Profile
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 wildly 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 breakdown perceptions of masculinity in within the LGBTQ+ and straight communities by demonstrating 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 fund raisers, 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 as far south as Dallas and as far north as Baltimore, but with visiting players from as far away as Ottawa and even the UK!
