New York native Matt Anticev played in Major League Rugby during the 2024 season. He represented Rugby FC LA for his entire MLR career, after being drafted 5th overall in 2023 by Rugby ATL, who later relocated and re-branded to Rugby FC LA.

Anticev grew up on Staten Island, NY and played rugby through high school at Xavier, where he was coached by former Rugby New York scrum-half and capped USA Eagle Mike Petri. Anticev earned his undergraduate degree from the College of the Holy Cross, graduating in 2021 before attending Dartmouth College between 2021-2023 and earning a Masters degree in Creative Writing and playing rugby throughout.

Anticev declared for the 2023 MLR Collegiate Draft and was selected 5th overall by Rugby ATL, the sale of which had already been announced by MLR. The new owners relocated the franchise to Los Angeles and rebranded the team as Rugby FC LA. In his rookie season, Anticev earned 6 MLR appearances including 2 starts at fly-half, a position relatively thin for the USA Eagles and so Anticev had plenty of eyes watching him, and performed admirably.

achievements

• 2023 MLR Draftee: 5th Overall (1st Rd) – Rugby ATL