Americas Rugby News Rugby news from across the Americas!
Originally planned for a Monday release, social media has been abuzz with news that the 2019 Major League Rugby schedule will be officially released on Wednesday. Americas Rugby News has obtained a copy of that schedule. While the copy acquired does not list broadcast information, it does reveal kickoff times and venues for the 19-week season.
With the league adding two teams in 2019 – Rugby United New York and the Toronto Arrows – the schedule has also extended, in fact it is double in length with each team playing a full 16 games, up from only 8 in the inaugural 2018 season. The regular season will also kick off significantly earlier, opening the last weekend of January and running until the first weekend in June. The final knock-out format has not been specified in the document.
Geography and climate has played a significant part in the formation of the schedule. Glendale, New York, and Toronto will all begin their seasons on the road – in fact the Arrows will play the entire first half of the season away with all eight of their home games in succession beginning on April 7 against the New Orleans Gold.
The expansion Arrows will also have the honor of opening the new season, traveling to NOLA for a January 26 match tentatively scheduled for a 3pm Eastern kickoff. Each team will have three bye weeks with Utah getting the first rest. The regular season concludes with Seattle hosting Austin on June 2.
There are at least four new venues on tap for 2019. Austin Elite will move from the Round Rock Multipurpose Complex to the much larger Dell Diamond. Toronto have tentatively listed York University as their home, while New York will be housed at MCU Park in Brooklyn’s famed Coney Island neighborhood having played at Gaelic Park in The Bronx in the spring.
Houston will become the second team, following Glendale, to have a purpose-built rugby facility with the opening of their new AVEVA Stadium. The SaberCats home opener is set for February 22 against Toronto though a recent surge in rain have seen delays to construction that may affect that booking.
Other notable matches on the schedule include a rematch of the 2018 MLR Final between Seattle and Glendale, to be played at Starfire Stadium on opening weekend. The defending champions will host the Arrows on February 17, a match certain to draw much attention from north of the border given the Canadian contingent on the Seawolves roster.
Broadcast details may follow with the official announcement on Wednesday but there are certain to be new deals in place with not only Toronto’s entry significant but also the addition of numerous South American players. Five from Uruguay have already been signed with more to be revealed soon along with several Brazilian standouts.
A complete 2019 schedule can be seen here. Individual team fixtures and rosters as they stand will be updated throughout the week.
