Bristol Bisons RFC is an inclusive English

rugby union Rugby union football, commonly known simply as rugby union in English-speaking countries and rugby 15/XV in non-English-speaking world, Anglophone Europe, or often just rugby, is a Contact sport#Terminology, close-contact team sport that orig ...

club based in

Bristol Bristol () is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city, unitary authority area and ceremonial county in South West England, the most populous city in the region. Built around the River Avon, Bristol, River Avon, it is bordered by t ...

. Founded in 2005 as the south west’s first inclusive rugby team, the Bisons have welcomed players (and supporters) of all abilities, backgrounds and sexualities from Bristol, Somerset, South Gloucestershire and the surrounding areas since that time.

Club history

The

Bisons RFC (Bisons) were established in 2005, following a visit to the Bingham Cup gay rugby tournament in the summer of 2004 in

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

. The founders felt that it would be good to spread the messages of an inclusive rugby team in the south west. Training for the newly formed club started early in 2005 with its first match seeing the Bisons vs. a Barbarians side of players from

Manchester Manchester () is a city and the metropolitan borough of Greater Manchester, England. It had an estimated population of in . Greater Manchester is the third-most populous metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, with a population of 2.92&nbs ...

and

. By 2009, following a quiet spell, it was decided to relaunch the club with new kit and promotional material. The club has had an active presence at Bristol Pride since 2010 and in July 2011, the team were chosen as hosts for the

Union Cup The Union Cup is a biennial European, non-professional, gay rugby union tournament, bringing together teams and joint teams from all over Europe. It is held every odd-numbered year. History Montpellier 2005 The first edition was held in May 2005 i ...

2013 European

Gay ''Gay'' is a term that primarily refers to a homosexual person or the trait of being homosexual. The term originally meant 'carefree', 'cheerful', or 'bright and showy'. While scant usage referring to male homosexuality dates to the late ...

rugby Rugby may refer to: Sport * Rugby football in many forms: ** Rugby union: 15 players per side *** American flag rugby *** Beach rugby *** Mini rugby *** Rugby sevens, 7 players per side *** Rugby tens, 10 players per side *** Snow rugby *** Tou ...

tournament, welcoming over 20 clubs to Bristol. In 2023, after finishing top of the UK IGR Southern Development League, the Bisons were named IGR Southern Development League Champions, going on to become IGR UK Development League Champions. In 2024, the Bisons finished top of the UK IGR South-West League, and were also named winners of the UK Championship Plate. The Bisons also entered into a new strategic partnership wit
Bristol Bears RFC
as part of the Bears commitment to diversity and inclusivity. The club will look to collaborate together on several community initiatives. The team also attended the 2024 Bingham Cup in Rome Italy, taking two teams to the tournament, the first time in its history. Both teams finished third in their respective tiers (Hoagland Cup and Gladiator Cup), finishing 17th overall, resulting in the Bisons best-ever Bingham placing. In 2025, the Bisons were winners of the IGR's UK Challenger Shield and attended the Union Cup in Oslo, Norway, finishing in the top 8 in Europe. Since June 2025, the Bisons have been hosted by and train every Monday and Thursday between 7-9pm at

Cleve RFC Cleve Rugby Football Club is an English amateur rugby union club founded in 1922 and based in Mangotsfield, Bristol. The club play in the seventh-tier of the English league system; Tribute Western Counties North. They are a member of the Br ...

. As of 2025, the club now has nearly 100 active players and supporters, with current sponsorship and support from Bristol Beer Factory, Old Castle Green, Hawkland Construction, Bristol Bear Bar and the Queenshilling nightclub. Bristol Bisons RFC vs

Tournaments

The following is a list of tournaments held by or attended by the team.

Tournaments hosted

* 2006 – Spring – Rugby Tournament, Bristol * 2006 – Rugby 7's tournament at Bristol Gay

Mardi Gras Mardi Gras (, ; also known as Shrove Tuesday) is the final day of Carnival (also known as Shrovetide or Fastelavn); it thus falls on the day before the beginning of Lent on Ash Wednesday. is French for "Fat Tuesday", referring to it being ...

* 2007 – Spring – Rugby Tournament, Bristol * 2013 – Union Cup – Rugby Tournament, Bristol

Tournaments attended

Union Cup

* 2005

Montpellier Montpellier (; ) is a city in southern France near the Mediterranean Sea. One of the largest urban centres in the region of Occitania (administrative region), Occitania, Montpellier is the prefecture of the Departments of France, department of ...

, France, finished in seventh place * 2007

Copenhagen Copenhagen ( ) is the capital and most populous city of Denmark, with a population of 1.4 million in the Urban area of Copenhagen, urban area. The city is situated on the islands of Zealand and Amager, separated from Malmö, Sweden, by the ...

