Season: MLR 2026

The 9th season of Major League Rugby saw the merging of the San Diego Legion and Rugby FC LA to form the California Legion, as well as the withdrawal of multiple teams to take the league from 11 sides in 2025, to 6 in 2026.

Callum Botchar

Ontario born BC native Callum Botchar played in Major League Rugby between 2024-2026. He represented the NOLA Gold (2024-2025) and the Seattle Seawolves (2026).

Botchar attended the University of British Columbia, playing for the Thunderbirds while majoring in Psychology. He joined the Pacific Pride, Rugby Canada’s development academy, and represented the national U20 side. Botchar is already a test capped Canadian, earning his international debut against the Netherlands in November 2022. He was selected for a test against Tonga in the summer of 2023 but was a late scratch. That year, Botchar also travelled to New Zealand to play with the Taranaki Men’s Development system, as well as the New Plymouth Old Boys in the Taranaki Premier Division. Botchar has also dipped his toe into Rugby League, representing the restarted Toronto Wolfpack in their 2021 Canada Cup victory against DC Cavalry.

Although it was never made public, Botchar was signed with the Toronto Arrows for the 2024 MLR season, but with the Arrows announcing that they would not compete in the 2024 MLR season in late November 2023, he opted in to the subsequent Dispersal Draft for Toronto and NY players (the Ironworkers also announced that they would not compete in the 2024 season a week after the Arrows) and was selected 16th overall by the NOLA Gold.

On 4th January 2024, the NOLA Gold confirmed the signing of Callum Botchar for the 2024 MLR season when he scored 2 tries in 16 appearances (9 starts), and completed over 100 tackles. He was named as the recipient of the 2024 NOLA Gold Shawn Riley ‘Heart of Gold’ Award. On December 26th, 2024, the NOLA Gold announced the return of Callum Botchar for his 2nd MLR season in 2025. Botchar added 7 appearances (3 starts) for the NOLA Gold in 2025, passing 200m gained in his career and adding another 39 tackles to his total. With the withdrawal of the NOLA Gold from Major League Rugby during the 2025/26 offseason Botchar became a free agent, and on 22nd January 2026, the Seattle Seawolves announced that they had added the Canadian international to their squad for 2026.

achievements

Seth Smith

Texas native Seth Smith played in Major League Rugby between 2024-2026. He represented the Houston SaberCats (2024-2025) and Anthem RC (2026).

Smith played football, wrestled, and played rugby through high school, the latter of which he was introduced to by his father. He was a USA Rugby All-American and was selected for the USA U20s. He signed a professional contract with the Houston SaberCats on 6th June 2023 when he was 17, becoming the youngest player in history to sign a Major League Rugby contract. He played with the SaberCats U18 side as well as the SaberCats 2 (Rugby HTX at the time) that year, and was announced as a member of the SaberCats MLR roster on 3rd January 2024 as the first graduate of their academy system.

Smith attended a USA Rugby U20 High Performance Camp over the Christmas period in 2023 before jumping in to the 2024 season with the SaberCats, where he scored 2 tries in 6 appearances (1 start) before returning to the USA U20s for the annual World Rugby U20s Trophy North American qualifier series against Canada. Smith earned a MLR Team of the Week selection for his performance in Round 9. On December 13th, 2024, the Houston SaberCats confirmed the return of Seth Smith for his sophomore season in MLR in 2025 where he set career highs across the board, starting 7 of his 13 appearances for the SaberCats and scoring 5 tries, earning another two MLR Team of the Week selections. He recorded 137m gained and 89 tackles, more than doubling his career totals in both.

Following the surprise news in September 2025 that the Houston SaberCats were withdrawing from Major League Rugby, Seth Smith became a free agent and on 22nd November, Anthem RC announced the addition of Smith for the 2026 season, a few days after his agency broke the news.

achievements

  • 2025 Western Conference Champion: Houston SaberCats
  • MLR Team of the Week: 2025 – Rd 14
  • MLR Team of the Week: 2025 – Rd 6
  • MLR Team of the Week: 2024 – Rd 10
  • MLR Team of the Week: 2024 – Rd 9

Ezekiel Lindenmuth

Samoan prop Ezekiel Lindenmuth played in Major League Rugby between 2024-2026. He represented the Houston SaberCats (2024-2025) and the Seattle Seawolves (2026).

