BUCS Super Rugby
Top division of university rugby union in the United Kingdom
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
BUCS Super Rugby is the highest level of men's and women's university rugby union in the United Kingdom and a potential pathway for university players into professional rugby.[1] It comprises ten teams from universities in England and Wales. The league is named after its governing body, British Universities and Colleges Sport (BUCS).
Women's - 2024-25
Current season, competition or edition: 2025–26 BUCS Super Rugby season | |
| |
| Sport | Rugby union |
|---|---|
| Founded | 2016 |
| First season | Men's - 2016-17 Women's - 2024-25 |
| Administrator | British Universities and Colleges Sport |
| No. of teams | Men's - 10 Women's - 7 |
| Country | Great Britain |
| Most recent champion | Hartpury |
| Most titles |
|
| Level on pyramid | 1 |
| Relegation to | Men's North A or South A |
| Official website | www |
History
Background
The Scottish Varsity match between the University of St Andrews and the University of Edinburgh is the oldest varsity match in the world in a code of football, having been first played under rugby union rules in the 1860s.[2][a] The first Varsity Match in rugby union between the University of Oxford and University of Cambridge was contested in 1872.[4]
Unusually for British university sporting events, the Oxford-Cambridge Varsity Match was broadcast on television, along with The Boat Race.[5][6] The Independent proposed in 2008 that Bath v Loughborough was "the real varsity match" on the basis that these were the top two rugby union teams (at that time) in British Universities Sports Association (BUSA) competitions.[7] In 2015, British Universities and Colleges Sport (BUCS), the successor to BUSA, organised fixtures between Loughborough and Durham (two of the top universities since 2011-12) to occur on the same day, which was referred to as the "BUCS Varsity".[8][9]
Men's
Men's BUCS Super Rugby was launched in 2016 as a new, top level of university rugby above the existing North A and South A leagues.
The eight teams in the inaugural 2016–17 season were those who finished in the top four of the North A and South A leagues in the preceding 2015–16 season.
The league expanded to nine teams in the 2017–18 season and ten teams in the 2018–19 season.
Women's
Women's BUCS Super Rugby was launched ahead of the 2024–25 season.[10]
The seven-team competition is a positive evolution of the Women's National League (WNL) and joins the top level of Men's rugby union as BUCS’ second ‘Super’ level of competition. Women's BUCS Super Rugby will provide an enhanced platform to aid female players at institutions in England, Wales, and Scotland in developing their game while pursuing higher education.[10]
On 12 February 2025 Brunel University's Women secured their place in Women's BUCS Super Rugby (WBSR), for the first time in their history, defeating Newcastle 64–8 in the BSR North vs South Prem Playoff.[11]
Men's BUCS Super Rugby
* Excluding the 2020–21 season, which was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic in the United Kingdom. † Not to be confused with Hartpury University R.F.C., who play in the RFU Championship. |
  Cardiff  Locations of BUCS Super Rugby teams Locations of BUCS Super Rugby teams in Cardiff
|
Season structure
The season has three phases:
- League - a double round-robin tournament, where teams play each other home and away.
- Championship - a knockout tournament featuring the top eight teams from the League.
- Playoff - a knockout tournament featuring the team at the bottom of the League and the teams at the top of North A and South A leagues. The Playoff determines whether relegation and promotion occur.
League
The League season currently has 18 rounds and typically runs from September to March. League points are awarded in the following way:
- 4 points for winning a match
- 2 points for drawing a match
- 0 points for losing a match
- 1 losing bonus point for losing by 7 points (or less)
- 1 try bonus point for scoring (at least) 4 tries, regardless of the outcome.
In this points system winning teams get 4 or 5 points, drawing teams 2 or 3 points, and losing teams between 0 and 2 points.
Championship
The Championship competition has three rounds and typically takes place in April. It features the teams who finished in the top eight of the league.
