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Rugby Football Club LA (Los Angeles) have completed the big signing of Pumas scrum-half Gonzalo Bertranou on a two year deal. This means Bertranou will play for RFCLA in Major League Rugby (MLR) 2025 and 2026. The move comes on the back end of a busy 2024; Bertranou played in 11 of Argentina’s 12 test matches.
Bertranou returned to Argentina following the completion of the 2023-2024 United Rugby Championship (URC) season. Bertranou played in Wales for the Dragons from 2001-2024 and transferred to Cardiff in early 2024.
His pathway to professional rugby abroad began at the Los Tordos rugby club in his native Mendoza. His prominence saw him captaining Cuyo in the Argentine Provincial Championship. From there he earned selection for the Argentina XV and he captained the team in the 2015 Nations Cup. He made his test debut that same year against Paraguay.
Tomás Cubelli and Martín Landajo were Argentina’s scrum-halves at the time. Bertranou joined them in Super Rugby and went on to overtake Landajo to become a regular in Los Pumas. He was a try scorer for Argentina against the USA at Rugby World Cup 2019.
He and Cubelli are now both contracted to MLR clubs. Cubelli plays for the Miami Sharks. Not only have the duo been long-time servants of Los Pumas but both have featured in Rugby World Cup Semi Finals. In addition, Cubelli started in the history-making win over New Zealand in Sydney in 2020 while Cubelli started in the win over the All Blacks in 2022 in Christchurch and also in 2024 in Wellington.
2024 also saw Bertranou defeating France in Buenos Aires, Uruguay in Punta del Este, Australia in Santa Fe, South Africa in Santiago del Estero and Italy in Udine. He was a try scorer in the record-breaking win over the Italians.
Bertranou makes the move to MLR at the age of 30. He has 68 test caps. The new chapter in his career comes with a stated intention of playing in a third Rugby World Cup. He is a second generation Puma. His father, Miguel Bertranou, earned 14 caps from 1988-1993.