Born in Samoa, Lindenmuth has represented both Samoa and New Zealand at U20 levels, and earned a full test debut for Samoa in the 2022 Pacific Nations Cup. At club level, He represented Auckland in NZ’s National Provincial Championship (NPC) between 2018-2019, as well as the Counties Manukau since 2020. He has represented the Moana Pasifika in Super Rugby since 2021.

On 24th December 2023, the Houston SaberCats announced the signing of Ezekiel Lindenmuth ahead of the 2024 season. He appeared in 14 games for the SaberCats (all starts) in his debut MLR season, completing over 100 tackles and gaining over 300m in possession as a front row. The ‘Cats finished the regular season as MLR’s top team with a record of 14-2, but were stunned by the Dallas Jackals in the Western Conference Semifinals. For his solid performances, Lindenmuth was named to the All-MLR Honorable Mention XV.

On February 19th, 2025, following Rd 1 of the 2025 season, the Houston SaberCats announced the return of Ezekiel Lindenmuth for the 2025 season. In his sophomore season, Lindenmuth started 13 of his 15 appearances for the Houston SaberCats including all 3 of their postseason games as the SaberCats earned their first postseason victories to claim the Western Conference title after defeating Rugby FC LA and the Utah Warriors. Lindenmuth also started the 2025 Championship as the SaberCats fell to the New England Free Jacks. He set a new career high with 128 tackles made, and was a 2025 All-MLR Honorable Mention.

Following the 2025 season, Ezekiel Lindenmuth was included in the USA Rugby squad for their July tests. He became eligible to represent the USA on 16th July 2025 (having represented Samoa in 2022), and was named in the starting lineup for the Eagles’ 19th July test against England as Eagle #594. Following the surprise withdrawal of the Houston SaberCats from Major League Rugby in September 2025, Lindenmuth headed to the PNW and on 12th December 2025, the Seattle Seawolves announced the addition of Ezekiel Lindenmuth for the 2026 MLR season. In his first season in the PNW, Lindenmuth missed 3 games due to a suspension from a red card, but started all 8 Seawolves games that he was eligible to play in. He scored his first two career MLR tries, beating 12 defenders on 70m gained in possession, while completing the same number of tackles. Lindenmuth earned two MLR Team of the Week selections in 2026 to help Seattle finish the regular season in 2nd place before falling to the California Legion in the Semifinals.

Following the 2026 season, Lindenmuth was named to the USA Eagles squad for their World Rugby Nations Cup matches in July 2026, before heading back to New Zealand to rejoin Counties Manukau for their 2026 NPC season.

achievements
  • MLR Team of the Week: 2026 – Rd 3
  • MLR Team of the Week: 2026 – Rd 2
  • 2025 All-MLR Honorable Mention
  • 2025 Western Conference Champion – Houston SaberCats
  • MLR Team of the Week: 2025 – Rd 17
  • 2024 All-MLR Honorable Mention
  • MLR Team of the Week: 2024 – Rd 13
  • MLR Team of the Week: 2024 – Rd 2

Bart Vermeulen

Dutch-born Belgian prop Bart Vermeulen played in Major League Rugby between 2024-2026 season. He represented the NOLA Gold (2024-2025) and Old Glory DC (2026).

Bart Vermeulen represented the Belgium U18s against Japan, Canada, and Spain in 2017, the same year he moved to Ireland to study at Trinity College, where he studied between 2017-2021. During his time in Ireland, Vermeulen represented Trinity in Division 1A of the All-Ireland League and also played with the Connacht Academy while at the University of Galway between 2021-2022. Following his Masters’ Degree in Galway, He moved to the USA and trained with Old Glory DC during the 2023 season before playing with the NOLA Gold Academy in the ARP in the fall. He clearly impressed at the Gold Academy, as on 20th December 2023, the Gold announced that they had signed Vermeulen to an MLR contract for the 2024 season.