Men's BUCS Super Rugby Milk Championships
Quarter Finals:
- 1st v 8th
- 2nd v 7th
- 4th v 5th
- 3rd v 6th
Semi Finals:
- 1st or 8th v 4th or 5th
- 2nd or 7th v 3rd or 6th
| Quarterfinals | Semifinals | Finals | ||||||||||||
| 1 | ||||||||||||||
| 8 | ||||||||||||||
| 4 | ||||||||||||||
| 5 | ||||||||||||||
| 2 | ||||||||||||||
| 7 | ||||||||||||||
| 3 | ||||||||||||||
| 6 | ||||||||||||||
Playoff
The team that finishes last in the league is not automatically relegated. Relegation from (and promotion to) BUCS Super Rugby is decided through a playoff in the format of a three-team, single-elimination tournament.[12]
The playoff begins with a semi-final between the winners of the North A and South A leagues. The bottom placed BUCS Super Rugby team has a bye directly into the playoff game. The winner of the playoff game is the team that plays in the next season of BUCS Super Rugby. The home team in each game is decided by coin toss.
| North vs South Playoff | BUCS Super Rugby Playoff | ||||||||
| Bottom placed team in BUCS Super Rugby | |||||||||
| North A champions | Winner of North vs South Playoff | ||||||||
| South A champions | |||||||||
2025-26 Playoff Changes
In August 2025, BUCS announced that from the 2025-26 Season the 10th placed team at the end of the season would be automatically relegated without a playoff. Their place would be taken by the winner of the Premier North vs Premier South playoff.[13]
Playoff results
| Season | Game |  Winner |
Score! |  Runner-up |
Venue | Promoted | Attendance | Ref | Highlights | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Men's BUCS Super Rugby | |||||||||||||
| 2016-17 | Game 1 - 05/04/2017 | Nottingham Trent University | 57-0 | Bristol University | Nottingham Trent University | ||||||||
| Game 2 - 12/04/2017 | Nottingham Trent University | 65-12 | Bristol University | ||||||||||
| 2017-18 | Game 1 - 07/03/2018 | Cardiff University | 59-17 | Newcastle University | Cardiff University | ||||||||
| Game 2 - 14/03/2018 | Cardiff University | 28-17 | Newcastle University | ||||||||||
| 2018-19 | Prem Semi-Final - 03/04/2019 | Swansea University | 27-18 | Newcastle University | |||||||||
| BSR Playoff - 10/04/2019 | Swansea University | 32-28 | Nottingham Trent University | Swansea University | |||||||||
| 2019-20 | Prem Semi-Final - 01/04/2020 | Nottingham Trent University | N/A | Bristol University | Season interrupted by COVID-19 | ||||||||
| BSR Playoff - 08/04/2020 | Semi-Final Winner | N/A | Northumbria University | ||||||||||
| 2020-21 | Season interrupted by COVID-19 | ||||||||||||
| 2021-22 | No Semi-Final | ||||||||||||
| BSR Playoff - 13/04/2022 | Nottingham University | 22-28 | Northumbria University | 'Nottingham University | |||||||||
| 2022-23 | Prem Semi-Final - 29/03/2023 | Brunel University | 26-18 | Newcastle University | |||||||||
| BSR Playoff - 12/04/2023 | Leeds Beckett University | 23-17 | Brunel University | Leeds Beckett University | |||||||||
| 2023-24 | Prem Semi-Final - 27/03/2024 | Newcastle University | 39-24 | Brunel University | |||||||||
| BSR Playoff - 10/04/2024 | Swansea University | 40-17 | Newcastle University | Swansea University | |||||||||
| 2024-25 | Prem Semi-Final - 26/03/2025 | Brunel University | 30-29 | Newcastle University | |||||||||
| BSR Playoff - 09/04/2025 | Swansea University | 19-15 | Brunel University | Swansea University | |||||||||
| End of BSR Relegation Play Off | |||||||||||||
| 2025-26 | Prem North/South Promotion Playoff - | ||||||||||||
- Gold background University that has been promoted to Men's BUCS Super Rugby.
- Cyan background Men's BUCS Super Rugby University that has successfully defended their place in the league after the Playoffs.
- Red background Playoff campaign was not completed due to suspension of competition due to Covid-19 Pandemic.
