LA Giltinis ready to pack a ‘punch’

Article posted by Coliseum, March 10^th, 2021

Image: LA Coliseum

Los Angeles (US) is getting ready to welcome its newest professional sports franchise when the LA Giltinis rugby team begins to play at the Coliseum on March 20^th.

The LA Giltinis are a Major League Rugby (MLR) team that is all set to enter the league in the 2021 season as an expansion franchise. The team is owned by Loyals Rugby and will be based in Venice Beach, California (US), playing at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum.

The 78,467-capacity Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum is an American outdoor sports multipurpose stadium located in the Exposition Park neighborhood of Los Angeles, California.

Major League Rugby (MLR) is a professional rugby union competition and the top-level championship for clubs in North America. In the 2021 season it will be contested by 12 teams: Eleven from the United States and one from Canada.

‘CBS Los Angeles’ reported that the team’s first fixture will be held on March 20^th at the Coliseum vs. MLR team New England Free Jacks.

The Giltinis, named after a cocktail, is owned primarily by Loyals Rugby, a rugby investment company founded in Australia.

The Giltinis was announced as one of 13 MLR franchises in May 2020, but it wasn’t clear where they would play until the league’s announcement recently.

‘CBS Los Angeles’ further quoted Adam Freier, Giltinis’ General Manager, and a former Australian Wallabies player, as stating, “Rugby World Cup is the third biggest sporting event on the planet and many would agree that Los Angeles is the sporting capital of the world so it became imperative for this City to have its very own rugby team in the LA Giltinis.”

Added Freier, “The game of rugby is built upon a rich history. It prides itself on its values and traditions but continues to look at ways to innovate. This is exactly why we are partnering with such an iconic and celebrated sporting arena in the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, `The Greatest Stadium in the World’ as it is widely tagged.”

“I’m very excited to have rugby return to the L.A. Coliseum for the first time in 65 years,” Coliseum General Manager Joe Furin said.

The league said the team and Coliseum officials have reached “a landmark stadium agreement of five-plus years.”

Major League Rugby was founded in 2018, and its 13 franchises include the San Diego Legion. Its 2020 season was cut short due to COVID-19 which still has the United States in its fatal grip.

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