Having earned his MLR debut during the 2024 season, he began be the 2nd Belgian born player to play in Major League Rugby, following Jeremy Lenaerts. Vermeulen earned 5 MLR appeared in total for the Gold in 2024, and was confirmed as returning for 2025 by the NOLA Gold on December 17th, 2024. Vermeulen enjoyed a productive season in 2025, even though the Gold took a step backwards. He earned his first pro start, starting 4 of his 12 appearances and completing 63 tackles, all of which are career highs. Following the news in August 2025 that the NOLA Gold were withdrawing from Major League Rugby, Bart Vermeulen explored the market as a free agent and on 21st November 2025, Old Glory DC announced that they had signed him for the 2026 season.

achievements
  • MLR Team of the Week: 2026 – Rd 4
  • MLR Team of the Week: 2025 – Rd 12

Michael Hand

US-born Irish winger Michael Hand played in Major League Rugby between 2024-2026. He represented the Miami Sharks on loan from the Chicago Hounds in 2024, the Hounds themselves (2025), and the Seattle Seawolves (2026).

Born in Connecticut, Hand grew up in Ireland and was an All-Ireland Champion Medalist for three consecutive years in the 4×100 relay, while also playing rugby. He attended UC Cork between 2019-2023 and spent some time at Baylor University in Utah as an exchange student. Upon graduation, Hand played for Cork Constitution in Division 1A of the All-Ireland League.

On 19th December 2023, the Chicago Hounds announced the signing of Michael Hand ahead of the 2024 MLR season. On 18th April 2024, the Chicago Hounds announced that they had loaned Hand to the Miami Sharks on a 4-week deal, that became the length of the season. Hand earned 8 MLR appearances for the Sharks, starting 6 times and scoring 3 tries before returning to the Hounds. On October 21st, 2024, the Chicago Hounds announced the return of Michael Hand for the 2025 MLR season where he added a 4th MLR try and started all 5 of his appearances with the Hounds that year and earned his first MLR Team of the Week selection following his performance in Round 3. Hand gained a career high 310m in possession that season to pass 500m gained in his 13 game MLR career over 2 seasons.

On 12th February 2026, the Seattle Seawolves announced that they had added Michael Hand to their squad for the 2026 campaign, marking Hand’s 3rd in the competition.

achievements
  • MLR Team of the Week: 2025 – Rd 3

Drake Davis

Louisiana native Drake Davis played in Major League Rugby between 2024-2026. He represented the Houston SaberCats (2024-2025) and the Seattle Seawolves (2026).

Crossover athlete Drake Davis played gridiron football as a wide receiver for Louisiana State University between 2016-2017 and was a 4-star recruit in Rivals, ESPN Scout, and 247 Sports, but turned to rugby following a fall from grace. He played with SaberCats 2 during their 2023 season, earning a full MLR contract with Houston ahead of the 2024 season. His signing was announced by the SaberCats on 14th December 2023. Davis earned two appearances off the bench for the ‘Cats as they finished with the best record in MLR in 2024, 14-2.

Davis returned for a second season with the Houston SaberCats in 2025, recording career highs across the board and earning his first MLR Team of the Week selection in the final week of the regular season, thanks in part to a superb solo try (his first in MLR) against Anthem RC. In total that year, he scored 3 tries in 10 appearances and gained almost 450m to help the SaberCats advance to the MLR Championship Game where they fell to the New England Free Jacks. Davis was named to the Houston starting XV for the final, scoring one of the SaberCats’ 3 tries.

Following the dramatic contraction of MLR between 2025 & 2026, Drake Davis found himself without a professional team at the start of the 2026 season. However, with former Houston SaberCats teammate Rufus McLean leaving the Seattle Seawolves (with whom he was signed) before playing a game there for an opportunity in France, the Seawolves acquired Davis for the 2026 season ahead of Round 5.

achievements

Santiago Videla

Chilean utility back Santiago Videla played in Major League Rugby between 2024-2026. He represented the Miami Sharks (2024-2025) and the Chicago Hounds (2026).

