The Rugby Premier League (RPL) – world’s first franchise-based Rugby 7s league – is set to be launched in India in June, Rugby India and GMR Sports had announced.
RPL will feature the best global Rugby 7s players, alongside Indian talent, with 34 matches played over 15 days.
When will the first season of Rugby Premier League happen?
The tournament will take place between June 15 and 29, 2025.
Where is the first season of Rugby Premier League?
The tournament will take place in Mumbai at the Brihanmumbai Kreeda Ani Lalitkala Prarthisthan Andheri Sports Complex (Mumbai Football Arena, MFA).
Where to watch the first season of Rugby Premier League in India?
The league will be broadcast live on Star Sports and JioHotstar.
What are the Rugby Premier League franchises in the first season?
Six teams will represent major Indian cities—Mumbai, Delhi, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Chennai, and Bhubaneswar.
The franchises are Bengaluru Bravehearts, Chennai Bulls, Delhi Redz, Hyderabad Heroes, Kalinga Black Tigers, and the Mumbai Dreamers.
Format of the first season of Rugby Premier League
The Rugby Premier League will follow a double round-robin format at the end of which the top four placed teams will advance to the semifinals.
Rugby Premier League first season schedule
| Match | Date and Time |
| Bengaluru Bravehearts vs Delhi Redz | June 15 (Sunday) – 7:45 pm IST |
| Chennai Bulls vs Mumbai Dreamers | June 15 (Sunday) – 8:25 pm IST |
| Hyderabad Heroes vs Kalinga Black Tigers | June 15 (Sunday) – 9:05 pm IST |
| Kalinga Black Tigers vs Bengaluru Bravehearts | June 16 (Monday) – 7:45 pm IST |
| Mumbai Dreamers vs Chennai Bulls | June 16 (Monday) – 8:25 pm IST |
| Delhi Redz vs Chennai Bulls | June 17 (Tuesday) – 7:45 pm IST |
| Hyderabad Heroes vs Bengaluru Bravehearts | June 17 (Tuesday) – 8:25 pm IST |
| Chennai Bulls vs Kalinga Black Tigers | June 18 (Wednesday) – 7:45 pm IST |
| Mumbai Dreamers vs Delhi Redz | June 18 (Wednesday) – 8:25 pm IST |
| Bengaluru Bravehearts vs Mumbai Dreamers | June 19 (Thursday) – 7:45 pm IST |
| Kalinga Black Tigers vs Hyderabad Heroes | June 19 (Thursday) – 8:25 pm IST |
| Bengaluru Bravehearts vs Chennai Bulls | June 20 (Friday) – 7:45 pm IST |
| Kalinga Black Tigers vs Delhi Redz | June 20 (Friday) – 8:25 pm IST |
| Mumbai Dreamers vs Hyderabad Heroes | June 20 (Friday) – 9:05 pm IST |
| Chennai Bulls vs Bengaluru Bravehearts | June 21 (Saturday) – 7:45 pm IST |
| Hyderabad Heroes vs Mumbai Dreamers | June 21 (Saturday) – 8:25 pm IST |
| Delhi Redz vs Kalinga Black Tigers | June 21 (Saturday) – 9:05 pm IST |
| Bengaluru Bravehearts vs Hyderabad Heroes | June 22 (Sunday) – 7:45 pm IST |
| Chennai Bulls vs Delhi Redz | June 22 (Sunday) – 8:25 pm IST |
| Kalinga Black Tigers vs Mumbai Dreamers | June 22 (Sunday) – 9:05 pm IST |
| Delhi Redz vs Bengaluru Bravehearts | June 23 (Monday) – 7:45 pm IST |
| Hyderabad Heroes vs Chennai Bulls | June 23 (Monday) – 8:25 pm IST |
| Mumbai Dreamers vs Kalinga Black Tigers | June 24 (Tuesday) – 7:45 pm IST |
| Chennai Bulls vs Hyderabad Heroes | June 24 (Tuesday) – 8:25 pm IST |
| Bengaluru Bravehearts vs Kalinga Black Tigers | June 25 (Wednesday) – 7:45 pm IST |
| Delhi Redz vs Mumbai Dreamers | June 25 (Wednesday) – 8:25 pm IST |
| Kalinga Black Tigers vs Chennai Bulls | June 26 (Thursday) – 7:45 pm IST |
| Hyderabad Heroes vs Delhi Redz | June 26 (Thursday) – 8:25 pm IST |
| Delhi Redz vs Hyderabad Heroes | June 27 (Friday) – 7:45 pm IST |
| Mumbai Dreamers vs Bengaluru Bravehearts | June 27 (Friday) – 8:25 pm IST |
| Semifinal 1 (Rank 2 vs Rank 3) | June 28 (Saturday) – 7:45 pm IST |
| Semifinal 2 (Rank 1 vs Rank 4) | June 28 (Saturday) – 8:25 pm IST |
| Bronze medal match | June 29 (Sunday) – 7:45 pm IST |
| Final | June 29 (Sunday) – 8:25 pm IST |
