London Irish RFC is a professional
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 that most recently competed in the
Premiership, the top division of rugby union in England. The club also participated in the
European Champions Cup, and the
European Challenge Cup
The EPCR Challenge Cup is an annual rugby union competition organised by European Professional Club Rugby (EPCR). It is the second-tier competition for clubs based in European leagues behind the European Rugby Champions Cup. From its inception ...
. While competing in the
RFU Championship
The RFU Championship is an English rugby union competition comprising twelve clubs. It is the second level of men's English rugby and is played by both professional and semi-professional players. The competition has existed since 1987, when Eng ...
, the second tier of English rugby, during the 2016–17 and 2018–19 seasons, London Irish also took part in the
British and Irish Cup
The British and Irish Cup was an annual rugby union competition for second tier, semi-professional clubs and the reserves or developing teams from professional clubs from Great Britain and Ireland. It took place for the first time in the 2009� ...
and the
RFU Championship Cup
The RFU Championship Cup is an annual rugby union competition introduced by the Rugby Football Union (RFU) in 2018 to provide a cup competition for English second-tier clubs playing in the RFU Championship, following the disbanding of the Britis ...
. For twenty years, the club played its home games at the
Madejski Stadium
The Madejski Stadium (), currently known as the Select Car Leasing Stadium for sponsorship reasons, is a football stadium in Reading, Berkshire, England. It is the home of Reading Football Club, who play in EFL League One. It also provides the ...
in
Reading, Berkshire
Reading ( ) is a town and borough in Berkshire, England, and the county town of Berkshire. It is the United Kingdom's largest town, with a combined population of 355,596. Most of Reading built-up area, its built-up area lies within the Borough ...
, before relocating to the
Brentford Community Stadium
The Brentford Community Stadium, currently known as the Grey Technology (Gtech), Gtech Community Stadium for sponsorship reasons, is a Association football, football stadium in Brentford, West London that is the home of Premier League football c ...
in
Brentford
Brentford is a suburban town in West (London sub region), West London, England and part of the London Borough of Hounslow. It lies at the confluence of the River Brent and the River Thames, Thames, west of Charing Cross.
Its economy has dive ...
, West London, for the 2020–21 season.
The club was founded in 1898 following the creation of
London Scottish,
London Cornish and
London Welsh
London Welsh Rugby Football Club () was a rugby union club formed in 1885. Based in Old Deer Park, Richmond-upon-Thames, London Welsh RFC played in the English Premiership in the 2012–13 and 2014–15 seasons, after gaining promotion from ...
for the same reason, allowing Irishmen the chance to play rugby with fellow countrymen in the English capital. They won their only major trophy, the
Powergen Cup
The RFU Knockout Cup was an English rugby union competition open to any member of the Rugby Football Union. First contested in 1971, it was the premier competition in English club rugby before the establishment of the English league structure in 1 ...
, in
2002
The effects of the September 11 attacks of the previous year had a significant impact on the affairs of 2002. The war on terror was a major political focus. Without settled international law, several nations engaged in anti-terror operation ...
and reached the
2009 Premiership final, losing 10–9 to
Leicester Tigers
Leicester Tigers (officially Leicester Football Club) are a professional rugby union club based in Leicester, England. They play in Premiership Rugby, England's top division of rugby.
The club was founded in 1880 and since 1892 plays its home ...
. In the 2007–08 season, the team came close to a place in the
Heineken Cup
The European Rugby Champions Cup (known as the Investec Champions Cup for sponsorship reasons) is an annual rugby union tournament organised by European Professional Club Rugby (EPCR). It is the top-tier competition for clubs who compete in a pre ...
Final, losing out to
Stade Toulousain
Stade Toulousain () (), also referred to as Toulouse, is a professional rugby union club based in Toulouse, France. They compete in the Top 14, France's top division of rugby, and the European Rugby Champions Cup.
Toulouse is the most successfu ...
15–21 in the semi-final.
