. Winners from each Semifinal will meet in the 2026 MLR Championship, with details and location to be announced at a later date.

Fans will be able to catch all of the action live on and on-demand via ESPN+

More information about the 2026 season, including a complete schedule release, will be announced in the coming weeks.

Teams	Season	Finals

THANK YOU WARRIORS NATION. Up until just days ago, the Utah Warriors were committed and on track to participate in the 2026 Major League Rugby season. Unfortunately, things changed quickly in the past week.

As of this morning, we have informed Major League Rugby that we will not participate in 2026 and are suspending club operations.

It's a bad time for MLR. Four of the five remaining original teams have closed shop in a single off-season (California Legion is basically RFCLA subsuming San Diego and keeping the more established Legion branding). Seattle, the only one of the original 7 to win a title are now the last ones standing.

This off-season has been a time of reflection and tough choices for Major League Rugby. Running a professional league is complex, and while the departure of teams was not something we anticipated, it has provided an opportunity to reset and strengthen our foundation.

Today, we’re confirming Major League Rugby will be played in 2026 and beyond.

The owners of Major League Rugby have an aligned vision on supporting USA Rugby and, in particular, our USA Eagles. Our partnership with World Rugby - Anthem Rugby Carolina - aims to develop young American talent and prepare the USA Eagles, with a focus on the 2027 and 2031 Men's Rugby World Cups. To further aid this goal, Major League Rugby will take steps from the 2026 season to increase the game day spaces available to USA Rugby qualified and pathway players to a minimum of 16 and rising from there.

We are engaged in active discussions with new partners, ownership groups, and USRPA to build long-term alignment and stability that will serve the league well into the future.

Major League Rugby is fueled by the love of the game - driven by the players who give everything on the field, the dedication of our team's staff, and the passion of our fans. We look forward during the coming weeks and months to sharing more details on what you can look forward to in 2026, and we thank you for your patience.

The Houston SaberCats are out of Major League Rugby (MLR). After eight seasons of MLR, the Houston Sabercats have pulled-out of competing in MLR 2026. The official Page of Houston’s professional rugby team released the following statement:

The decision from the Houston Saber Cats means Major League Rugby is officially down four teams for the MLR 2026 season. Tumultuous recent months have brought changes with the Houston SaberCats joining Miami Sharks and NOLA Gold in being out of MLR 2026. In addition, the teams based in Los Angeles and San Diego will be merging to create a new franchise.

The Houston SaberCats were the Western Conference Champions of MLR 2025. In doing so, the Texans made history by reaching their first Western Conference title and made their first-ever appearance in a MLR Championship. Houston fell 28-22 to the New England Free Jacks in the 2025 Final.

The first round of the draft was broadcast on ESPNU, with the final two rounds announced on the league’s social media channels. The 2025 College Draft order was determined by regular season standings and playoff performance, and each round consisted of eight to nine picks.

MLR uses a “Draft and Follow” approach where rights to drafted players will be assigned following the draft. Teams may activate those rights at any point until the mid-point of the next competitive MLR season after the player is eligible to play in the MLR. Drafting teams may sign those players or trade player rights with other MLR teams.

Twenty six prospects drafted over three rounds.

The Miami Sharks are out of Major League Rugby. Multiple sources with knowledge of the situation have confirmed that the team informed players this morning they would not be taking part in the 2026 campaign. It’s a crippling blow to MLR, who have also watched founding members NOLA pull the plug and its two Californian franchises merge in recent days.

NOLA Gold has informed the League that we do not intend to participate in the 2026 season. Discussions are ongoing with the League regarding future opportunities and potential pathways forward.

The San Diego Legion and Rugby Football Club Los Angeles (RFCLA) can confirm they have agreed in principle to strategically form a single, statewide professional rugby franchise: The California Legion.

This new venture will begin play in the 2026 Major League Rugby (MLR) season. The California Legion will play their home matches in multiple venues across San Diego, Los Angeles, and Orange County.

