North American Rugby League
 | |
| Sport | Rugby league |
|---|---|
| Instituted | 2021 |
| Inaugural season | 2022 |
| CEO | Robert Curtis |
| Number of teams | 14 |
| Countries |  United States Canada |
| Website | narugbyleague.com |
| Broadcast partner | SportsFlick |
The North American Rugby League (NARL) is scheduled to be the only professional rugby league club competition in North America. At launch, the league announced fourteen teams; twelve from United States and two from Canada.[1][2] An inaugural season was planned for 2021 but was deferred until 2022 due to increased health and safety needs regarding COVID-19 and insurance and travel costs.
History[edit]
Background[edit]
An American based rugby league competition was first established in 1998 when the American NRL was formed. The organisation ran the AMNRL league competition and organised the USA national team and their fixtures. This competition lasted for 13 years until seven clubs left to form the USARL, citing the poor running of the competition as their reason for a breakaway.
The USARL was founded in 2011, however the AMNRL was still active, meaning there were two major rugby league competitions in the USA. The AMNRL suffered from competition with the USARL and did not run a competition in 2013. The following year the AMNRL folded and handed over all control of the USA national team to the USARL making it the sole governing body and league competition in the USA.
2016–2020: North American clubs in Britain[edit]
In 2016, the Toronto Wolfpack were founded and entered the British RFL system and were promoted to Super League in 2019. Following the success of the Wolfpack, two other clubs, Ottawa Aces and New York were formed and accepted into the RFL. However, Toronto withdrew from Super League after seven rounds and were not readmitted at the end of the 2020 season. Despite the RFL accepting Ottawa and New York, the demise of Toronto and a report by then-Super League chief executive Robert Elstone saying there were no opportunities for rugby league in North America left doubts over transatlantic teams competing in the British rugby league system.
2021–present: Foundation[edit]
After the demise of the Toronto Wolfpack, the club was seen as a success by many and created shockwaves across America.[citation needed] A former trialist for the Wolfpack set up Cleveland Rugby League in 2020. In March 2021 the North American Rugby League was announced and included the two clubs accepted into the RFL as well as Toronto, Cleveland, three USARL clubs, a former rugby union club and six new formerly amateur clubs.
In April 2021, USARL issued a statement that NARL is not recognized or sanctioned by USARL (as the governing body for rugby league in the USA) and therefore anyone playing in the NARL was ineligible to play at international level.[3]
The inaugural season was due to start on June 19, 2021 with Boston hosting the first four Eastern Conference games and Las Vegas hosting the Western Conference games on 20 June, with all games to be streamed globally on SportsFlick. There are plans for clubs to draft 14 players who will be signed centrally by the NARL.[4] On May 12, the league announced that the Western Conference would be postponed to 2022 as the teams were unable to arrange adequate insurance for the players.[5]
On June 7 2021, Robert Curtis, the league's chief operating officer, announced that competition would be suspended until 2022 due to cost issues and health and safety restrictions relating to COVID-19.[6] Some friendly matches will be played and the Canada Cup will be contested by Toronto Wolfpack and Ottawa Aces.[6]
Following the announcement of the league's suspension, USARL issued a statement that all NARL teams and players would be welcome to join USARL for the 2021 season.[7]
The league has partnered with Italian sportswear company Macron, who will provide kits to all teams in the competition.[8]
Founders[edit]
Atlanta Rhinos - 2017 USARL Champions
Austin Armadillos
Brooklyn Kings - 2019 USARL Champions
Boston Thirteens - 2015 USARL Champions
Cleveland Rugby League
Las Vegas Blackjacks
New York Freedom
Phoenix Venom
Portland Loggers
San Diego Swell- San Francisco Rush
Washington DC Cavalry
Ottawa Aces - Future RFL club
Toronto Wolfpack - Former Super League club
Teams[edit]
The teams are split into Eastern and Western Conferences, with Canadian clubs playing in a cup due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The Canadian clubs are due to join the Eastern Conference in 2022.[9]
| Eastern Conference | ||||||
| Colors | Club | Founded | City (MSA) | Stadium | Titles (Last) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 |
Atlanta Rhinos | 2014 | Atlanta, Georgia | Atlanta Silverbacks Park | 0 | |
 |
Brooklyn Kings | 2014 | Brooklyn, New York City, New York | Bushwick Inlet Park | 0 | |
 |
Boston Thirteens | 2009 | Boston, Massachusetts | Nickerson Field | 0 | |
 |
Cleveland RL | 2018 | Cleveland, Ohio | Cleveland Central Catholic High School | 0 | |
 |
New York Freedom | 2019 | White Plains, New York | White Plains High School | 0 | |
 |
Washington DC Cavalry | 2021 | Washington DC | Evergreen Sportsplex | 0 | |
 |
Ottawa Aces | 2019 | Ottawa, Ontario | TD Place Stadium | 0 | |
 |
Toronto Wolfpack | 2016 | Toronto, Ontario | Lamport Stadium | 0 | |
| Western Conference | ||||||
| Colors | Club | Founded | City (MSA) | Stadium | Titles (Last) | |
 |
Austin Armadillos | 2021 | Austin, Texas | TBA | 0 | |
 |
Las Vegas Blackjacks | 2021 | Las Vegas, Nevada | TBA | 0 | |
 |
Phoenix Venom | 2021 | Phoenix, Arizona | TBA | 0 | |
 |
Portland Loggers | 2021 | Portland, Oregon | TBA | 0 | |
 |
San Diego Swell | 2021 | San Diego, California | TBA | 0 | |
|
San Francisco Rush | 2021 | San Francisco, California | TBA | 0 | |
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Champions[edit]
| Season | Grand Finals | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Champions | Score | Runners-up | |
| 2022 | TBD | TBD | |
See also[edit]
References[edit]
- ^ Bower, Aaron (April 4, 2021). "North America Rugby League examined - salary cap, players, impact on RFL and Super League". Hull Daily Mail. Retrieved April 15, 2021.
- ^ "NARL Press Release". North American Rugby League. North American Rugby League. Retrieved March 31, 2021.
- ^ Gordon, James (April 15, 2021). "New North American rugby league 'not sanctioned' by governing body". Love Rugby League. Retrieved April 15, 2021.
- ^ Ritchie, Dean. "North American Rugby League competition launches with eyes on recruiting NRL talent". Retrieved March 31, 2021.
- ^ "North American Rugby League:Western division suspended until 2022". Sportingnews.com. May 13, 2021. Retrieved May 13, 2021.
- ^ a b "New North American rugby league shelved until 2022". www.msn.com. June 7, 2021. Retrieved June 7, 2021.
- ^ Lowe, Brian. "USA Rugby League extends olive branch to NARL teams". Rugby League Planet. Retrieved July 2, 2021.
- ^ Macron partners with NARL
- ^ "The Aces become a founding franchise in new professional North American Rugby League (NARL)". Ottawa Aces. Ottawa Aces. Retrieved March 31, 2021.
External links[edit]
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