Our Story

Providing kids in under-served Washington DC communities with access to physical, mental and social health through the game of rugby.

Washington DC Youth Rugby was founded in 2004 by members of the Washington Rugby Club with the mission to reach out to underserved children in Washington, DC to promote health and physical fitness and teach valuable life skills through the sport of rugby.

Our program started in NE DC with seven kids; just enough to field a team in the MD & VA summer non-contact program. We have since grown to include non-contact teams in every age group, from Under-6 to Under-14 as well as tackle teams from U-12 through high school.

Over the last 20 years, we have strived to provide a fun, safe environment where kids can learn and develop their rugby skills as well as life skills such as sportsmanship, teamwork and camaraderie.

Washington DC Youth Rugby is unique in that we have families from all over DC, and the world, playing on the same team. Our program is free, so kids from low-income households can participate without worrying about costs. We have kids from all quadrants of DC, including many members of the expat community from countries such as Australia, New Zealand, Ireland, Argentina and Japan!

Our goal is to grow the game and introduce more kids to a new, exciting international sport. We’ve had several of our players play rugby in college and beyond.

We are able to keep the program free due to the support of our many sponsors, donors and supporters. If interested in helping us further our mission, please make a tax-deductible donation.

We are a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization (EIN:26-2820897) and participants in Combined Federal Campaign, CFC #66651.

Help grow our impact with a contribution.
100% of proceeds go to Washington DC Youth Rugby.