Major League Rugby Owners (Quick Facts)

There is a wide variety of franchise owners in Major League Rugby. Many have strong rugby backgrounds, and some played or coached with the U.S. Eagles. There is also overseas representation in the ownership groups of some MLR clubs.

I’ve put together some tables and quick facts that give a good overview of the MLR owners.

Table of Contents

MLR Owners

Here is a summary of the majority and minority owners of MLR franchises.

Franchise	Majority Owner(s)	Minority Owner	Minority Owner	Minority Owner	Minority Owner
Austin Gilgronis	Adam Gilchrist
Houston Sabercats	Mike Loya	Javier Loya
LA Giltinis	Adam Gilchrist
New England Free Jacks	Erik Anderson	Alex Magleby	Nate Ebner	Patrick Chung
NOLA Gold	Tim Falcon	Clermont Auvergne (FR)
Old Glory DC	Paul Sheehy & Chris Dunlavey	Scottish Rugby
Rugby ATL	Marcus Calloway	Scott Lawrence
Rugby United New York	Bolton Equities (NZ)	Pierre Arnald (FR)	Thomas Savare (FR)
San Diego Legion	Ryan Patterson & Darren Gardner	Bob Skinstad	Matt Hawkins
Seattle Seawolves	Adrian Balfour & Shane Skinner	20+ local investors	Canterbury Rugby Union (NZ)	Crusaders RFC (NZ)
Toronto Arrows	Bill Webb	Brian Burke	Duncan McNaughten	Kevin Reed	John Ferraro
Utah Warriors	Kimball Kjar	Luke Kjar	Wade Sherman	Others

Only two clubs have a single owner, and it’s the same guy. Adam Gilchrist, an Australian entrepreneur, owns the Austin Gilgronis and owns the LA Giltinis.

Several franchises have two principal owners. With other clubs, the majority owner funded the initial licensing fees and brought in more investors.

Overseas Ownership In Major League Rugby

Adam Gilchrist is an Australian entrepreneur who has majority ownership of an international gym franchise. Movie star Mark Wahlberg is one of the minority owners.

Gilchrist founded a sports investment company, Loyals Rugby, which is the vehicle that owns Austin Gilgronis and LA Giltinis. The linked articles delve further into Gilchrist’s background and the unusual team names.

New Zealand investment group, Bolton Equities, acquired 90% of Rugby United New York when they bought out the original founder James Kennedy. Frenchman Pierre Arnald retained the remaining 10%. Murry Bolton’s past record with Auckland Rugby makes an interesting read in the context of Bolton equities ownership of RUNY.

But that wasn’t the end of French involvement in RUNY. In 2021, Bolton Equities announced that French businessman Thomas Savare had purchased a minority stake in Rugby United New York. Savare was President of giant French club Stade Francais for six years.

Eagle-eyed readers may have noticed that my table shows Springbok Bob Skinstad as “UK”. This is because Skinstad’s minority ownership of San Diego Legion is through his investment group, which is based out of London.

Overseas rugby unions and clubs

Clermont Auvergne, one of the giant French professional clubs, has minority ownership in NOLA Gold. The historic French influence on New Orleans seems a natural fit, and the European club has already started establishing links beyond financial contributions.

The Scottish Rugby Football Union purchased a minority stake in Old Glory DC. I speculate in the linked article about what this may mean for the Washington franchise.

Seattle Seawolves have looked to New Zealand for equity and influence. Both Canterbury Union and the Crusaders RFC have purchased equity in the Seawolves. The linked article discusses how much they own (it may be less than you think).

Eagles Players And Coaches As MLR Owners

Six MLR franchises have a majority or minority owner with a background as player or coach (or both) with the U.S. Eagles.

Kimball Kjar, majority owner of the Utah Warriors, was an All-American Collegiate Player in 2001. His performances resulted in a first cap against Argentina that year. Kjar was capped 21 times for the Eagles.

Paul Sheehy is one of the two principal owners of Old Glory DC. The fullback went to the 1991 Rugby World Cup with the Eagles and started two matches.

Matt Hawkins is a co-founder and minority owner of San Diego Legion. Hawkins grew up playing schoolboy rugby in South Africa before moving to the U.S. and gaining citizenship. He didn’t just play for the Eagles, he also coached the national team.

Alex Magleby, co-owner of the New England Free Jacks, is another MLR investor who both played and coached at national level. Magleby played for the U.S. Sevens team over five years and got four caps for the fifteens side. Magleby went on to coach the sevens squad.

Scott Lawrence, minority owner of Rugby ATL, played with Todd Clever and Paul Emerick in the 2006 Churchill Cup. He went on to coach the Eagles U20s side for a five-year stint. He joined the senior coaching team as defense coach for another five years.

MLR Club Inaugural Seasons

Major League Rugby kicked off in 2018 with seven teams in the first season. MLR added more franchises in successive years. This table shows the inaugural seasons of each club.

* The team from Austin, Texas was named Austin Elite. It would be purchased and renamed as Austin Gilgronis.

** Glendale Raptors would subsequently withdraw from the league.

Team	Season
Austin Gilgronis *	2018
Glendale Raptors **	2018
Houston Sabercats	2018
NOLA Gold	2018
San Diego Legion	2018
Seattle Seawolves	2018
Utah Warriors	2018
Rugby United New York	2019
Toronto Arrows	2019
New England Free Jacks	2020
Old Glory DC	2020
Rugby ATL	2020
LA Giltinis	2021

Detailed Articles On The MLR Franchise Owners

Check out our in-depth articles on these franchise owners. We cover the business and rugby backgrounds of majority and minority owners. And we throw in some juicy stories that you may not have heard before.