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San Diego Legion unites with RFCLA to form California Legion
Major League Rugby's new West Coast entity
A different sort of mashup: RFCLA and San Diego were once rivals, but now they're united.
When the Chargers left San Diego for LA in 2017, fans were—in a word—pissed. Some quickly jumped ship to cheer for a different NFL team, while others held their noses and maintained their allegiance. Coincidentally, that same year Major League Rugby (MLR) launched, and San Diego was one of the seven cities to get a team in the league. It was a small piece of redemption to get the San Diego Legion at the same time the Chargers left. Now, fans are feeling a similar sense of abandonment: it was announced this past summer that the Legion would be uniting with Rugby Football Club Los Angeles (RFCLA). The team will now be called the California Legion.
It's not exactly a Chargers redux; the team isn’t quite leaving. The two clubs are simply coming together to form a new entity, building on the foundation that the San Diego Legion created in the hopes of forming a statewide brand. “It’s really important that San Diego Legion fans and San Diego Legion people aren’t losing their team,” newly appointed Legion CEO Adam Freier tells me. “What they’ve [MLR] created is this incredible team community that has really resonated. There have been some Legion fans that are upset, but that’s passion, and I get it.”
"There have been some Legion fans that are upset, but that’s passion, and I get it.”
What's not to get? First the Clippers, then the Chargers, now... But Freier insists that “those were teams that were moving to LA, this is not." As things stand, there will be at least two games in San Diego's Torero Stadium — maybe three. Then two games in Irvine, one game in Los Angeles, and another (potentially) in Sacramento.
Continues Freier, “This isn’t just a grip and rip to take the team from the city. They’ve [San Diego Legion] done such a great job at laying a foundation of a club that in ten, twenty years’ time could be one of the strongest powerhouse rugby clubs on the planet. It all started from San Diego. There are more people playing rugby in California than any state in America. It really is the best state to have a rugby team. It’s so diverse. There’s so much appetite for it.”
The Legion's name will endure: the brand identity that represents professional rugby in California. And since "legion" refers to an army, this could be seen as an alliance of forces between two longtime rivals. “But it’s an interesting army,” Freier states, “because [being] from SoCal, you’ve got this hard sort of militant mindset, then you’ve also got this free spirit. There’s sort of gap between what Legion is and what California is. We’re trying to blend that together. But when we do things, we’ll be doing it in force. It’s going to be fun.”
Last month, the sixth MLR college draft saw the Legion select Oscar Treacy out of Central Washington University with their first-round pick. The Australian-born back is the reigning USA College Rugby Player of the Year. Fans called him the steal of the draft. That's part of Freier's plan to make an immediate impact by strategically assembling the new team. “My job’s not an easy one, because I’m going to get the very best players from San Diego and merge them with the very best players in LA. You would think that’s going to create a super team, and it will, but there are some things around salary cap, and there are players that would prefer to start and not sit on the bench.” In terms of recruitment for the team, Freier says they have a focus on Cali kids, and if they’re from San Diego or LA, there’s a preference to look deeper at them.
“I think everyone should understand and know that when this team plays and represents California, and they’re playing in San Diego, we’ll always carry that pride with us, and we’ll always ensure that fans there get exactly what they truly deserve. It’s their rugby team. They should take pride in knowing they built this from a strong work ethic and love. It’s now about sharing it across the state and winning a championship.”
Despite the brutal nature of rugby on the field, it is very much a gentleman’s game. There isn’t any other sport that calls the referee sir, claps the opposition off, or hangs out with the other team in the locker room after the game — before going to sink some pints together. That’s rugby culture. And it’s still here.
Here's something you might be interested in.
San Diego Legion unites with RFCLA to form California Legion
Major League Rugby's new West Coast entity
San Diego Legion unites with RFCLA to form California Legion
Major League Rugby's new West Coast entity
A different sort of mashup: RFCLA and San Diego were once rivals, but now they're united.
When the Chargers left San Diego for LA in 2017, fans were—in a word—pissed. Some quickly jumped ship to cheer for a different NFL team, while others held their noses and maintained their allegiance. Coincidentally, that same year Major League Rugby (MLR) launched, and San Diego was one of the seven cities to get a team in the league. It was a small piece of redemption to get the San Diego Legion at the same time the Chargers left. Now, fans are feeling a similar sense of abandonment: it was announced this past summer that the Legion would be uniting with Rugby Football Club Los Angeles (RFCLA). The team will now be called the California Legion.
It's not exactly a Chargers redux; the team isn’t quite leaving. The two clubs are simply coming together to form a new entity, building on the foundation that the San Diego Legion created in the hopes of forming a statewide brand. “It’s really important that San Diego Legion fans and San Diego Legion people aren’t losing their team,” newly appointed Legion CEO Adam Freier tells me. “What they’ve [MLR] created is this incredible team community that has really resonated. There have been some Legion fans that are upset, but that’s passion, and I get it.”
"There have been some Legion fans that are upset, but that’s passion, and I get it.”
What's not to get? First the Clippers, then the Chargers, now... But Freier insists that “those were teams that were moving to LA, this is not." As things stand, there will be at least two games in San Diego's Torero Stadium — maybe three. Then two games in Irvine, one game in Los Angeles, and another (potentially) in Sacramento.
Continues Freier, “This isn’t just a grip and rip to take the team from the city. They’ve [San Diego Legion] done such a great job at laying a foundation of a club that in ten, twenty years’ time could be one of the strongest powerhouse rugby clubs on the planet. It all started from San Diego. There are more people playing rugby in California than any state in America. It really is the best state to have a rugby team. It’s so diverse. There’s so much appetite for it.”
The Legion's name will endure: the brand identity that represents professional rugby in California. And since "legion" refers to an army, this could be seen as an alliance of forces between two longtime rivals. “But it’s an interesting army,” Freier states, “because [being] from SoCal, you’ve got this hard sort of militant mindset, then you’ve also got this free spirit. There’s sort of gap between what Legion is and what California is. We’re trying to blend that together. But when we do things, we’ll be doing it in force. It’s going to be fun.”
Last month, the sixth MLR college draft saw the Legion select Oscar Treacy out of Central Washington University with their first-round pick. The Australian-born back is the reigning USA College Rugby Player of the Year. Fans called him the steal of the draft. That's part of Freier's plan to make an immediate impact by strategically assembling the new team. “My job’s not an easy one, because I’m going to get the very best players from San Diego and merge them with the very best players in LA. You would think that’s going to create a super team, and it will, but there are some things around salary cap, and there are players that would prefer to start and not sit on the bench.” In terms of recruitment for the team, Freier says they have a focus on Cali kids, and if they’re from San Diego or LA, there’s a preference to look deeper at them.
“I think everyone should understand and know that when this team plays and represents California, and they’re playing in San Diego, we’ll always carry that pride with us, and we’ll always ensure that fans there get exactly what they truly deserve. It’s their rugby team. They should take pride in knowing they built this from a strong work ethic and love. It’s now about sharing it across the state and winning a championship.”
Despite the brutal nature of rugby on the field, it is very much a gentleman’s game. There isn’t any other sport that calls the referee sir, claps the opposition off, or hangs out with the other team in the locker room after the game — before going to sink some pints together. That’s rugby culture. And it’s still here.
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