London Irish faced financial difficulties during the 2022–23 season and was issued a winding-up order by
HMRC
His Majesty's Revenue and Customs (commonly HM Revenue and Customs, or HMRC, and formerly Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs) is a Departments of the United Kingdom Government, department of the UK government responsible for the tax collectio ...
over an unpaid tax demand. To avoid suspension from the Premiership, the RFU set a deadline for the club to provide financial assurances confirming its ability to continue paying players and staff. The club failed to meet this deadline and was subsequently excluded from competing in the 2023–24 season—not only in the Premiership but across all professional tiers of rugby union in England. After a number of moribund years, the club exited administration on 12 February 2025 when it was purchased by a consortium led by Irish former
Formula One
Formula One (F1) is the highest class of worldwide racing for open-wheel single-seater formula Auto racing, racing cars sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA). The FIA Formula One World Championship has been one ...
owner,
Eddie Jordan
Edmund Patrick Jordan (30 March 1948 – 20 March 2025) was an Irish motorsport executive, broadcaster, racing driver and businessman. From to , Jordan served as founder and team principal of Jordan in Formula One.
Born in Dublin, Jordan in ...
.
History
Formation and early years

London Irish was the third club to be formed in England by working and student exiles from the
home countries, following
London Scottish in 1878,
London Welsh
London Welsh Rugby Football Club () was a rugby union club formed in 1885. Based in Old Deer Park, Richmond-upon-Thames, London Welsh RFC played in the English Premiership in the 2012–13 and 2014–15 seasons, after gaining promotion from ...
in 1885; followed by
London Cornish
in 1962. The first game took place on 1 October 1898 against the former Hammersmith club at
Herne Hill Athletic Ground, with London Irish winning 8–3. The team that season benefited from the early recruitment of
vet and
Irish international
The Irish Future Series or ''Irish International'' is an international badminton tournament held in Ireland. This tournament has been a Future Series level, another tournament for higher tournament level is Irish Open Irish Open may refer to:
*Ir ...
Louis Magee
Aloysius Mary "Louis" Magee (1 May 1874 – 4 April 1945) was an Irish people, Irish rugby union halfback. Magee played club rugby for Bective Rangers and London Irish and played international rugby for Ireland national rugby union team, Ireland ...
. He became essential in the early years of the club along with club captain R.S Dyas in putting the team on the map and having regular fixtures between other London-based teams.
War and conflict
The turn of the new century was a great time for London Irish with the club firmly solidified in the London club roster but these would be some of the last years of normality for the team. With the commencement of
World War I
World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...
, many of the players enlisted with Irish Battalions in their homeland for deployment in mainland Europe. In 1916, following the
Easter Rising
The Easter Rising (), also known as the Easter Rebellion, was an armed insurrection in Ireland during Easter Week in April 1916. The Rising was launched by Irish republicans against British rule in Ireland with the aim of establishing an ind ...
, a number of remaining players and members returned to
Ireland
Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe. Geopolitically, the island is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially Names of the Irish state, named Irelan ...
to fight in the independence struggle; many did not return. It is unknown exactly how many with a connection to the club were lost. Following the formation of the
Irish Free State
The Irish Free State (6 December 192229 December 1937), also known by its Irish-language, Irish name ( , ), was a State (polity), state established in December 1922 under the Anglo-Irish Treaty of December 1921. The treaty ended the three-ye ...
in 1923, some of those who fought in Europe and/or Ireland returned to the club, which saw an overhaul of the organisation over the remainder of the decade, reviving the team and its influence for a new beginning.
In the years that followed, Irish made strides in playing competition outside of Greater London with matches against teams such as
Leicester
Leicester ( ) is a city status in the United Kingdom, city, Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority area, and the county town of Leicestershire in the East Midlands of England. It is the largest city in the East Midlands with a popula ...
and
Cardiff
Cardiff (; ) is the capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of Wales. Cardiff had a population of in and forms a Principal areas of Wales, principal area officially known as the City and County of Ca ...
