Canada and USA come together in new rugby partnership

Rugby Canada and USA Rugby have announced a four-year agreement to create an annual calendar across their men’s and women’s pathways.

The partnership will introduce fixtures and joint camps for men’s U19 and U20 programmes and women’s U20 and U21 teams, while guaranteeing regular Tests for the senior sides across the border.

The announcement comes after contrasting Nations Cup results for the men. Canada suffered a 59-14 defeat to Georgia and next face Hong Kong China before meeting Romania.

The USA edged Hong Kong China 28-26 and will face Romania before finishing their campaign against Georgia in Tbilisi.

Further details, including match dates, venues, camps and competition schedules, will be confirmed in 2027.

“This agreement secures a consistent annual schedule for all levels of our high-performance pathway,” said Rugby Canada High-Performance Director Shawn Bullock.

“Adding joint age grade programming and shared hosting ensures our players across all levels of our high-performance pathway receive consistent, high-level competition annually. We look forward to this next chapter of growth in partnership with USA Rugby.”

USA Rugby General Manager High Performance Tamara Sheppard added: “This partnership with Rugby Canada is an exciting step forward for USA Rugby.

“It strengthens competition and collaboration across our Senior 15s, Age Grade, and 7s programs, and gives our players more opportunities to grow and compete at a high level. We’re delighted to be building these opportunities with Rugby Canada.”

The women’s teams have also enjoyed notable WXV Global Series campaigns. Canada beat Scotland 64-26 before drawing 26-26 with world No.1s and world champions England, ending the Red Roses’ 39-match winning streak.

Canada then beat England twice at home, 24-21 and 31-22, either side of a defeat to France. USA Women recorded victories over Ireland, Wales and Italy twice before ending their campaign with a 55-12 loss to England.