| Governing body | American National Rugby League |
|---|---|
| National team | United States |
| Nickname(s) | Tomahawks |
| Registered players | 1,336(total registered)
836 (adult) 500 (juniors) |
| Clubs | 47 |
| Competitions | |
| National | |
| American National Rugby League | |
| USA Rugby League | |
| Audience records | |
| Single match | 12,500 (2008). Australia Day Challenge - South Sydney Rabbitohs v. Leeds Rhinos (Hodges Stadium in Jacksonville, Florida)[1] |
Rugby league football is a participation and spectator sport in the United States. Historically rugby league has been less popular in the United States than rugby union and domestic sports such as baseball, American football, basketball, and ice hockey, but the establishment of a national team and a domestic competition in the late 20th century has seen the sport grow.
The United States national rugby league team, known as the Tomahawks, has participated with some regularity in international competition since 1987. In 1998 the country's first domestic competition, the American National Rugby League (AMNRL), was launched. A semi-professional league, it is predominantly based in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic states. The national team and the AMNRL are affiliated to the Rugby League International Federation, the sport's world governing body.[2] In 2011 a new domestic competition, the USA Rugby League, was announced.
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Games related to rugby football were played in the United States in the early 19th century. During this time the sports had no fixed rules, and were particularly popular in universities and college preparatory schools in the Northeastern United States. The sport of American football evolved from these intercollegiate games.
Meanwhile in England a schism developed in rugby football between those who favored strict amateurism and those who felt that players should be compensated for time taken off work to play rugby. In 1895 this resulted in the formation of a break-away sport, rugby league, the rules of the two codes of rugby (union and league) would themselves diverge. Whilst the new form of rugby was taken to countries such as France and Australia, American rugby continued to be played solely under rugby union rules. The sport was eclipsed by American football and was confined to California by the time of the 1920 Olympics.
In 1939, the Californian Rugby Football Union wrote to the governing body of rugby league, the Rugby Football League, to tell them they wanted to switch from rugby union and affiliate to the RFL. In June 1939, the RFL made plans to send a delegation out to California but were unable to do so due to the outbreak of World War II.
One of the earliest attempts to introduce rugby league to the United States was in 1953, when Mike Dimitro, a wrestling promoter, was asked to organize a tour of Australasia by an American rugby league side. The team was given a huge schedule that included 26 matches against Australian and New Zealand sides. None of the 22 American players had ever played rugby league prior to the tour, and they presented themselves in American football-like attire early on in the tournament. The side won only six games as well as drawing two.[3]
Their second match of the tour, against a Sydney side, drew a crowd of 65,453 to the Sydney Cricket Ground. After a consistent lack of competition, crowds were good but never reached the same heights. In turn the tour did not in turn bring any benefits to American rugby league, but Mike Dimitro did not give up, he was able to organize two exhibitions against Australia and New Zealand in California that did not turn out to be a big success. An American side also made a short tour of France in early 1954, including a match against the France national team in Paris. France beat USA 31-0.
Mike Dimitro was still optimistic of developing the game in the United States but his bid to host a Rugby League World Cup in the 1960s failed.
In the 1970s former American football player Mike Mayer founded the United States Rugby League with the intention of forming the country's first professional rugby league competition. Between 1976–1978, Mayer secured franchising rights from the British Rugby Football League and attempted to attract funding from British and Australian promoters to help establish a twelve-team professional competition.[4][5][6] The proposed league would have chiefly relied on attracting American football players who could not make it in major leagues.[6] However, Mayer was unable to find sufficient financial backing, and the league never got off the ground.[5]
In the 1980s interest in amateur rugby league began to grow. In 1986 a new competition, the Tri-Counties Rugby League, was established with three teams in Canada and one from the United States, the New York-based Adirondacks club.[7] In 1987 the Australian state teams of Queensland and New South Wales played an exhibition State of Origin game in Long Beach, California. The result of this match was not to be included in official statistics, but in recent years the New South Wales Rugby League and media organizations based in that state have added the win to their tally. Promoters claimed the match drew 10,000 spectators, but detractors said it drew only about 7,000 and was not a financial success.[8]
Meanwhile, Mayer had continued to promote rugby league. His efforts resulted in establishing a national team to play a match against Canada in 1987; this would be the US' first international match since the 1950s. The following year he was involved in promoting an exhibition game between the English teams the Wigan Warriors and the Warrington Wolves in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.[5]
In 1992 former St George Dragons player David Niu relocated to Philadelphia, and began to introduce rugby league to the Glen Mills Schools, where he was employed as a teacher. Soon after he was contacted by Mayer, and they set about building a U.S. national team to compete in international tournaments for the first time. Under Niu's leadership the United States competed in the 1992 Rugby League World Sevens tournament in Sydney. They have participated in the World Sevens (1992–1997), Superleague World Nines (1996, 1997), Emerging Nations World Cup (2000) and Victory Cup (2003, 2004) competitions.