. This, however, was short-lived with the commencement of
World War II
World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
and players and members again being dispersed across the continent, many of whom elected not to return following the end of the war. Nine of the players who participated in the 1938–39 season died in the conflict. The club's then playing ground located in
Sunbury-on-Thames
Sunbury-on-Thames, known locally as Sunbury, is a town on the north bank of the River Thames in the Borough of Spelthorne, Surrey, England, southwest of central London. Historically part of the county of Middlesex, in 1965 Sunbury and other su ...
was acquired by
Ministry for Agriculture to be used as a site to grow food for the war-torn capital. Because of the state of the playing field after the war, games were temporarily held at
Rectory Field
Rectory Field is a sports ground in Blackheath in the Royal Borough of Greenwich in south-east London. It was developed in the 1880s by Blackheath Cricket, Football and Lawn Tennis Company and became the home ground of rugby union team Blackhea ...
in
Blackheath.
Post-war years
The post-war era got off to a rocky beginning. Player numbers weren't what they used to be as former members elected not to move back to London and this made it difficult to front a starting XV. The year that followed saw the
Winter of 1946
Winter is the coldest and darkest season of the year in temperate and polar climates. It occurs after autumn and before spring. The tilt of Earth's axis causes seasons; winter occurs when a hemisphere is oriented away from the Sun. Dif ...
, one of the coldest winters on record in the United Kingdom. Rectory Field was frozen for most of the winter meaning Irish missed matches in the season. Things picked up with the arrival of a new captain,
Des O'Brien, and a number of other key players and in 1948 London Irish celebrated their 50th anniversary with the most successful season yet for the club.
In the 1950s the club thrived, fielding teams most weeks, and in 1951 they became the first club to host touring Italian team
Roma
Roma or ROMA may refer to:
People, characters, figures, names
* Roma or Romani people, an ethnic group living mostly in Europe and the Americas.
* Roma called Roy, ancient Egyptian High Priest of Amun
* Roma (footballer, born 1979), born ''Paul ...
. On 9 September 1959, Irish returned to Sunbury and had a place to call home, which was dubbed ''
The Avenue
The Avenue was a rugby union stadium and training pitches in Sunbury-on-Thames that belonged to the England, English club London Irish since 1931 when the team bought its . The team moved one season to the Stoop Memorial Ground thereafter to ...
''. They achieved a record-breaking season, remaining unbeaten.
Results in the 1960s were mixed, with many good wins but also a number of defeats. Fixtures improved and the club played against many famous teams, which changed the attitude of the training and playing and, in the 70s, London Irish became a force to be reckoned with, finishing first in the London Division of the Rugby Football Union in the 1976–77 season. Pre-season tours became popular and in 1977, the London Irish made history in South Africa when they became the first touring side to play a host of mixed-race teams.
Professional era
Since the professional era began in August 1995, London Irish has only lifted one piece of major silverware, winning the
Powergen Cup
The RFU Knockout Cup was an English rugby union competition open to any member of the Rugby Football Union. First contested in 1971, it was the premier competition in English club rugby before the establishment of the English league structure in 1 ...
in 2002 in a match against
Northampton
Northampton ( ) is a town and civil parish in Northamptonshire, England. It is the county town of Northamptonshire and the administrative centre of the Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority of West Northamptonshire. The town is sit ...
at Twickenham that saw the club win 38–7. Some 75,000 people attended the match, seeing the Exiles win in what is regarded as one of the most successful days in the club's history. London Irish enjoyed success in Europe in 2005–06 when they reached the final of the Challenge Cup, only to be defeated by Gloucester 36–34 at Twickenham.
In 2013, Irish were taken over by a consortium led by Mick Crossan, executive chairman of
Powerday, a London-based recycling and waste management firm. Powerday would go on to be one of the club's main sponsors.
In early May 2023, the
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 ...
sought clarification from London Irish about why the club's players and staff had not yet been paid for April 2023. On 15 May the RFU gave the club a 30 May deadline to sell the club to new owners, and indicated the club would be suspended from the Premiership if they were not satisfied the club had sufficient funding. Two weeks later, the RFU extended the deadline until 6 June.
