After a long period of confinement, the rugby world returns this weekend with plenty of action.
On the one hand, a new league of New Zealand Super Rugby franchises, called “Super Rugby Aotearoa”, will be launched in New Zealand. On the other hand, and the one that concerns us the most, comes for the first time in history the Major Rugby League “Collegiate Draft” .
I don’t know if you have ever heard about the famous “draft” that is held in the USA in sports such as basketball, soccer and soccer. In this event, professional teams may select players under 23 years of age who are in their final year of their careers. These teams will have the rights to the selected players to offer them a contract and incorporate them into their roster.
What is Major League Rugby (MLR)?
The United States has recently decided to take a step forward and create a new professional rugby league. The Americans want to bet on rugby because they have seen that it is a sport that continues to grow and increase its number of fans and sports licenses.
The MLR started this 2019/2020 season, with the misfortune that it could not be completed due to the pandemic. Even so, they came to play several days where we could see the incorporation of big name international players such as Ma’a Nonu (New Zealand) and Mathieu Bastareaud (France) among the best known.
This league is made up of 12 teams divided into 2 conferences (Eastern and Western). Most of them are located in well-known cities such as San Diego, New York, Atlanta, Salt Lake City…
Why is the Collegiate Draft held?
It is created with the same idea of continuing to grow rugby in the USA but is based on 4 pillars:
- To support and develop university rugby.
- To provide an outlet to professional rugby to all those university players interested in continuing their sporting career.
- To promote equal opportunities for MLR teams.
- To provide transparency between clubs, players and federation.
How does it work?
Interested players apply. They must be eligible and the MLR will consider each case on a case-by-case basis. To be eligible, players must have played in the previous 12 months on a varsity team in any division, have completed a 3-year career or be at least 21 years of age.
The order of selection of players will be according to the classification after the 5 rounds played this season, starting from the worst classified to the best. With the exception that this year the latest MLR inductees, the Dallas Jackals and Seattle Seawolves, who have not been part of the competition this season, will start to be eligible. The last one to choose will be San Diego, who has been ranked first.
A total of 24 players will be fortunate enough to have the opportunity to join a professional team.
When will the Collegiate Draft take place and how will we be able to watch it?
- Broadcast live through the
MLR official facebook page
- Tomorrow Saturday June 13 at 7pm (Eastern Time)*.*1am on Sunday, June 14 in Spain.
And you, will you dare to see it??
We have several MAE stars already in the world of college rugby in the USA, so we will be informed and we will be pending so that when their time comes we can help them in this new path or exit.
If you are considering going to study in the U.S. and then make the leap to a professional league like this, you can contact us and we will advise you. At MAE we are dedicated to finding your ideal college with the help of athletic scholarships.