Results
League and championship
| Final position | Season | Season | Season | Season | Season | Season | Season | Season | Season | Season | Season |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2016-17 | 2017-18 | 2018-19 | 2019-20* | 2021-22 | 2022-23 | 2023-24 | 2024-25 | 2025-26 | 2026-27 | 2027-28 | |
| 1 | Hartpury (CH) | Exeter | Exeter (SF) | Durham | Durham (RU) | Loughborough (RU) | Exeter (RU) | Loughborough (RU) | Bath | ||
| 2 | Exeter (RU) | Northumbria | Hartpury (CH) | Exeter | Exeter (CH) | Exeter (CH) | Loughborough (CH) | Hartpury (CH) | Loughborough | ||
| 3 | Loughborough (SF) | Cardiff Met (RU) | Bath (SF) | Leeds Beckett | Cardiff Met (SF) | Durham | Hartpury (SF) | Bath | Exeter | ||
| 4 | Durham | Leeds Beckett (SF) | Cardiff Met | Cardiff Met | Loughborough (SF) | Bath (SF) | Durham | Durham | Nottingham | ||
| 5 | Bath (SF) | Hartpury (CH) | Leeds Beckett (RU) | Hartpury | Swansea | Hartpury | Bath (SF) | Exeter (SF) | Durham | ||
| 6 | Northumbria | Loughborough | Northumbria | Loughborough | Cardiff | Cardiff (SF) | Cardiff Met | Cardiff Met (SF) | Cardiff Met | ||
| 7 | Cardiff Met | Bath (SF) | Durham | Swansea | Hartpury | Cardiff Met | Leeds Beckett | Nottingham | Hartpury | ||
| 8 | Leeds Beckett | Durham | Cardiff | Bath | Leeds Beckett | Nottingham | Nottingham | Leeds Backett | Cardiff | ||
| 9 | - | Nottingham Trent | Loughborough | Cardiff | Bath | Swansea | Cardiff | Cardiff | Leeds Beckett | ||
| 10 | - | - | Nottingham Trent (R) | Northumbria | Northumbria (R) | Leeds Beckett | Swansea | Swansea | Swansea (R) |
- Green background (rows 1 to 8) are teams that progressed to the Championship tournament.
- Red background is a team that was relegated after losing a playoff to a North A / South A team.
- (CH) Champions. (RU) Runners-up. (SF) Losing semi-finalists. (R) Relegated
* No Championship tournament was held in 2020 because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Championship finals
| Season | Champion |
Score | Runner-up |
Venue | Attendance | Ref | Highlights | Title | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pre-Men's BUCS Super Rugby | |||||||||
| 2012-13 | Durham University | 26-17 | Cardiff Met | Twickenham | [14] | ||||
| 2013-14 | Hartpury University | 28-24 | Leeds Met | Twickenham | [15] | ||||
| 2014-15 | Leeds Beckett | 31-23 | Loughborough | Twickenham | [16] | ||||
| 2015-16 | Exeter University | 21-19 | Loughborough | Twickenham | [17] | ||||
| Men's BUCS Super Rugby | |||||||||
| 2016-17 | Hartpury University | 27-24 | Exeter University | Twickenham | [18] | ||||
| 2017-18 | Hartpury University | 27-24 | Cardiff Met | Twickenham | [19] | ||||
| 2018-19 | Hartpury University | 45-27 | Leeds Beckett | Twickenham | [20] | ||||
| 2019-20 | Season interrupted by COVID-19 | ||||||||
| 2020-21 | Season interrupted by COVID-19 | ||||||||
| 2021-22 | Exeter University | 14-13 | Durham University | Sixways Stadium | [21] | ||||
| 2022-23 | Exeter University | 48-44 | Loughborough | StoneX Stadium | [22] | ||||
| 2023-24 | Loughborough | 35-31 | Exeter University | StoneX Stadium | [23] | ||||
| 2024-25 | Hartpury University | 35-31 | Loughborough | Rodney Parade | [24] | ||||
| 2025-26 | Rodney Parade | ||||||||
Promotion and relegation
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Alumni with international caps
The inclusion criteria are that the player played in a senior international test after playing in BUCS Super Rugby.
|
Place in the BUCS Rugby Union pyramid
BUCS Super Rugby is the top division of men's university rugby in Britain. It sits in the Premier tier of the BUCS Rugby Union pyramid, along with North A, North B, South A and South B.