On 2 June 2023, London Irish received winding up petitions from HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) over an unpaid tax bill believed to be up to £1 million, which saw them forced out of business.
Post administration era (2024–present)
In October 2024, it was reported that Irish businessman and TV personality
Eddie Jordan
Edmund Patrick Jordan (30 March 1948 – 20 March 2025) was an Irish motorsport executive, broadcaster, racing driver and businessman. From to , Jordan served as founder and team principal of Jordan in Formula One.
Born in Dublin, Jordan in ...
alongside former New Zealand and South Africa internationals
Andrew Mehrtens
Andrew Philip Mehrtens (born 28 April 1973) is a New Zealand former rugby union player. He was regarded as a top first five-eighth, having played first for Canterbury in 1993, before being selected for the All Blacks (New Zealand's national ...
and
Bobby Skinstad
Robert Brian Skinstad (born 3 July 1976) is a former rugby union professional player who has represented the South Africa national team, the Springboks. He played in the positions of flanker and number eight.
Early life and education
Skinstad ...
respectively, were forming a consortium to buy London Irish as part of a wider project to emulate the success of the
City Football Group
City Football Group Limited (CFG) is a British-based holding company that administers association football clubs. The group is owned by three organisations, of which 81% is majority-owned by Abu Dhabi United Group, 18% by the American firm Silve ...
.
In February 2025, Strangford Ellis Ltd, led by Jordan, completed the takeover of London Irish, defeating German businessman Daniel Loitz in the bid. The consortium outlined plans to have the club playing rugby again by 2026, while remaining open to both a return to the Premiership and the possibility of joining the
United Rugby Championship
The United Rugby Championship (URC) is an annual rugby union competition involving professional teams from Ireland, Italy, Scotland, South Africa, and Wales. For sponsorship reasons the league is known as the Vodacom United Rugby Championship in ...
. In March 2025, the Jordan group announced further plans to establish a home ground in west London as well as a women's team and an academy setup before handing the club over to fan ownership.
Jordan died of cancer the following week. His son Kyle Jordan assumed the role of interim chief executive of the club and reaffirmed plans for a return to competitive rugby in 2026.
Academy
London Irish managed their own academy, with players such as
Tom Homer,
Nick Kennedy
Nick Kennedy (born 19 August 1981) is a retired English rugby union player and former Director of Rugby at London Irish. He played Lock for England, London Irish, Toulon and Harlequins.
His uncle Duncan Kennedy is a BBC news correspondent.
K ...
,
Topsy Ojo
Temitope "Topsy" Ojo (born 28 July 1985) is an English former rugby union player who played for London Irish and England. He is London Irish's all-time leading try scorer, with 73 tries in all competitions.
Career
London Irish
Ojo was born ...
,
Anthony Watson, brothers
Delon
Dilan Jayasingha (born March 14, 1980), known professionally as Dilan Jay, is an American entrepreneur, real estate investor, musician, and filmmaker. He is recognized as the first artist from his country of heritage, Sri Lanka, to place on t ...
and
Guy Armitage,
Alex Corbisiero and
Jonathan Joseph having gone on to play for the senior side and be internationally capped. Ojo retired at the end of the 2018–19 season having made 301 appearances for the club.
Stadium
From the
2020–21 season, London Irish played at the
Gtech Community Stadium, in
Brentford
Brentford is a suburban town in West (London sub region), West London, England and part of the London Borough of Hounslow. It lies at the confluence of the River Brent and the River Thames, Thames, west of Charing Cross.
Its economy has dive ...
,
Greater London
Greater London is an administrative area in England, coterminous with the London region, containing most of the continuous urban area of London. It contains 33 local government districts: the 32 London boroughs, which form a Ceremonial count ...
. The stadium is owned by
Brentford F.C.
