Canucks Rugby Day is the best day of the year for the Calgary Rugby Union. It’s a chance to celebrate the game they love and to introduce it to anyone interested in learning more about the sport. This is the 58th year for the Canucks Rugby Club. Rugby is a game of endurance, consisting of 80-minute games with two 40-minute halves. Canada has qualified for the men’s rugby World Cup in 2027 in Australia. That, along with the women’s success at the 2025 Women’s Rugby World Cup, is generating growing interest in the sport. “I think that the women’s national team playing in the World Cup last year, beating New Zealand, making it to the final against England, has done a lot for women’s rugby," said Eve Upshall, the vice-president of women’s rugby for the Calgary Rugby Union. “We actually have women from Calgary that have represented us at that level,” Upshall added. “So we we like to support them, and I think that nationwide it’s growing.” That success has prompted an increase in registrants: in the last five years, the women’s program has grown to 65 women. Next year, it’s the men’s turn to participate in the Rugby World Cup, and the Canadian men will be part of the event. “Canada qualified for it, so it’ll be it’ll be a big event,” said Shane Tevelei, the vice-president of senior men’s rugby and the co-president of Canucks Rugby Club. “And what we always see in various sports, whatever transpires in that sport, you’ll see numbers grow the following season. “It’s just it’s just one of those things that happens. It’s just an anomaly, but it grows. It’s popular. It’s outdoors. It’s fun -- and it’s team orientated.” You also don’t need a lot of equipment to play rugby -- just a mouthguard and cleats. For more information, go here. With files from CTV News’ Darren Wright
