Underwater Rugby is a team watersport played in swimming pools on breathhold. Underwater rugby has been played in the United States since 1979.

History Nick Caloyianis started the first team at Catonsville Community College (now called Community College of Baltimore County, Catonsville). He is a famous underwater filmmaker and director, with several televised specials. Anne Arundel Community College had a competing team for several years. It was also played for a while at the YMCA pool in Severna Park, Arundel Olympic Swim Center pool in Annapolis, and briefly in a pool in Columbia and at Howard Community College. For several years after the start of UW Rugby in the USA, there were no players from Colombia, South America. However, they participated in the 1990s, with players on the men's team in the 1999 and 2003 World Championships, and on the women's team in the 2003 World Championships. Voting representatives for the international CMAS rules changes were sent to the CMAS 1987 Underwater Rugby Worlds in Zurich, Switzerland, and to the worlds in 1991 in Copenhagen, Denmark. Boston started a team a couple of years later than Baltimore and Boston still plays both Underwater Rugby and more recently underwater hockey.

Around the year 2000, UW Rugby events in the US were basically UWR Clinics on which players from different parts of the country met to play during a weekend and play on a potluck format. After fail attempts to put together a National team to go to the World Championships of 2007 in Italy and 2011 in Finland, the only active clubs in the US (East Haven Makos, New Jersey Hammerheads, and Boston Narwhals) decided to join efforts with their Canadian counterparts (CAMO, Club Liberation) and started a Local Competition called the North American Underwater Rugby Tournaments (NAT) to raise the level of the game in both countries as well as provide continuous competition throughout the years for both countries.

With the North American Tournaments (NAT) the competition and level of play started to grow the sport and additional teams began to appear and expand the NAT tournaments. New Clubs started in the DC area, Florida, and later Wisconsin and California.

NAT tournaments also became attractive to clubs from other countries and participation especially from Colombian Clubs has been an additional motivation for local clubs.

Active USA clubs

Club name City State Active NORTH EAST Boston Narwhals UW Rugby Quincy MA Yes New Jersey Hammerheads Underwater Rugby Newark NJ Yes Newark Underwater Recreation Newark NJ Yes DC Devilrays Underwater Rugby Arlington VA Yes SOUTH EAST Florida Inter UWR Coral Springs FL Yes Tallahassee Tarpoon Underwater Rugby Tallahassee FL Yes WEST San Francisco Giant Sea Bass San Francisco CA Yes Colorado Underwater Rugby Denver CO Yes

Inactive USA clubs

Club name City State Active San Diego Sea Devils San Diego CA No Connecticut Makos New Haven CT No Florida Krakens Pompano Beach - Key Largo FL No University of Illinois Urbana - Champaign IL No Baltimore Baltimore MD No Killeen Underwater Club Killeen TX No University of Texas Austin TX NoMarquette Aquamen UW Rugby Marquette MINo

International competition The USA National Team has only been involved 5 times in CMAS world tournaments as described below.

6TH CMAS UNDERWATER RUGBY World Championship - Essen Germany 1999 A combined team of players from Baltimore, Boston, and some Colombian immigrants went to the Worlds in 1999 in Germany

Men's Games USA 0-23 Norway USA 0-22 Germany USA 0-11 Austria USA 0-23 Denmark USA 0-20 Czech Republic USA 0-11 Colombia USA 0-17 Sweden USA 2-5 Austria

7TH CMAS UNDERWATER RUGBY World Championship - Fredericia Denmark 2003 The team for the 2003 World Championship was assembled with players from different states with a base pool set in Massachusetts, and in 2003 to Fredericia, Denmark. A combined women's team also went to Worlds in 2003.

