MLR signs letter of intent with Buffalo Thunderbolts and holds talks with 17 other locations
Major League Rugby has signed a letter of intent with the Buffalo Thunderbolts for an entry in 2028 and is in discussions with 17 other groups, the league said on November 6, 2026. The competition will operate with just five teams in 2027.
MLR was formed in 2018 and grew to 13 teams by 2022, but five franchises — in Utah, Miami, Los Angeles, Houston and New Orleans — dropped out in 2025. The league continued in 2026 with six teams, though Anthem RC, a World Rugby-backed project in Charlotte, North Carolina, will not return next year; Seattle Seawolves, champions in 2018 and 2019, are the only founding members remaining alongside Chicago Hounds, New England Free Jacks, Old Glory DC and California Legion.
MLR co-president Alex Magleby said the league hoped six of the 17 groups in talks would enter a formal bid process ahead of the 2028 season, with three to be selected. He described a “disciplined, milestone-driven expansion framework,” with candidates advancing “through distinct vetting gates: initial milestone review under a Letter of Intent (LOI), an Exclusive Negotiating Agreement (ENA), and final Board approval before a definitive Franchise Agreement is awarded”.
Magleby detailed the league’s growth priorities in a single statement, saying the model “focuses on sustainable, de-risked expansion: mandating multi-year operating reserves for incoming owners, securing rugby-appropriate venues with favorable commercial terms, deepening domestic player pathways, community hub leadership and fan engagement structures, and leveraging the commercial runway to the 2031 Men’s and 2033 Women’s Rugby World Cups in the United States to drive national media rights and sponsorship value.” He added: “We can’t expand too fast – too many lessons learned from the past.” He also said the goal is to have the league back up to 12 teams when the 2031 men’s World Cup is played in the US, with MLR in every host city.
World Rugby chief executive Alan Gilpin told Sports Business Journal the governing body expected to use 11 to 13 stadiums for the World Cup, and the SBJ list of potential host cities did not include Buffalo or Indianapolis. Potential World Cup host cities listed by SBJ were: Atlanta, Baltimore, Birmingham (Alabama), Boston, Chicago, Cincinnati, Denver, Houston, Kansas City, Los Angeles, Miami, Minneapolis, Nashville, New Orleans, New York/New Jersey, Orlando, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Phoenix, Salt Lake City, San Diego, San Francisco/Bay Area, Seattle, St Louis, Vancouver (Canada), and Washington DC.
Thursday’s announcement of the Buffalo project drew attention because of the city’s proximity to Canada and the absence of a Canadian team since the Toronto Arrows left MLR in 2023; this year’s champions, Chicago, fielded a core of Canadian players. Mark Winokur, formerly the Arrows’ chief operating officer, has joined local filmmaker and rugby fan Joe DiPasquale in the Buffalo venture; DiPasquale told the Buffalo News: “One of the deepest rugby cultures in the US is right here in Buffalo, and the proximity to the Canadian border, with Canada being a huge rugby market, makes Buffalo a prime market for expansion.” DiPasquale also said he had spoken to Buffalo Pro Soccer about sharing a venue.
Buffalo Pro Soccer does not have a stadium, and has twice delayed planned start dates. Local support for the Thunderbolts includes New York state assemblyman Bill Conrad, who said: “Rugby has been an instrumental part of my life since I was a very young man, when I played for SUNY Fredonia, and I later founded the Kenmore Rugby Club and coached kids in the sport for many years. I love the game and what it did for my personal growth, my physical fitness and self-discipline, and my understanding of teamwork and leadership. I embrace any opportunity to introduce more of the world to the sport, and Buffalo offers an already strong base of rugby players, boosters, and fans. I couldn’t agree more that it’s a logical locale for an MLR expansion.”
The immediate next step set out by the league is the formal bid process ahead of the 2028 season, with MLR seeking six groups to enter that process and selecting three franchises to progress toward final approval.