The Estonian Rugby Union () is the governing body of
rugby union in Estonia
Rugby union in Estonia is a minor but growing sport.
The national body is the Estonian Rugby Union (Eesti Ragbi Liit).
The Estonian Rugby Federation was the original rugby body, but did not affiliate to the IRB, as it was a "federation" of one ...
and was formed in 2007 in response to
FIRA-AER
Rugby Europe is the administrative body for rugby union in Europe. It was formed in 1999 to promote, develop, organise, and administer the game of rugby in Europe under the authority of World Rugby (the sport's global governing body). However, it ...
expulsion of the
Estonian Rugby Federation. In June 2009 the Estonian Rugby Union formally received recognition as the governing body of Rugby Union in Estonia from the
Estonian Olympic Committee
The Estonian Olympic Committee (, EOK) is responsible for Estonia's participation in the Olympic Games.
History
The Estonian Sports Federation () decided to form the Estonian Olympic Committee in the First Estonian Sport Congress () on 30 Novem ...
with permission to represent Estonia at international level.
In 2008 the Estonian Rugby Union signed a contract with
Advanced Micro Devices
Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. (AMD) is an American multinational corporation and technology company headquartered in Santa Clara, California and maintains significant operations in Austin, Texas. AMD is a Information technology, hardware and F ...
to the primary sponsor of Rugby in Estonia and in July 200
AS Tallink the largest ferry company in Estonia, agreed to support the Union.
Stash are the provider of playing kit for the Estonian Rugby Union.
History
A combined Estonia/
Latvia
Latvia, officially the Republic of Latvia, is a country in the Baltic region of Northern Europe. It is one of the three Baltic states, along with Estonia to the north and Lithuania to the south. It borders Russia to the east and Belarus to t ...
side took on a Swedish representative side in the late 1990s, but a proper national team only started playing in 2009, touring England and playing two matches, losing both.
They came up against
Kent
Kent is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Essex across the Thames Estuary to the north, the Strait of Dover to the south-east, East Sussex to the south-west, Surrey to the west, and Gr ...
club Tonbridge Juddians in their first match, coming out at the wrong end of a 94–7 scoreline. The Juddians gave them a rather torrid time in the scrums, which was probably influenced by the fact that the Estonians only had their first-ever scrum machine session on the morning of the match.
The second fixture saw them square off against England Deaf at
Folkestone
Folkestone ( ) is a coastal town on the English Channel, in Kent, south-east England. The town lies on the southern edge of the North Downs at a valley between two cliffs. It was an important harbour, shipping port, and fashionable coastal res ...
, this time managing to keep the score to a respectable 21–27.
On 28 September 2013 The Estonians won their first official fixture against Finland A in Turku, Finland. With a score of 24 to 17.
Active rugby clubs
The Estonian Rugby Union currently has 5 registered clubs:
*
RFC Kalev (formerly
RFC Tallinn Sharks) in
Tallinn
Tallinn is the capital city, capital and List of cities in Estonia, most populous city of Estonia. Situated on a Tallinn Bay, bay in north Estonia, on the shore of the Gulf of Finland of the Baltic Sea, it has a population of (as of 2025) and ...
*
RFC Vikat in
Märjamaa
Märjamaa is a Populated places in Estonia, borough () in Rapla County, Estonia. It is the administrative center of Märjamaa Parish. Märjamaa has a population of 2,961 as of 29 November 2012, making it the largest settlement in the whole of Mä ...
*
RFC Patriots in
Narva
Narva is a municipality and city in Estonia. It is located in the Ida-Viru County, at the Extreme points of Estonia, eastern extreme point of Estonia, on the west bank of the Narva (river), Narva river which forms the Estonia–Russia border, E ...
*
RFC Survivors
RFC may refer to:
Computing
* Request for Comments, a memorandum on Internet standards
* Request for change, change management
* Remote Function Call, in SAP computer systems
* ''Rhye's and Fall of Civilization'', a modification for ''Sid Meie ...
in
Pärnu
Pärnu () is the fourth-largest city in Estonia. Situated in southwest Estonia, Pärnu is located south of the Estonian capital, Tallinn, and west of Estonia's second-largest city, Tartu. The city sits off the coast of Pärnu Bay, an inlet of ...
*
RFC Tartu in
Tartu
Tartu is the second largest city in Estonia after Tallinn. Tartu has a population of 97,759 (as of 2024). It is southeast of Tallinn and 245 kilometres (152 miles) northeast of Riga, Latvia. Tartu lies on the Emajõgi river, which connects the ...
See also
*
Rugby union in Estonia
Rugby union in Estonia is a minor but growing sport.
The national body is the Estonian Rugby Union (Eesti Ragbi Liit).
The Estonian Rugby Federation was the original rugby body, but did not affiliate to the IRB, as it was a "federation" of one ...
*
Estonia national rugby union team
The Estonia national rugby union team is governed by the Estonian Rugby Union, which oversees all rugby union in Estonia. As of October 2014 they have played only a handful of matches, but have qualified for the 2014–16 European Nations Cup Th ...
References
External links
Official websiteEstonian Rugby on FacebookEstonian Rugby on Instagram
Rugby union in Estonia
Rugby union governing bodies in Europe
2007 establishments in Estonia
Sports organizations established in 2007
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 ...
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