Brentford Football Club is a professional association football club based in Brentford, England. The team competes in the Premier League, the top tier of English football. Nicknamed "The Bees", the club was founded in 1889 and played home matc ...
who also play their home games there. The ground is a 17,250-capacity all-seater stadium that opened in 2020.
Prior to 2020, London Irish played at the
Madejski Stadium
The Madejski Stadium (), currently known as the Select Car Leasing Stadium for sponsorship reasons, is a football stadium in Reading, Berkshire, England. It is the home of Reading Football Club, who play in EFL League One. It also provides the ...
in
Reading, Berkshire
Reading ( ) is a town and borough in Berkshire, England, and the county town of Berkshire. It is the United Kingdom's largest town, with a combined population of 355,596. Most of Reading built-up area, its built-up area lies within the Borough ...
for twenty seasons between
2000
2000 was designated as the International Year for the Culture of Peace and the World Mathematics, Mathematical Year.
Popular culture holds the year 2000 as the first year of the 21st century and the 3rd millennium, because of a tende ...
and
March 2020 when the
2019–20 season was suspended due to the
COVID-19 pandemic
The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...
. Due to delays owing to the pandemic, Brentford Stadium was running behind its scheduled opening date. Irish made the decision to play their remaining games when possible at
Harlequin
Harlequin (, , ; , ) is the best-known of the comic servant characters (Zanni) from the Italian commedia dell'arte, associated with the city of Bergamo. The role is traditionally believed to have been introduced by the Italian actor-manager Zan ...
's
Twickenham Stoop
Twickenham Stoop Stadium (informally referred to as The Stoop) is a stadium located in south-west London, England, situated just across the road from Twickenham Stadium. The stadium is home to the Harlequins in Premiership Rugby and has a c ...
as they could not return to Reading. The Exiles had previously played at The Stoop in the
1999–2000 season before moving to the Madejski Stadium.

The largest crowd for a London Irish match was for a game against
London Wasps on 15 March 2008 during the
2007–08 season. The crowd of 23,790 was also the highest attendance for a regular season Premiership Rugby match until December 2008.
On
12 March 2016, London Irish played their first home Premiership match abroad, and also the first-ever Premiership match outside England, when they travelled to the
United States
The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...
to face
Saracens
file:Erhard Reuwich Sarazenen 1486.png, upright 1.5, Late 15th-century History of Germany, German woodcut depicting Saracens
''Saracen'' ( ) was a term used both in Greek language, Greek and Latin writings between the 5th and 15th centuries to ...
at the
New York Red Bulls
The New York Red Bulls are an American professional association football, soccer club based in the New York metropolitan area. The Red Bulls compete in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member of the Eastern Conference (MLS), Eastern Conferenc ...
'
Red Bull Arena in the
New York metropolitan area
The New York metropolitan area, also called the Tri-State area and sometimes referred to as Greater New York, is the List of cities by GDP, largest metropolitan economy in the world, with a List of U.S. metropolitan areas by GDP, gross metropo ...
.
On 15 August 2016, the club announced its intention to return to London and that it was in formal discussions with
Hounslow London Borough Council
Hounslow London Borough Council, also known as Hounslow Council, is the local authority for the London Borough of Hounslow in Greater London, England. It is a London borough council, one of 32 in London. The council has been under Labour majorit ...
to play at Brentford's new stadium. On 10 February 2017, the club confirmed that the council had approved its application to use the stadium for rugby, effectively allowing it to move into the new stadium from its opening season. This was later confirmed.
The club's training ground and offices were located at the
Hazelwood Centre, which is located in the west of the city in
Sunbury-on-Thames
Sunbury-on-Thames, known locally as Sunbury, is a town on the north bank of the River Thames in the Borough of Spelthorne, Surrey, England, southwest of central London. Historically part of the county of Middlesex, in 1965 Sunbury and other su ...