Videla is a capped Chilean international, having represented the U20 side in 2017-2018, and he earned his test debut for his country in 2017 against Kenya. He represented Chile at the 2023 Rugby World Cup in France and is Chile’s all-time leading points scorer at XVs level. He has also represented his country at Sevens level in the HSBC Sevens Series. At Club level, Videla represented Selknam, Chile’s representatives in Super Rugby Americas (formerly SLAR) between 2019-2023.

On 14th December 2023, the Miami Sharks announced the signing of Santiago Videla for the 2024 MLR season, where he split kicking duties with Felipe Etcheverry, finishing 1pt ahead of Etcheverry on 74pts, 10th in MLR scoring in 2024 as the Sharks enjoyed a respectable inaugural season, just missing out on the playoffs but boasting victories over the NOLA Gold and the reigning champions, the New England Free Jacks. On October 18th 2024, the Miami Sharks announced the return of Santiago Videla for the 2025 MLR season and on April 27th, during Round 11 of that season he became the first Miami Sharks player to pass 100pts scored for the team. He totalled 46pts in his 11 games (all starts) in 2025, helping the Miami Sharks earn their first and only playoff appearance and taking his points total for the Sharks, and in MLR, to 120pts in 23 games. Videla also recorded over 550m gained for the 2nd consecutive season, and sits on 1,150m gained in his MLR career.

Following the announcement in August 2025 that the Miami Sharks were withdrawing from Major League Rugby, Santiago Videla became the first International player to be signed for the 2026 season, when Rugbypass announced that Videla had signed with the Chicago Hounds on October 22nd, 2025. The Chicago Hounds confirmed his addition for their 2026 campaign a few days later.

achievements
  • MLR Team of the Week: 2026 – Rd 10
  • 10th in MLR Scoring: 2024 (74pts)
  • MLR Team of the Week: 2024 – Rd 11

James Scott

English lock James Scott played in Major League Rugby between 2024-2026. He represented the Chicago Hounds (2024-2025) and Anthem RC (2026).

Scott was a long-time member of the Worcester Warriors system, starting with the U15 side and progressing to the senior academy in 2017. He made his debut for the senior English Premiership side in 2018, against Stade Francais in the Challenge Cup. He represented the Warriors from 2018-2021 when he was loaned to the Glasgow Warriors in the URC for a 6 week stint. Scott represented the Jersey Reds during their 2022/23 Championship campaign, finishing as champions under Chicago Hounds coach Rob Webber.

The Chicago Hounds announced the signing of James Scott on 13th December 2023, ahead of the 2024 MLR season where he appeared in 17 games (all starts) and scored 4 tries as the Hounds qualified for the MLR Playoffs for the first time in team history, defeating the NOLA Gold before falling to the eventual Champions the New England Free Jacks in the Eastern Conference Final. Scott completed over 150 tackles in 2024 and earned an All-MLR Second XV selection for his performance. On January 9th, 2025, the Chicago Hounds confirmed the return of James Scott for a second MLR season in 2025. For the 2nd season in a row, Scott started in all 17 of his appearances for the Hounds in 2025, scoring a 5th career MLR try and recording his first 200+ tackle season with 209 completed, finishing 9th League-wide as the Chicago Hounds advanced to the Eastern Conference Final before falling to the New England Free Jacks once again, by a single point. Scott was named to the All-MLR Second XV for his performance in 2025, the second season in a row.

On the morning of 17th December 2025, Anthem RC announced that they had added James Scott to their roster for the 2026 season, his 3rd in Major League Rugby.

achievements

  • 2025 All-MLR Second XV Selection
  • 9th in MLR Tackling: 2025 (209)
  • MLR Team of the Week: 2025 – Rd 17
  • MLR Team of the Week: 2025 – Rd 8
  • MLR Team of the Week: 2025 – Rd 7
  • MLR Team of the Week: 2025 – Rd 2
  • 2024 All-MLR Second XV Selection
  • MLR Team of the Week: 2024 – Rd 18
  • MLR Team of the Week: 2024 – Rd 6

Cassh Maluia

California native Cassh Maluia played in Major League Rugby between 2024-2026. He represented the Chicago Hounds (2024), the San Diego Legion (2025), and the California Legion (2026).