Rugby Premier League first season squads
Hyderabad Heroes
Head Coach
DJ Forbes (New Zealand)
Marquee
Joji Nasova (Fiji) – Back; Manuel Moreno (Spain) – Forward; Terio Tamani (Fiji) – Back; Lautaro Bazan; Velez (Argentina) – Back; Kevin Wekesa (Kenya) – Forward
Bridge
Motu Opetai (Samoa) – Hybrid; Max Roddick (Germany) – Back; Wolfram Hacker (Germany) – Hybrid
Indian
Prince Khatri (Haryana) – Back; Sumit Roy (West Bengal) – Hybrid; Javed Hussain (Delhi) – Back; Sukumar Hembrom (West Bengal) – Back; Sambit Pradhan (Odisha) – Forward
Chennai Bulls
Head Coach
Ben Gollings (England)
Marquee
Terry Kennedy (Ireland) – Hybrid; Joseva Talacolo (Fiji) – Forward; Filipe Sauturaga (Fiji) – Back; Joaquin Pellandini (Argentina) – Back; Alex Davis (England) – Hybrid
Bridge
Vaovasa Afa (Samoa) – Hybrid; Nikias Lohe (Germany) – Forward; Vaafauese Apelu Maliko (Samoa) – Hybrid
Indian
Vallabh Patil (Maharashtra) – Back; Shanawaz Ahmed (Odisha) – Back; Vinayak Hariraj (Kerala) – Hybrid; Muhammed Jasim EP (Kerala) – Forward; Vinay A (Karnataka) – Forward
Bengaluru Bravehearts
Head Coach
Francisco (Paco) Hernandez (Spain)
Marquee
Akuila Rokolisoa (New Zealand) – Back; Iowane Teba (Fiji) – Back; Tone Ng Shiu (New Zealand) – Hybrid; Pol Pla (Spain) – Back; Scott Curry (New Zealand) – Forward
Bridge
Philip Wokorach (Uganda) – Back; Liam Poultan (Canada) – Back; Mak Kwai Chung (Hong Kong China) – Back
Indian
Mohit Khatri (Haryana) – Hybrid; Karan Rajbhar (West Bengal) – Hybrid; Arpan Chhetri (West Bengal) – Forward; Suresh Kumar (Haryana) – Forward; Prashant Singh (Maharashtra) – Hybrid
Delhi Redz
Head Coach
Tomasi Cama (New Zealand)
Marquee
Matias Osadczuk (Argentina) – Forward; Matteo Graziano (Argentina) – Forward; Alejandro Laforga (Spain) – Back; Patrick Odongo (Kenya) – Back; Jordan Conroy (Ireland) – Back
Bridge
Michael Coverdale (Hong Kong China) – Forward; Moritz Noll (Germany) – Back; Robin Plümpe (Germany) – Hybrid
Indian
Rajdeep Saha (West Bengal) – Back; Deepak Kumar Punia (Haryana) – Back; Mohit (Haryana) – Back; Sunil Chawan (Maharashtra) – Back; Raj Kumar (Rajasthan) – Hybrid
Kalinga Black Tigers
Head Coach
Mike Friday (England)
Marquee
Rosko Specman (South Africa) – Back; Lucas Lacamp (USA) – Back; Perry Baker (USA) – Back; Harry McNulty (Ireland) – Forward; Maurice Longbottom (Australia) – Back
Bridge
Kyle Tremblay (Canada) – Forward; Ethan Turner (Canada) – Back; James Thiel (Canada) – Hybrid
Indian
Ajay Deswal (Haryana) – Forward; Asis Sabar (Odisha) – Back; Deepraj Shahaji Rajebhosale (Maharashtra) – Hybrid; Pardeep Singh (Punjab) – Forward; Arjun Mahato (West Bengal) – Back
Mumbai Dreamers
Head Coach
Tim Walsh (Australia)
Marquee
James Turner (Australia) – Back; Waisea Nacuqu (Fiji) – Back; Henry Hutchison (Australia) – Hybrid; Aaron Cummings (USA) – Forward; Jerry Tuwai (Fiji) – Back
Bridge
Elias Hancock (Canada) – Forward; Rhys Williams James (Canada) – Forward; Briar Barron (Canada) – Forward
Indian
Neeraj Khatri (Haryana) – Forward; Devendra Padir (Services) – Forward; Akash Balmiki (West Bengal) – Back; Nayan K (Karnataka) – Hybrid; Ganesh Majhi (Odisha) – Back
Rahul Bose, President of Rugby India, said, “This is a league that’s been six years in the making, but we wanted to do everything right. The first extraordinary development came thanks to World Rugby, who gave us a 15-day window in which no international rugby 7s would be played anywhere in the world. Rugby 7s is one of the most attractive television sports in modern history. Welcome, India and the world, to the Rugby Premier League.”
CEO of GMR Sports Satyam Trivedi added, “This league has it all to make it big and successful in India. It is both a great broadcast product and a great on-ground property and we are very proud of this partnership with Rugby India.”