| Premier | BUCS Super Rugby | |||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| North A | South A | |||||||||||||||||||
| North B | South B | |||||||||||||||||||
| Tier 1 | Scottish 1A | Northern 1A | Midlands 1A | Western 1A | South Eastern 1A | |||||||||||||||
| Tier 2 | Scottish 2A | Northern 2A | Northern 2B | Midlands 2A | Midlands 2B | Western 2A | Western 2B | South Eastern 2A | South Eastern 2B | |||||||||||
| Tier 3 | Scottish 3A | Northern 3A | Northern 3B | Midlands 3A | Midlands 3B | Western 3A | Western 3B | South Eastern 3A | South Eastern 3B | |||||||||||
| Tier 4 | Scottish 4A | Scottish 4B | Northern 4A | Northern 4B | Midlands 4A | Midlands 4B | Western 4A | Western 4B | South Eastern 4A | South Eastern 4C | South Eastern 4B | |||||||||
| Tier 5 | Northern 5A | Northern 5B | Midlands 5A | Western 5A | South Eastern 5A | South Eastern 5B | ||||||||||||||
| Tier 6 | South Eastern 6A | |||||||||||||||||||
Women's BUCS Super Rugby
* Excludes the 2020–21 season, which was cancelled due to Covid-19. |
Cardiff Locations of BUCS Super Rugby teams Locations of BUCS Super Rugby teams in Cardiff
|
Season structure
The season has three phases:
- League - a double round-robin tournament, where teams play each other home and away.
- Championship - a knockout tournament featuring the top eight teams from the League.
- Playoff - a knockout tournament featuring the team at the bottom of the League and the teams at the top of North A and South A leagues. The Playoff determines whether relegation and promotion occur.
League
The league season currently has 14 rounds and typically runs from September to March. League points are awarded in the following way:
- 4 points for winning a match
- 2 points for drawing a match
- 0 points for losing a match
- 1 losing bonus point for losing by 7 points (or less)
- 1 try bonus point for scoring (at least) 4 tries, regardless of the outcome.
In this points system winning teams get 4 or 5 points, drawing teams 2 or 3 points, and losing teams between 0 and 2 points.
Championship
The Championship competition has three rounds and typically takes place in April. It features the teams that finished in the top six of the league. The top two places are awarded a bye into the semi-finals.
Women's BUCS Super Rugby Milk Championships
Quarter Finals:
- 1st - BYE
- 2nd - BYE
- 4th v 5th
- 3rd v 6th
Semi Finals:
- 1st v 4th or 5th
- 2nd v 3rd or 6th
| Quarterfinals | Semifinals | Finals | ||||||||||||
| 1 | BYE | |||||||||||||
| 4 | ||||||||||||||
| 5 | ||||||||||||||
| 2 | BYE | |||||||||||||
| 3 | ||||||||||||||
| 6 | ||||||||||||||
Results
League and championship
| Final position | Season | Season | Season | Season |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024-25 | 2025-26 | 2026-27 | 2027-28 | |
| 1 | Hartpury (SF) | Brunel | ||
| 2 | Exeter (SF) | Cardiff | ||
| 3 | Loughborough (RU) | Cardiff Met | ||
| 4 | Edinburgh | Edinburgh | ||
| 5 | Cardiff Met (CH) | Exeter | ||
| 6 | Cardiff | Hartpury | ||
| 7 | Durham | Loughborough | ||
| 8 | - | - |
- Green background (rows 1 to 6) are teams that progressed to the Championship tournament.
- (CH) Champions. (RU) Runners-up. (SF) Losing semi-finalists.