Congratulations to the New England Free Jacks for their championship win. The only team in league history to win 3 championships. The only team in USA major sports to win 3 consecutive titles in over 20 years (according to the MLR posts).

Congratulations to the New England Free Jacks for their championship win. The only team in league history to win 3 championships. The only team in USA major sports to win 3 consecutive titles in over 20 years (according to the MLR posts).

Going for a 3-peat we have the Eastern Conference champs the New England Free Jacks for the home team, and making their first appearance in the finals are the Western Conference champs the Houston SaberCats for the away team.

The final will be at Centreville Bank Stadium in Pawtucket, Rhode Island on Saturday, June 28th, at 2:00 PM EDT. Broadcast on ESPN2 and streamed live on ESPN+.

If you're there, check out the ML Fan Fest pre-game show at The Guild. Festivities being at 9:00 AM EDT with live DJ, food trucks, games, some Rugby 101 sessions, and merch booths.

Matchup	Home	Away	Kickoff
Preview analysis	New England Free Jacks (1st E)	Chicago Hounds (2nd E)	June 21 @ 1:00 PM EDT
Preview analysis	Utah Warriors (1st W)	Houston SaberCats (2nd W)	June 21 @ 9:00 PM EDT

Both matches will be live on ESPN+ (streaming) and ESPN2 (cable).

Post image source narugbydb.com on bsky

The Conference Semifinals have concluded, some more dramatically than others!

Scott Lawrence has selected 32 players in his Senior Men’s Eagles squad for the July test window. The USA will face off against Belgium in Charlotte on July 5, Spain at the same venue on July 12, and England in the nation’s capital on July 19. Qualification for the 2027 World Cup follows with the Eagles opening their Pacific Nations Cup campaign against Canada in Calgary on August 22.

The MLR is heavily represented here with only 4 of the 32 players not being in the league. Only RFCLA are missing in the national squad.

https://www.majorleague.rugby/mlrplayoffs25/

All matches are streaming live on ESPN+ in USA and TRN internationally. They will all be available free on TRN in the USA after 72 hour delay.

The New England Free Jacks have confirmed that star flyhalf Jayson Potroz sustained a season-ending knee injury during last weekend’s match against the Seattle Seawolves.

All matches are streaming live on ESPN+ in USA and TRN internationally. They will all be available free on TRN in the USA after 72 hour delay.

Results	West	East
MIA 36 - 32 SD highlights	UTAH, 10-0-5, 53 pts	NE, 10-0-5, 51 pts
UTAH 31 - 10 ARC highlights	LA, 8-1-6, 50 pts	CHI, 10-0-5, 49 pts
DC 32 - 43 LA highlights	HOU, 9-0-5, 48 pts	DC, 8-0-7, 45 pts
CHI 38 pts - 17 NOLA highlights	SEA, 7-1-7, 44 pts	MIA, 8-0-7, 41 pts
NE 37 - 30 SEA highlights	SD, 7-0-8, 43 pts	NOLA, 4-0-11, 31 pts
		ARC, 0-0-15, 5 pts

Week 16 First XV

• Loosehead Prop, Oti Pifeleti – Chicago Hounds
• Hooker, Hugh Roach – San Diego Legion
• Tighthead Prop, Tonga Kofe – Utah Warriors
• Left Lock, Jason Damm – RFCLA
• Right Lock, Rob Harley – Old Glory DC
• Blindside Flanker, Manuel Ardao – Miami Sharks
• Openside Flanker, Tim Anstee – RFCLA
• No 8., Ben Houston – RFCLA
• Scrum-half, Cameron NoRdli-Kelemeti – New England Free Jacks
• Fly-half, Chris Hilsenbeck – CHicago Hounds
• Left Wing, Paula Balekana – New England Free Jacks
• Inside Center, Cole Semu – Utah Warriors
• Outside Center, Benjamin LeSage – New England Free Jacks
• Right Wing, Peyton Wall – Chicago Hounds
• Fullback, Shane O’Leary – Miami Sharks