Bath

History of Bath Rugby 

Bath Rugby Club is one of the oldest rugby clubs in existence. In fact, the history of the club dates all the way back to the actions of Lansdown Cricket Club in 1825. The cricket club was incredibly popular but the team only met in summer when the weather was warm enough to play cricket. Searching for something to do in the colder winter months, the cricketers founded Bath Rugby Club.

At first, the Bath rugby team played sporadically. However, by the 1890s, they were regularly playing competitive fixtures against a number of English and Welsh teams. However, the Bath rugby team did not tour overseas until 1954, when they visited France and beat all three sides they faced.

In the 1960s and 70s, Bath gained a reputation as a team with a fast-paced and attacking style of rugby. Not only did the club produce top players like Peter Sibley and Peter Heindorff, but Bath also started regularly beating top Welsh sides. Then, in 1978, the arrival of coach Jack Rowell changed the team's ethos. Instead of simply picking local players, the team started recruiting from all over the country. As a result, the Bath rugby team dominated the John Player Cup and won the tournament four years in a row between 1984 and 1987.

Following the team's 1987 success, a formal league structure started. As expected, Bath dominated the early years of the competition. They won it six times in eight years and did the 'double' four times.

However, the Bath rugby team has struggled to repeat this level of success since rugby union became professional. That said, Bath did become the first English team to win the European Rugby Champions Cup in 1998 and they’ve won the EPCR Challenge Cup twice, most recently in 2025. 

In fact, the 2024-25 season was a golden one for the club, as they claimed a historic treble. Not only did they win the EPCR Challenge Cup, but they also claimed the Premiership Cup and the Premiership Rugby title. 

As you may expect from such a storied team, the Bath rugby squad has been littered with great players over the years. For example, Jeremy Guscott, Mike Catt, Taulupe Faletau and Jonathan Joseph have all represented Bath. Meanwhile, the current Bath rugby squad is led by the iconic Finn Russell. 

Thanks to their recent treble, Bath are rightfully regarded as one of the best domestic rugby sides in the world. We can’t wait to see what else this talented squad can achieve in the coming years.