Background and history
Rugby ATL joined MLR as a part of the second wave of expansion with the New England Free Jacks, and Old Glory DC announced in September of 2018. The name Rugby ATL was announced in February of 2019, and the team became informally known as the RATLers. This nickname proved so popular that a rattlesnake variant of the logo was produced and used on some merchandise. Their inaugural season was 2020 and only lasted 5 rounds before the COVID-19 pandemic forced MLR to cancel the season. When the league returned in 2021, Rugby ATL proved a strong side, finishing with a 11-0-5 record good enough for 1st in the Eastern Conference. Rugby ATL finished as Runners-up in 2021 after losing the MLR Championship game to the LA Giltinis, 31-17.
In 2021, the original owner of the team, S. Marcus Calloway, sadly passed away and ownership of the team was transferred to an investment group tasked with the eventual sale of the club. In 2022, Rugby ATL repeated their impressive 11-0-5 season but fell in the Eastern Conference Eliminator to eventual Champions, Rugby New York. The club went through a controversial rebrand following the 2022 season, moving away from the greys and blacks, and the RATLers moniker to dark greens and white, with light blue and peach accents (a nod to Georgia, the peach state). This rebrand did not go down well with fans, or some long-term players. The team took a step back on the pitch in 2023, finishing with a 5-1-10 record for 5th in the Eastern Conference.
During the 2023 off-season, Rugby ATL and MLR announced that the club had been sold and would be relocating to Los Angeles, leaving Atlanta without a pro rugby team. This relocation because Rugby FC LA, the league’s 2nd attempt at a professional team in Los Angeles. For the purposes of this website and MLRStats in general, RFCLA is treated like a completely new franchise with it’s own unique records. As of the 2024 season, Atlanta remains without a MLR franchise.
Records & Record Holders
2021 MLR Runners-Up
all time
Top Scorer: Kurt Coleman (174pts)
Top Try Scorer: Alex Maughan & Marko Janse van Rensburg (18)
Top Playoff Scorer: Kurt Coleman (28pts)
Top Tackler: Matt Heaton (635)
Top Meter Eater: Te Rangatira Waitokia (2,691m)
Most Capped Player: Alex Maughan & Johan Momsen (53)
Most Starts: Johan Momsen (49)
single season
Top Scorer: Kurt Coleman (83pts) – 2022
Top Try Scorer: Marko Janse van Rensburg (9) – 2021, 2022
Top Tackler: Matt Heaton (215) – 2023
Top Meter Eater: Will Leonard (1,267m)
Historical performance
2020: 2-0-3 (+6) – 12pts: 5th in Eastern Conference
2021: 11-0-5 (+99) – 57pts: 1st in Eastern Conference (MLR Runners-Up)
2022: 11-0-5 (+128) – 57pts: 2nd in Eastern Conference (Conference Semi-Finalist)
2023: 5-1-10 (-73) – 28pts: 5th in Eastern Conference
Overall Regular Season Record: 29-1-23
Overall Championship Series Record: 1-2
Championship Series Appearances: 2 (2021, 2022)
head coach & captain
Head Coach
- Scott Lawrence (2020-2022)
- Steve Brett (2023)
captain
- Ryan Nell (2020 – Co-Capt)
- Matt Heaton (2020-2023 – Co-Capt from 2020-2021, 2023)
- Johan Momsen (2023 – Co-Capt)
logo & jersey
The RugbyATL brand and logo has gone through a number of changes over the course of their Major League Rugby story, including a large re-brand shortly before the 2023 MLR season where they moved away from the ‘RATLers’ brand and colours.
For their first few seasons in MLR, Rugby ATL used black and grey with red accents, as shown in the logos to the left. They also bought into the ‘RATLer’ moniker given to them by the fanbase, and had a variant of their logo with a snake as a nod to this. Their jerseys reflected this too, with grey typically being their away colour, and black their home. Following their controversial rebrand ahead of the 2023 season, ATL changed to a primarily dark green logo, and home jersey with the ‘lined ATL” subtly covering the chest. Their away jersey following this rebrand was primarily white with the ‘lined ATL’ covering the chest in dark green. The 2023 ATL home jersey was one of the best in the league at the time, but was unfortunately tainted by the rebrand which went down poorly with fans and long-time ATL players.
venue
Rugby ATL played shared strong ties with Life University in Marietta, GA. Life boasts a strong rugby program from with ATL drew and they played their home games at Life U’s stadium, the 2,500 seater Lupo Family Field, between 2020-2021. This was always intended as a temporary home and the club was forced to move in 2022 due to flood damage at Life U. Rugby ATL found it’s new home at the 5,000 seater Silverbacks Park, where they played for their final two seasons from 2022-2023.