, Denmark, part of a joint team with the

Newcastle Ravens Newcastle Ravens Rugby Football Club is a rugby union team located in Newcastle upon Tyne, England. The current Chairman : Chris Buckton. History The team was organised to help encourage gay people to take part in the sport. The team was found ...

and Cardiff Lions that reached the final and lost to the Dublin Emerald Warriors RFC * 2009

, UK, first in the 7's after a closely fought final against the Paris team * 2011

Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , ; ; ) is the capital of the Netherlands, capital and Municipalities of the Netherlands, largest city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. It has a population of 933,680 in June 2024 within the city proper, 1,457,018 in the City Re ...

, Netherlands, second in the 10s tournament behind

, France * 2013

, UK, hosted in

, UK * 2016

Madrid Madrid ( ; ) is the capital and List of largest cities in Spain, most populous municipality of Spain. It has almost 3.5 million inhabitants and a Madrid metropolitan area, metropolitan area population of approximately 7 million. It i ...

, Spain, narrowly lost out on winning the Silver Union Bowl, finishing third from bottom in the European rankings * 2019

Dublin Dublin is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. Situated on Dublin Bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, and is bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, pa ...

, Ireland, lost in the final to Kings Cross Steelers 3rds, finishing 10th over all in European rankings * 2023

Birmingham Birmingham ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands (county), West Midlands, within the wider West Midlands (region), West Midlands region, in England. It is the Lis ...

, United Kingdom, hosted Union Cup, finishing 3rd over all (Beorma Cup) in European Rankings * 2025

Oslo Oslo ( or ; ) is the capital and most populous city of Norway. It constitutes both a county and a municipality. The municipality of Oslo had a population of in 2022, while the city's greater urban area had a population of 1,064,235 in 2022 ...

, Norway, finishing in the top 8 in Europe

Bingham Cup

* 2008

, Ireland, some members of the team played with the Cardiff Lions at the

Bingham Cup in 2008 * 2012

, England * 2018

, Netherlands, lost in the final of the Hoagland Bowl to

Caledonian Thebans RFC Caledonian Thebans Rugby Football Club is Scotland's leading inclusive rugby club and represents Scotland in international rugby union tournaments for inclusive teams. Established in 2002, the Thebans were based at Edinburgh's Murrayfield Stad ...

, coming in 10th overall in Tier 2 * 2024 Rome, Italy. The Bisons too two teams to the tournament, the first time in its history. Both teams finished third in their respective tiers (Hoagland Cup and Gladiator Cup), finishing 17th overall, resulting in the Bisons best-ever Bingham placing.

Memberships and affiliations

* Full member of the

International Gay Rugby Association and Board International Gay Rugby (IGR), founded in 2000, formerly known as the International Gay Rugby Association and Board (IGRAB), is the umbrella organisation for the world's gay and inclusive rugby clubs. Based in London, UK, IGR is recognised by W ...

(IGRAB) * Affiliated members of the

Gloucestershire Rugby Football Union The Gloucestershire Rugby Football Union is the union responsible for rugby union in the county of Gloucestershire, England and is one of the constituent bodies of the national Rugby Football Union. Formed in 1878, it has won the county champions ...

(GRFU) * Affiliated members of the Rugby Football Union (

RFU The Rugby Football Union (RFU) is the national governing body for rugby union in England. It was founded in 1871, and was the sport's international governing body prior to the formation of what is now known as World Rugby (WR) in 1886. It prom ...

)

Awards

* 2019 - Attitude Pride Award fo
#KeepKenHome
campaign, helping to support one of its players risking deportation to Kenya * 2023 - Best Sports Group at the ShoutOut Listeners Awards * 2023 - Top of the Table IGR Southern Development League * 2023 - Winners - IGR Southern Development League Final * 2023 - Winners - IGR UK Development League Grand Final (South vs. North) * 2023 - Union Cup (European) - 3rd Place Beorma Cup * 2023 - Winners - Unicorn Unity Cup * 2024 - Winners - IGR South-West League * 2024 - Winners - UK IGR Championship Plate * 2024 - Bingham Cup (World) - 3rd Place Hoagland Cup and 3rd Place Gladiator Cup), finishing in 17th place out of 72 overall * 2025 - Winners - UK IGR Challenger Shield * 2025 - Union Cup (European) - Top 8 in Europe

References

External links

* * {{Gay Rugby Clubs Rugby union teams in England International Gay Rugby member clubs Rugby union in Bristol Rugby clubs established in 2005 2005 establishments in England