. The facility was opened in 2014 following the closure of
The Avenue
The Avenue was a rugby union stadium and training pitches in Sunbury-on-Thames that belonged to the England, English club London Irish since 1931 when the team bought its . The team moved one season to the Stoop Memorial Ground thereafter to ...
and is also used by
NFL
The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league in the United States. Composed of 32 teams, it is divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The N ...
teams during the
NFL International Series
The NFL International Series is a series of American football games during the National Football League (NFL) regular season that are played outside the United States. The series has several sub-series: the NFL London Games in the United Ki ...
as a training facility.
London Irish Amateur Rugby Football Club
The club also hosts
London Irish Amateur RFC (a separate legal entity created in 1999) for non-professionals to allow them to improve in rugby. The team plays at the location of London Irish's training ground and offices,
Hazelwood in Sunbury. Some players such as
Justin Bishop and
Kieran Campbell
Kieran Campbell (born 6 July 1979) is a former Irish rugby union scrumhalf and current Director of rugby at Coleraine grammar school. He is the former manager of Ulster Rugby's academy and former head coach of the Ireland under-20 team.
Born ...
have gone through the ranks to play for the London Irish professional team.
Mascot
Digger
Digger is an Irish wolfhound and the official
mascot
A mascot is any human, animal, or object thought to bring luck, or anything used to represent a group with a common public identity, such as a school, sports team, university society, society, military unit, or brand, brand name. Mascots are als ...
of London Irish.
In 2003, Digger won the "Best Mascot" award in
Premiership Rugby
Premiership Rugby, officially known as Gallagher Premiership Rugby, or the Gallagher Premiership for sponsorship reasons, is an English professional rugby union competition, consisting of 10 clubs, and is the top division of the English rugby ...
at the Premier Rugby Marketing Awards.
On 23 April 2006, Digger ran the
London Marathon
The London Marathon (also known as the TCS London Marathon for sponsorship reasons) is an annual marathon held in London, England. Founded by athletes Chris Brasher and John Disley in 1981, it is typically held in April, although it moved to Oct ...
raising money for spinal research. He finished the
marathon
The marathon is a long-distance foot race with a distance of kilometres ( 26 mi 385 yd), usually run as a road race, but the distance can be covered on trail routes. The marathon can be completed by running or with a run/walk strategy. There ...
in a time of 6 hours 39 minutes 31 seconds.
Others
Digger was joined by his cousin, Duggie, from the 2006–07 season. Much taller and much slower, Duggie has proved popular with younger children attending matchdays. As well as the mascot characters, there is also a real
Irish wolfhound
The Irish Wolfhound ( Irish: ''Cú Faoil'') is a breed of large sighthound that has, by its presence and substantial size, inspired literature, poetry and mythology. One of the largest of all breeds of dog, the breed is used by coursing hunters ...
, Mr Doyle, who also attends the home games. Prior to Mr Doyle, his great uncle, Jumbo, attended home games before his retirement.
Rivalries
London Irish have rivalries in the Greater London area, mainly with
Harlequins and
Saracens
file:Erhard Reuwich Sarazenen 1486.png, upright 1.5, Late 15th-century History of Germany, German woodcut depicting Saracens
''Saracen'' ( ) was a term used both in Greek language, Greek and Latin writings between the 5th and 15th centuries to ...
, with whom they are now, thanks to Irish moving back to West London, able to have local derbies.
Gtech Community Stadium's location makes it less than two miles to the
Twickenham Stoop
Twickenham Stoop Stadium (informally referred to as The Stoop) is a stadium located in south-west London, England, situated just across the road from Twickenham Stadium. The stadium is home to the Harlequins in Premiership Rugby and has a c ...
. They also maintain a friendly rivalry with fellow exiles
London Scottish.
Season summaries
Gold background denotes champions
Silver background denotes runners-up
Pink background denotes relegated
* Finished first in pool but did not progress to the quarter-final. Their place was taken by Brive
Club honours
Major honours
*
Premiership Rugby
Premiership Rugby, officially known as Gallagher Premiership Rugby, or the Gallagher Premiership for sponsorship reasons, is an English professional rugby union competition, consisting of 10 clubs, and is the top division of the English rugby ...
