Gloucester

History of Gloucester Rugby

The history of the Gloucester rugby union side dates all the way back to the club's formation in 1873. During their first eight years of existence, the team shared a pitch with the local cricket team. However, following an issue where the team accidentally killed the grass used for the cricket wickets, they were asked to end the ground-sharing agreement. As a result, Gloucester rugby club purchased a small patch of land to use as their own in 1891. The Gloucester rugby union side has played there ever since. Today, it's known as the Kingsholm Stadium.

In the post-war era, the Gloucester rugby team has been highly successful. For example, the side won the first ever National Knock-Out Competition in 1972. In the final, the Gloucester rugby side faced Moseley at Twickenham in one of the most violent finals of all time. This theme of violence in Gloucester rugby fixtures also continued in the 1978 John Player Cup final, a game the team won against Leicester.

However, by the 1980s, Gloucester rugby club began to be overshadowed by their neighbours, Bath. Similarly, when the professional era of rugby union began in the 1990s, they fell behind some of the larger teams because they lacked the same level of investment.

That said, Gloucester have been successful in the Premiership era. In the 1999-2000 season, they finished third in the Premiership and entered the European Rugby Champions Cup. A year later, they punched above their weight and reached the semi-final stage. 

In 2003, they also came top of the Premiership. However, the team lost to Wasps in the final. Sadly, as of 2025, the Gloucester Rugby side has never been crowned as English domestic champions even though they've come top of the Premiership table on another two occasions. Since the 2005-06 season though, they've won the EPCR Challenge Cup twice and they have been the runners-up on another three occasions.

Although they’re yet to win either the Premiership or the European Rugby Champions Cup, several former Gloucester rugby players are household names, including Phil Vickery, Louis Rees-Zammit and Greig Laidlaw. 

The current crop of Gloucester rugby players are some of the best to ever feature for the club. As a result, we have no doubt that plenty of silverware will come to Gloucester rugby club in the coming years.