• Leagues & Organizations

Passion sparked for some royalty to come to the Queen City.
Founded in 2004, a group of men felt the community lacked a gay rugby team. The team formed after they were invited to a scrimmage between the Atlanta Bucks and the Raleigh Kodiaks. After watching the match, they firmly believed the Queen City was ready for some royalty and formed the Charlotte Royals.

As a sport, rugby was not widely known in the southern states; however, the fledgling members saw an embrace from the gay community. Small and determined, they learned the basics by practicing with the Charlotte Mayhem and Raleigh Kodiaks.

After a few years, local support began to grow, the LGBTQIA+ community began to buzz, and we began to ROAR!

Today, we have 30+ players and 40+ auxiliary members, and countless supporters around the country.

We seek to break down perceptions of masculinity within the LGBTQ+ and straight communities by demonstrating the strength, determination, and athleticism of a gay rugby team.

Where we are:
Each spring and fall season (15-a-side) involves an average of 6 weekends of matches with fundraisers, social events, and charity work in the local area. The summer season (7-a-side) is organized based on interest; please check in with our Facebook page or contact us for details on summer practice times. This is an off-season for many players, so we try to accommodate practices to best fit schedules.

In 2015, the Charlotte Royals began hosting an annual tournament, the Queen City Crown. Held at various venues across Charlotte, this tournament plays host to IGR teams from all over. In 2016, we hosted teams from as far south as Dallas and as far north as Baltimore, with visiting players from as far away as Ottawa and even the UK!