UCLA Women's Rugby 2021

As UCLA Women’s Rugby continues to grow in numbers, wins, and recognition, it has always been the people behind the program pushing us forward. We are a Division I Club Sport with passionate student athletes coming from all over the world and majoring in everything from sociology to neuroscience. Since 2005, we have strived to be a “home away from home” for all; we firmly believe there’s a rugby position and place in our program for every interested player, regardless of previous experience in rugby or any other sport. Despite our different backgrounds, our love for the sport, the hard work, and the program bring us together and keep us looking forward.  

For the majority of our players, 2020 and the COVID pandemic brought forward the longest span of time we had ever gone without playing a sport. While we were eager to keep everyone safe, it doesn’t take an elite rugger to know that Zoom practices and virtual clinics do not compete with in person training and matches. As we wrap up our fall preseason and look forward to our first season back, we’re more than ready to re-define our goals and keep pushing our program forward.  

Over recent years, our team has become substantially more competitive. In a short time, UCLA Women’s Rugby progressed from not winning any games in 2016, to holding our own at play offs and fueling our nationals ambitions. Our steadfast dedication to our program has brought on rapid growth in numerous areas: from expanding our coaching staff, to hosting elite-level clinics with players from the Women's National Team, to establishing a new 7s program. Rugby is the fastest growing sport in the US, and UCLA Women’s Rugby is definitely a testament to that.

However, most collegiate rugby programs, like UCLA Women's Rugby, are not funded by the university nor are they NCAA recognized. While our program is working hard to one day be an NCAA team, in the meantime, we rely on players' dues and from donations from you, our phenomenal alumni and supporters, to sustain and grow our program. We are so proud of our growth, but as we bounce back from our year off and redefine our program, we are very aware that we don’t want to stop here. 

Our player’s annual dues help pay for jerseys, mouth guards, hiring referees, travel expenses, coaching salaries, and various other costs that help us compete as a team. However, even in normal years, relying solely on dues as a main source of funding makes our long term goals difficult to enact upon. Our budget has been even further stretched as we recover from a year without substantial income due to COVID-19. As our program looks to further our elite ambitions and eventually join the collegiate rugby’s race to 40 NCAA teams, we’re going to need everyone’s help  to re-envision the possibilities of our program.  

Your donations would help our program at every level from booting up for practices to one day winning nationals. We hope you'll help us reach our Spark goal of $10,000! 

CLICK HERE TO READ THE UCLA FOUNDATION'S DISCLOSURE STATEMENTS FOR DONORS