The Varsity Match

This article is about the rugby union fixture. For the rugby league fixture, see The Varsity League Match. For the ice hockey fixture, see Ice Hockey Varsity Match. For the cricket fixture, see The University Match (cricket).

The Varsity Match (rugby)
Oxford
Cambridge
First meeting1872
Latest meeting2023
Stadiums
Statistics
Meetings total140
All-time seriesCambridge leads, 65 to 62; 14 draws

The Varsity Match is an annual rugby union fixture played between the universities of Oxford and Cambridge in England. The event began in 1872 with the first men's match, with interruptions only for the two World Wars and the COVID-19 pandemic. From 1921 to 2023 the game was played at Twickenham Stadium, London and usually took place in early December. The game is now played in March and will take place at StoneX Stadium in 2024.

Following the 141st match in 2023, Oxford have 62 wins, and Cambridge maintain the lead with 65; 14 games have ended in draws.[2][3] Varsity matches between Oxford and Cambridge are also arranged in various other sports. For example, the first recorded water polo match in history was played between Oxford and Cambridge in 1891.

The women's rugby Varsity Match was first played in 1988 and has taken place at Twickenham on the same day as the men's game since 2015.[4] Cambridge won the 2019 match, repeating their 8–5 victory of 2018.[3]

  1. ^ Cite error: The named reference day was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  2. ^ Oxford cruise past Cambridge 34-7 to win 139th Men’s Varsity Rugby Match on Varsity.co.uk by Jack Wadding & Cameron White, 4 July 2021
  3. ^ a b "Varsity matches: Cambridge beat Oxford 15-0 in men's game; Cambridge women win 8-5". BBC Sport. 12 December 2019.
  4. ^ Hands, David (5 December 2015). "The Varsity Match 2015: Pioneers get their day in the Twickenham sun". The Independent. Archived from the original on 20 June 2022. Retrieved 8 December 2016.