**''Runners–Up: (1)
2008–09''
*
RFU Championship
The RFU Championship is an English rugby union competition comprising twelve clubs. It is the second level of men's English rugby and is played by both professional and semi-professional players. The competition has existed since 1987, when Eng ...
**Champions: (2)
2016–17,
2018–19
*
European Challenge Cup
The EPCR Challenge Cup is an annual rugby union competition organised by European Professional Club Rugby (EPCR). It is the second-tier competition for clubs based in European leagues behind the European Rugby Champions Cup. From its inception ...
**''Runners–Up: (1)
2005–06''
*
Premiership Rugby Cup
The Premiership Rugby Cup is an English rugby union knockout cup competition for teams in Premiership Rugby and from the 2023–24 season the RFU Championship. It was created in 2018 to replace the Anglo-Welsh Cup after the withdrawal of the Wels ...
**Champions: (1)
2001–02
**''Runners–Up: (3)
1979–80,
2021–22,
2022–23
The dash is a punctuation mark consisting of a long horizontal line. It is similar in appearance to the hyphen but is longer and sometimes higher from the baseline. The most common versions are the endash , generally longer than the hyphen ...
''
*
Surrey Cup
The Surrey Cup is an annual rugby union knock-out club competition organized by the Surrey Rugby Football Union. The original cup competition was first played for back in 1890, the inaugural winners being Lennox, but was discontinued in 1909, ...
**Champions: (4) 1980–81, 1981–82, 1985–86, 1986–87
*
Premiership Rugby Sevens Series
The Premiership Rugby Sevens Series is a friendly Rugby Sevens competition for the twelve Premiership Rugby clubs that will play the following season (i.e. the 2010 competition features the teams playing in the Aviva Premiership in the 2010– ...
**Champions: (1)
2012
2012 was designated as:
*International Year of Cooperatives
*International Year of Sustainable Energy for All
Events January
*January 4 – The Cicada 3301 internet hunt begins.
* January 12 – Peaceful protests begin in the R ...
Friendly
*
Middlesex Sevens
The Middlesex Sevens was a Rugby Sevens tournament held annually at Twickenham stadium in London, England until 2011. It was first held in 1926, and started by Dr J.A. Russell-Cargill, a London-based Scot.Bath, ''Scotland Rugby Miscellany'', p82 T ...
**Champions: (1) 2009
*
Cunningham Duncombe Series
**Champions: (1) 2016
Notable former players
Rugby World Cup
The following are players who have represented their countries at the
Rugby World Cup
The Men's Rugby World Cup is a rugby union tournament contested every four years between the top international teams, the winners of which are recognised as the World championship, world champions of the sport.
The tournament is administer ...
whilst being registered with London Irish:
See also
*
Rugby union in London
Rugby union is one of the most popular sports, in terms of both participants and spectators in London. London has several of England's leading rugby union clubs, and the city is home to 13 teams playing in national leagues, and many regional amateu ...
*
London Cornish
*
London Scottish
*
London Welsh
London Welsh Rugby Football Club () was a rugby union club formed in 1885. Based in Old Deer Park, Richmond-upon-Thames, London Welsh RFC played in the English Premiership in the 2012–13 and 2014–15 seasons, after gaining promotion from ...
*
Richmond
Richmond most often refers to:
* Richmond, British Columbia, a city in Canada
* Richmond, California, a city in the United States
* Richmond, London, a town in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames, England
* Richmond, North Yorkshire, a town ...
*
Hazelwood
References
Notes
External links
*
Official Supporters Club Website*
The CraicLondon Irish Amateur Rugby Football ClubERC Rugby London Irish
{{English Premiership (rugby union)
Premiership Rugby teams
Rugby union teams in England
Rugby clubs established in 1898
Sport in Reading, Berkshire
Rugby union clubs in Berkshire
Rugby union clubs in Surrey
Rugby union clubs in London
1898 establishments in England
Irish diaspora in England
Irish diaspora sports clubs in the United Kingdom