In the 1990s rugby league promoters including Australian-American David Niu worked to promote the game, and in 1997 the first rugby league organizing body, Super League America, was formed, with Niu as its head.[9] Super League America was recognized as the official governing body for the sport by the Rugby League International Federation, and was in charge of organizing the national team and establishing a domestic competition. The domestic competition kicked off in 1998 and was contested by six team, with one soon folding. In 2000 Super League American announced a reorganization; the league headquarters were moved to Jacksonville, Florida, with Jacksonville-based marketing executive Steve Gormley serving as the organization's new president.[9] Niu would serve as CEO and maintain the northeastern branch in Philadelphia.[9] The organization was renamed the United States Rugby League, and set its sites on expanding into the Southeastern United States and attracting British rugby league teams to Florida for training camps and international competitions.[10]
In 2001 all five teams announced they were forming the American National Rugby League. It has since expanded from four teams in 1998 to eleven in 2010, located across the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic states, with one team in Jacksonville, Florida. The league has announced its intention to expand further, including establishing a second eleven-team division in the Western United States, with two teams in Canada.[11] The league hopes to have the western conference in play for the 2011 season.[11]
In January 2008, Australian club South Sydney Rabbitohs (owned by Hollywood actor Russell Crowe and international businessman Peter Holmes à Court) played a trial game against 2007 European Super League Champions Leeds Rhinos in Jacksonville, Florida. Leeds got off to a 26-0 lead at half-time and looked to have it sewn up. In the second half, South Sydney scored 24 unanswered points in a remarkable comeback (the final score was Leeds 26 - 24 South Sydney). The game attracted a crowd of 12,500.[1]
In 2009, a new professional rugby league competition, the National Rugby League USA (NRLUS), was announced. The new league was to include administrators and talent from the AMNRL, and was intended to begin play in 2010. However, as of 2010 the league had not gotten off the ground. That year officials announced their hopes that play would begin in 2011, citing the late 2000s recession as a factor in the league's lack of progress.[12]
The start of 2011 saw a schism in American rugby league with seven sides leaving the American National Rugby League and forming the newly formed USARL.
Tracing its origins to 1997, the American National Rugby League (AMNRL) is the United States' oldest rugby league competition. Eleven teams competed in the 2010 AMNRL season, with seven departing after the season to form the new USA Rugby League.
Teams currently committed to play in the AMNRL are:
Additionally, the AMNRL has announced various plans for expansion. The Chicago Stockyarders team has announced it will be embarking on a full exhibition schedule for 2011, with future plans to join the AMNRL.[14][15][16] The AMNRL is also planning a four- to six-team competition for Hawaii in partnership with the Hawaii Rugby League; teams in development are Kona, Maui, Harlequins, Spears, Islanders, and University of Hawaii.[17] On June 10, 2011, the Utah Avalanche of Salt Lake City, Utah, announced they were joining the AMNRL as a developing team.[18] Other plans for a Western American National Rugby League and development in other areas have been announced at various times.[19]
The USA Rugby League was announced on January 12, 2011. It was formed by seven teams formerly in the AMNRL, who are to be joined by expansion teams. It has an expected kick-off date of Summer 2011.[20][21][22]
Teams currently committed to play in the top tier of the USA Rugby League are:[23]
Additionally, the league has announced that several other teams will be participating as "developmental" teams. These include the Pittsburgh Sledgehammers (formerly the Pittsburgh Vipers), the Denver Wolverines, the Los Angeles Raiders, the Orange County Outlaws, the Seattle Force and Texas Rugby League (which will field two teams, the Dallas Dragons and the Houston Hornets).[24]
Although the 'heartland' of rugby league is the north east coast, the AMNRL is quickly expanding to other areas of the eastern coast, as well as this, efforts are being made to set up a west coast competition.
In 2006, a new team joined the AMNRL from Boston, which played an exhibition match in 2005. Teams from New Haven (Connecticut) and Jacksonville (Florida) also joined the 2006 competition. A Chicago team is also going through various stages of development with possible inclusion in the AMNRL in the future.
Florida has hosted rugby league games in the past, the state was the host to 1999 North Pacific Qualification Tournament, where the USA beat both Japan and Canada to meet Lebanon for the right to play in the 2000 Rugby League World Cup. Orlando's ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex hosted the Tomahawks's test against England, for the latter's 2000 World Cup warm up game. It ended 110-0 to the away team. In 2001, Florida was also host to the Sunshine State Challenge, where the United States competed against the Huddersfield Giants, Halifax and the Leeds Rhinos, the miniature tournament drew a crowd of 6,700.
In 2005, an exhibition match was played in Phoenix, Arizona to help promote rugby league outside the heartland. Plans are underway to start a west coast competition called the WAMNRL, it has announced kickoff date of Summer 2011 with teams from Los Angeles, San Francisco, San Diego, Portland, Oregon, Seattle, Phoenix, Arizona, Las Vegas, Salt Lake City and Denver, as well as Vancouver, Canada.[25]
In November 2010 the USA announced a strategic plan to grow the sport in the country with grass roots development, expansion and world cup qualification in sight.[26]
Tag Rugby and touch rugby league, sometimes known as "Eagle Tag" in the United States, are played at youth level. According to the AMNRL, there are an estimated 500 players participating in junior touch/flag rugby league competitions in the USA.[27][28][29]
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