Founded in 2017 with it’s inaugural season played in 2018, Major League Rugby (MLR) is the highest level of professional rugby in North America.
California native Nico Gilli played in Major League Rugby during the 2022 season, representing the San Diego Legion.
Gilli is from Southern California, an alum of San Diego State University. He earned his first and (to date) only MLR cap as a replacement in the Legion’s opening game of their 2022 campaign, a 31-29 victory over the Utah Warriors.
New Zealand hooker Matt Moulds played in Major League Rugby during the 2022 season, representing the San Diego Legion.
Moulds’ signing was announced in January 2022, the then-30yo joining from Gloucester in the English Premiership following a few years with Worcester Warriors. Moulds scored 2 tries in his 8 MLR caps (5 starts) for the Legion in their 2022 campaign.
Moulds did not re-sign with the Legion for the 2023 season, instead returning to his long-time NPC team, Northland.
Achievements:
Arizonan prop Thomas Reyes briefly represented the San Diego Legion in the 2022 MLR season.
A US Navy vet, Reyes began playing rugby in Italy around 2015. He was added to the Legion roster for their 2022 season opener against the Utah Warriors after regular prop Nathan Sylvia was a late scratch. Reyes entered the match late in the game to earn his first MLR cap in a 31-29 Legion win.
US-Eligible English hooker George Sharpe played in Major League Rugby between 2022-2023. He represented the NOLA Gold for his entire MLR career.
Born and raised in Nottinghamshire, England, Sharpe moved to North Carolina for high school. He attended Arkansas State University, graduating in his draft year of 2021. He was selected in the 1st Round of the 2021 MLR Collegiate Draft, 11th overall by the NOLA Gold.
Sharpe earned 5 Caps (1 starts) in his debut MLR season, splitting his time between the ‘big club’ and the NOLA Gold academy team. He earned a contract extension with the Gold for 2023 but did not feature at MLR level. That same year he was named as the head coach of New Orleans Rugby Club.
Uruguayan back row forward Manuel Ardao played in Major League Rugby between 2024-2025. He represented the Miami Sharks for their inaugural MLR season in 2024, and for his entire MLR career.
A capped international with Uruguay, Ardao is a veteran of 2 Rugby World Cups with Los Teros, representing them in both 2019 and most recently in 2023, where he was a standout. Ardao won 6 turnovers for Uruguay in their World Cup game against Italy, equalling a RWC record. He is a Uruguay regular, representing them in their 2025 July tests.
A then-24yo Manuel Ardao’s signing was announced by the Miami Sharks on 20th August 2023, 1 day before he was announced as a part of the Uruguay squad for the 2023 Rugby World Cup in France. Ardao was the 7th player in Sharks history to be announced, and would join the Florida team from Peñarol in the Super Rugby Americas competition, where the Uruguayan club had just won their 2nd title in a row. Ardao had an excellent 2024 season, scoring 5 tries in 12 games (all starts) for the Sharks, completing over 115 tackles and gaining over 550m from the back row as the Miami Sharks recorded an admirable inaugural season that included a victory over the reigning champion New England Free Jacks.
On November 9th, 2024, the Miami Sharks announced the return of Manu Ardao for the 2025 MLR season, where he continued to be a standout. He scored another 5 tries and started 13 of his 14 appearances for the Sharks (both career highs). He helped the Miami Sharks to their first ever postseason appearance in 2025, facing the New England Free Jacks in the Eastern Conference Semifinal. Ardao was dynamic in possession, gaining 500m while also completing over 150 tackles on defence and was a menace at the breakdown, leading the league in turnovers won with 27. He was named to the All-MLR 1st XV for his performance in 2025.
Following the withdrawal of the Miami Sharks from Major League Rugby during the 2025/26 offseason, Manu Ardao returned to Uruguay and Super Rugby Americas Champions Peñarol for their 2026 title defence.
This table shows the All-Time MLR standings across all seasons, from the inaugural 2018 campaign through to today.
This table includes both active and former MLR teams, 19 in total. Obviously, the teams that have featured in more MLR campaigns have a distinct advantage here, but as time goes on we are seeing more of a mix between the years. The San Diego Legion are in the lead despite never lifting the shield (2x runners-up though!), although with their merging with Rugby FC LA to create a new franchise, the California Legion, the Seattle Seawolves now have a great opportunity to pass the Legion in 2026.
Major League Rugby’s 2022 season marked the inaugural season for the Dallas Jackals. This is the only MLR season to date to have 3 teams from the same state (Dallas, in addition to the Austin Gilgronis and Houston SaberCats).
2022 was the first season since 2019 to have an odd number of teams (13), and as such, the regular season structure was altered slightly. Each team would still play each other team within their conference both home and away, but their out-of-conference games would be reduced to stick with a 16 game regular season. The Championship Series structure remained the same, with the #2 & #3 seeds from each conference facing each other in the Eliminator Round, with the victor advancing to face the #1 seed in the Conference Finals. The Conference Champions would then face off in the Championship Final.
Arguably the most controversial season to date, 2022 saw both Adam Gilchrist-owned teams (Austin Gilgronis and LA Giltinis) disqualified shortly before the Championship Series for which both sides had qualified. As a result, #4 & #5 seeds in the Western Conference saw themselves qualifying for the post season. This included the Houston SaberCats, marking their first playoff appearance since they joined MLR in the inaugural 2018 season.
Major League Rugby’s 2021 season saw the addition of the star-studded LA Giltinis side. The Dallas Jackals were also planning to enter the league for this season, but lingering effects of the global COVID-19 pandemic meant that the Jackals had to defer their entry to the 2022 season.
2021 saw the same regular season structure as was planned for the shortened 2020 season, with each team facing each other team within their conference both home and away, and each team outside their conference either home or away to create a 16 game regular season. The regular season was followed by a 3-week Championship Series, starting with the Eliminator round which pitted the #2 & #3 seeds from each conference against each other, the victor advancing to face the #1 seed in the Conference Finals. The Conference Finals saw teams fighting for a place in the Championship Final, contested by the champions of each conference.
The 2023 Major League Rugby season marked the inaugural campaign for the Chicago Hounds. Despite adding an expansion side, the league shrank back to 12 teams following the controversial disqualification of both Adam Gilchrist owned teams (Austin Gilgronis & LA Giltinis) prior to the 2022 Championship Series.
As a result, the league followed the same regular season structure as the 2021 season, with each team playing each other team within their conference both home & away, and each team from outside their conference home or away. The Championship Series structure remained the same, a 3-week playoffs with the Eliminator round pitting the #2 & #3 seeds from each conference against each other. The victor then plays the conference #1 seed in the Conference Finals, fighting for a place in the MLR Championship Final.
Major League Rugby’s 2020 season was cut short by the global COVID-19 pandemic, only completing 5 rounds before shutting down.
Nevertheless, the 2020 season marked the inaugural season for Old Glory DC, Rugby ATL (now Los Angeles…), and the New England Free Jacks. This season also saw the introduction of the Conference system, with the now-12 teams divided evenly into the Eastern and Western Conferences. Each team were to face each other team in their conference both home and away, and each team from outside their conference home or away for a 16 game regular season.
