GRR: Major League Rugby
FRISCO, Texas – Major League Rugby, the premier professional rugby league in North America, announced the results of the 2025 MLR College Draft on Thursday.
As hinted at in the below video, Major League has now dropped to eight teams.
The Miami Sharks, two days after their CEO Milagros Cubelli was named Executive of the Year, multiple sources are telling GRR or reporting elsewhere that the Sharks are out of the league and ceasing operations.
The deadline for applying for the 2025 Major League Rugby draft has been extended to August 13.
The old deadline was July 30.
The reason for the change is because the old deadline was set with an anticipated draft in early August. That draft is now slated for around August 21 or so (to be confirmed), so the deadline can be extended.
Following on the heels of the announcement of a team merger of two teams in MLR, Major League Rugby's NOLA Gold will reduce the league's number of teams, at least for a season.
The franchise announced Wednesday that it will not field a team for the 2026 season.
Officially the plans are to potentially move forward after 2026, but that's a stretch.
(Media Release from MLR)—The San Diego Legion and Rugby Football Club Los Angeles (RFCLA) can confirm they have agreed in principle to strategically form a single, statewide professional rugby franchise: The California Legion.