RC Lokomotiv Moscow is a professional Russian

rugby football Rugby football is the collective name for the team sports of rugby union or rugby league. Rugby football started at Rugby School in Rugby, Warwickshire, England, where the rules were first codified in 1845. Forms of football in which the ball ...

club based in Moscow, which from 2010 will field teams in both

rugby league Rugby league football, commonly known as rugby league in English-speaking countries and rugby 13/XIII in non-Anglophone Europe, is a contact sport, full-contact sport played by two teams of thirteen players on a rectangular Rugby league playin ...

and

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 ...

. The club is one of the oldest in Russia. Originally a club for those who worked on the railways, they participated in the first

USSR The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...

championship in 1937. Lokomotiv were Soviet Championship winners in 1983. During the existence of the

, RC Lokomotiv Moscow club was a part of the Lokomotiv Voluntary Sports Society. In 1991, following Ryedale-York and

Fulham Fulham () is an area of the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham in West London, England, southwest of Charing Cross. It lies in a loop on the north bank of the River Thames, bordering Hammersmith, Kensington and Chelsea, London, Chelsea ...

's tour to the country, the club switched from

, owing mostly to rugby union's amateur status at the time, and the desire by players to be paid. Lokomotiv have gone on to dominate Russian rugby league. They have won seven Championships, including league and cup doubles in 2002–2005. Twelve players from the club were in the Russian national team in 2005. Lokomotiv had their best season ever in 2005, winning the league and cup double in Russia, winning 21 out of 22 matches and scoring 1,560 points in the process. However, they have not yet transferred this success over to the Rugby League

Challenge Cup The Rugby Football League Challenge Cup, commonly known just as the Challenge Cup is a Single-elimination tournament, knockout rugby league cup competition organised by the Rugby Football League, held annually since 1896, it is the world's old ...

. In their three previous games in this competition, they have failed to register a win. In 2009 the club announced its intention to play rugby union in addition to rugby league from the 2010 season onwards, fielding their junior side in rugby league still and thereby partially reversing the club's 1991 switch from rugby union to rugby league. The decision to return to rugby union was primarily due to the desire of the Lokomotiv club to compete in the Russian rugby union sevens championship following the

IOC The International Olympic Committee (IOC; , CIO) is the international, non-governmental, sports governing body of the modern Olympic Games. Founded in 1894 by Pierre de Coubertin and Demetrios Vikelas, it is based in L ...

's October 2009 decision to readmit rugby union as an Olympic sport in its seven-a-side format and the unwillingness of the

Rugby Union of Russia Rugby Union of Russia () is the governing body for rugby union in Russia. It was founded in 1936 originally as the Rugby Union of the Soviet Union. The Rugby Union of Russia became affiliated to World Rugby (previously known as the International R ...

to admit the Lokomotiv club to play in its rugby union sevens competition without also committing to the full 15-a-side version of rugby union.

Notable international players

* Vadim Postnikov * Petr Sokolov

Honours

*Russian Championship: 9 ** 1983^†, 1993, 2000, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007 *Russian Cup: 12 ** 1978^†, 1986^†, 1995, 2000, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009 ^†

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 ...

honours

Notes

External links

Official websiteOfficial message boardUnofficial message boardRC Lokomotiv on youtube
{{Rugby union in Russia

Lokomotiv Moscow FC Lokomotiv Moscow (, ) is a Russian professional association football, football club based in Moscow. Lokomotiv have won the Russian Premier League on three occasions; the Soviet Cup twice; and the Russian Cup (football), Russian Cup a record ...

Rugby clubs established in 1937

Notable international players

Honours

See also

Notes

External links