Championship finals
| Season | Champion |
Score | Runner-up |
Venue | Attendance | Ref | Highlights | Title | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pre-Women's National League | |||||||||
| 2013-14 | Cardiff Met | 47-0 | Leeds Met | Twickenham | [45] | ||||
| 2014-15 | Gloucestershire | 28-12 | Cardiff Met | Twickenham | [46] | ||||
| 2015-16 | Cardiff Met | 20-5 | Northumbria | Twickenham | [47] | ||||
| 2016-17 | Edinburgh University | 48-5 | Northumbria | Twickenham | [48] | ||||
| 2017-18 | Exeter University | 35-32 | Hartpury University | Twickenham | [49] | ||||
| 2018-19 | Exeter University | 30-26 | Durham University | Twickenham | [50] | ||||
| 2019-20 | Season interrupted by COVID-19 | ||||||||
| 2020-21 | Season interrupted by COVID-19 | ||||||||
| Women's National League | |||||||||
| 2021-22 | Hartpury University | 36-22 | Edinburgh University | Sixways Stadium | [51] | ||||
| 2022-23 | Hartpury University | 45-12 | Exeter University | StoneX Stadium | [52] | ||||
| 2023-24 | Hartpury University | 34-22 | Loughborough | StoneX Stadium | [53] | ||||
| Women's BUCS Super Rugby | |||||||||
| 2024-25 | Cardiff Met | 30-29 | Loughborough | Rodney Parade | [54] | ||||
| 2025-26 | Rodney Parade | ||||||||
Place in the BUCS Rugby Union pyramid
BUCS Super Rugby is the top division of women's university rugby in Britain. It sits in the Premier tier of the BUCS Rugby Union pyramid, along with Premier North and South.
| Premier | BUCS Super Rugby | ||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| North | South | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Tier 1 | Scottish 1 | Northern 1 | Midlands 1 | Western 1 | South Eastern 1 | ||||||||||||||||
| Tier 2 | Scottish 2 | Northern 2 | Midlands 2 | Western 2 | South Eastern 2 | ||||||||||||||||
| Tier 3 | Northern 3A | Northern 3B | Midlands 3A | Midlands 3B | South Eastern 3A | South Eastern 3B | |||||||||||||||
University Celestial 7s
The competition consists of more than 50 male and female university teams, including up to 1,000 players. With five active competitions on the day played across seven pitches at The Richmond Athletics Ground, the home of Richmond RFC, Universities go to battle.[55]
The inaugural competition takes place on Friday 13 June 2025.
Competitions
Men’s and Women’s Championship
The Championships are open to Super Rugby and North/South Premier sides. [56]
| Season | Men's Champion |
Women's Champion |
Venue |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | Exeter University | Loughborough University | Richmond Athletic Ground |
Men’s and Women's Trophy
The Trophy is open to all other BUCS sides competing across the leagues.
| Season | Men's Champion |
Women's Champion |
Venue |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | Loughborough University 2s | Exeter University | Richmond Athletic Ground |
The Capital Cup
The Capital Cup is especially for the great institutions of London.
| Season | Men's Champion |
Venue |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | Imperial College London | Richmond Athletic Ground |
Media coverage
Some BUCS Super Rugby matches are streamed live on the BUCS Super Rugby YouTube channel, which provides full match livestreams, highlights, and end-of-season montages for both men's and women's competitions.[57] In the 2018–19 season, some men's matches were broadcast on FreeSports.[58] Coverage has grown significantly since the league's inception in 2016, evolving from limited broadcasts to comprehensive digital streaming that attracts thousands of viewers and supports the pathway for over 100 players to professional contracts in leagues such as the Premiership Rugby and United Rugby Championship.[59][60] Central to this development are commentators Joe Byrnes and Dave Rogers, who have provided presentation and commentary for BUCS Super Rugby fixtures since its formation, including lead broadcasts of finals at Twickenham Stadium.[61][62] Byrnes, a sports presenter and MC, is often joined on Wednesdays by university students for punditry duties, fostering engagement and development opportunities for aspiring broadcasters within the student community.[63] Additionally, Cardiff Metropolitan University's student-led media outlet, Cardiff Met TV, hosts livestreams and highlights of Cardiff Met's home matches in both the men's and women's BUCS Super Rugby competitions, contributing to grassroots coverage and accessibility.[64]
See also
Notes
- The Oxford-Cambridge varsity matches in rugby union and association football were first held in 1872 and 1874 respectively although intercollegiate matches in association football date back earlier.[3] The 1869 Princeton vs. Rutgers football game was the first intercollegiate football game in the United States while the first intercollegiate rugby football game in the United States took place in 1874 when Harvard University played against McGill University.