Men's Games USA 2-8 Switzerland USA 0-14 Colombia USA 0-21 Germany USA 1-8 Czech Republic USA 0-12 Sweden USA 2-1 Turkey

Women's games USA 0-58 Norway USA 0-35 Colombia USA 0-17 Denmark USA 4-2 Turkey

10TH CMAS UNDERWATER RUGBY World Championship - Cali Colombia 2015 The teams for the 2015 World Championships was assembled with players from different states including MA, NJ, CT, FL, DC

Men's Games USA 1-10 Austria USA 0-11 Sweden USA 20-0 South Africa USA 2-1 Australia USA 1-0 Spain

Women's games

USA 0-18 Denmark USA 0-27 Norway USA 0-30 Germany USA 2-8 Australia USA 1-5 Venezuela

11TH CMAS UNDERWATER RUGBY World Championship - Graz Austria 2019 The teams for the 2019 World Championships was assembled with players from different states including MA, NJ, CT, FL, DC, CA, TXResults from the 1999 Underwater Rugby World Cup. "". International Underwater Rugby Commission

Men's Games USA 0-12 Sweden USA 16-1 Luxemburg USA 2-0 Hungary USA 1-4 Austria USA 5-0 Great Britain USA 1-3 Australia USA 2-1 Italy

Women's games USA 1-1 Turkey USA 2-0 Spain USA 0-11 Germany USA 0-1 Australia USA 0-6 Denmark USA 25-0 Great Britain USA 6-0 Italy

12TH CMAS UNDERWATER RUGBY World Championship - Montreal, Canada 2023 The teams for the 2023 World Championships was assembled with players from different states including MA, NJ, CT, FL, DC, CO

Men's Games USA 0-18 Colombia USA 0-10 Germany USA 3-1 Spain USA 0-3 Denmark USA 2-0 Canada USA 1-0 Australia USA 0-5 Sweden

Women's games USA 1-5 Australia USA 3-0 Canada USA 0-12 Colombia USA 1-10 Germany USA 4-1 Spain USA 0-5 Denmark USA 0-1 Austria

Local competition Local competition started jointly in the northeast with the Canadian clubs. The North American Underwater Rugby Tournaments (NAT) started in 2011 as a competition of US and Canadian Clubs with the purpose of providing local and continuous competition throughout the year in an effort to grow the sport and improve the level of play In both countries after two failed attempts to send a US National team to the 2007 and 2011 CMAS World Championships. These series of North American Tournaments were used to decide the National Champion each year for the US and Canada. Best team raked from each country was the National Champion for that year.

USA MEN'S UNDERWATER RUGBY CHAMPIONS Year Host # US Teams Champion 2nd Place 3rd Place 2011 ON 2 New Jersey Hammerheads Boston Narwhals N/A 2012 MA - QC - ON 4 New Jersey Hammerheads Boston Narwhals Connecticut Makos 2013 QC - ON 2 New Jersey Hammerheads Boston Narwhals N/A 2014 QC - ON 3 New Jersey Hammerheads Boston Narwhals SF Giant Sea Bass 2015 NJ - QC - ON 5 New Jersey Hammerheads Connecticut Makos NUWR Sea Lions 2016 FL - QC - ON 5 NUWR Sea Lions New Jersey Hammerheads Boston Narwhals 2017 NJ - CT - FL 10 NUWR Sea Lions Boston Narwhals Florida Krakens 2018 NJ - FL 10 Boston Narwhals NUWR Sea Lions New Jersey Hammerheads 2019 NJ - MA - FL 11 Boston Narwhals New Jersey Hammerheads Florida Krakens 2021 Denver, CO 8 New Jersey Hammerheads NUWR Sea Lions Boston Narwhals 2022 Hamden, CT 7 NUWR Sea Lions New Jersey Hammerheads Florida Inter 2023 Arlington, VA 8 New Jersey Hammerheads NUWR Sea Lions Boston Narwhals 2024 Coral Springs, FL 8 New Jersey Hammerheads SF Giant Sea Bass Florida Inter 2025 TBD - TBD TBD TBD

USA WOMEN'S UNDERWATER RUGBY CHAMPIONS Year Host # Teams Champion 2nd Place 3rd Place 2018 NJ - FL 6 Connecticut Makos New Jersey Hammerheads Florida Krakens 2019 NJ - MA - FL 6 Connecticut Makos Boston Narwhals DC Devilrays 2021 Denver, CO 4 Colorado UWR L CT Makos L NJ Hammerheads L 2022 Hamden, CT 5 New Jersey Hammerheads Connecticut Makos Colorado UWR2023Arlington, VA4New Jersey HammerheadsDC DevilraysConnecticut Makos2024Coral Springs, FL3New Jersey HammerheadsColorado UWRDC Devilrays2025TBDTBDTBDTBD

References

External links Underwater Society of America Underwater Rugby homepage USA Underwater Rugby homepage