Former NFL player Maluia played football all through high school as well as for all 4 years at the University of Wyoming between 2016-2019. He was drafted 204th overall (6th Rd) in the 2020 NFL draft by the New England Patriots, and signed a short-term contract with the Tennessee Titans in 2021. Following this, Maluia joined up with the Colorado XO program (formerly Colorado Raptors of MLR, and the American Raptors of SRA) and played with the crossover program until 2023.

On 6th December 2023, the Chicago Hounds announced the signing of Cassh Maluia for the 2024 MLR season, where he earned 2 starts and 7 appearances, scoring 1 try and running for over 150m gained in possession. Maluia was released by the Hounds following the 2024 season, but on February 27th, 2025, the San Diego Legion announced the signing of Maluia for the remainder of the 2025 season, and was included in the matchday 23 for their Rd 3 clash with Old Glory DC. Maluia would enjoy a solid sophomore season in MLR, setting career highs almost across the board. He started 6 of his 9 appearances for the Legion, scoring a 2nd MLR try and gaining a career high 187m with an even 50 tackles completed (doubling his previous career high). Following the merger of the San Diego Legion with Rugby FC LA to form the California Legion, Maluia remained in California, with the Legion announcing his signing on January 27th, 2026 ahead of their inaugural season that year.

Maluia would earn a career high 10 appearances with the California Legion in 2026, equalling a career high 6 starts as well as maintaining his 1 try a season scoring pace. He gained just shy of 350m in possession, a huge jump from his previous career high of 187m, and was just 1 short of his tackle total from last season, with 49 completed. As well as helping the Legion qualify for the postseason, Cassh Maluia was named in the starting XV for both of their playoff matches in 2026, including the Championship game where they fell to the Chicago Hounds. Following the MLR season, Maluia was selected for the USA squad for the condensed Pacific Nations Cup in August, and earned his test debut as Eagle #605 in a 19-16 loss to Canada in Japan.

achievements
  • MLR Team of the Week: 2026 – Rd 5

Ignacio Péculo

Uruguayan prop Ignacio Péculo played in Major League Rugby between 2024-2026. He represented the Chicago Hounds (2024-2025) and the Seattle Seawolves (2026).

Born in Argentina, Péculo moved to Uruguay and represented Los Teros U20s between 2018-2020. He represented Peñarol, Uruguay’s club in SLAR (now Super Rugby Americas) between 2020-2023, winning back-to-back championships in the latter 2 years. Internationally, Péculo played with Los Teros XV in 2020, earning a full test debut for Uruguay against Spain that same year. He represented Los Teros during the 2023 Rugby World Cup in France.

The Chicago Hounds announced the signing of Ignacio Péculo on 4th December 2023, ahead of the 2024 MLR season where he appeared in 14 games (6 starts) and scored 1 try as the Hounds qualified for the MLR playoffs for the first time in team history. Péculo did not appear in their Championship Series games, however. On January 9th, 2025, the Chicago Hounds confirmed the return of Ignacio Peculo for a 2nd season in 2025. In his 2nd season with the Hounds, Péculo earned a career high 17 appearances, featuring in all but 1 of Chicago’s games that season, and passed 150 career tackles in MLR thanks to 93 tackles completed during the 2025 campaign, also adding a 2nd try on 46m gained as a reliable reserve prop for the Chicago Hounds.

Following MLR’s crackdown on foreign players ahead of the 2026 season, Ignacio Péculo wasn’t able to return to the Chicago Hounds for a 3rd season. However, on 3rd February 2026 the Seattle Seawolves announced that they had added the Uruguayan to their squad for 2026.

achievements

  • MLR Team of the Week: 2025 – Rd 9
  • MLR Team of the Week: 2024 – Rd 6
  • MLR Team of the Week: 2024 – Rd 3