Iffley Road rugby football ground is a playing-field in

Oxford Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to the ...

, England. It is the home of

Oxford University Rugby Football Club The Oxford University Rugby Football Club (Oxford University RFC or OURFC) is the rugby union club of the University of Oxford. The club contests The Varsity Match every year against Cambridge University at Twickenham. History Men's team ...

and between 2013 and 2016 was the home of semi-professional

Oxford Rugby League Oxford Rugby League was a semi-professional rugby league club based in Oxford, England. The club was formed in 2012 and joined League 1 in 2013, playing for five seasons before agreeing to merge with Gloucestershire All Golds following the 20 ...

. It is close to the

Roger Bannister running track The Roger Bannister running track, also known as the Oxford University track, is a 400-metres athletics running track and stadium in Oxford, England. It was where Sir Roger Bannister broke the four-minute mile on 6 May 1954, when it was known ...

History

The land was originally bought in 1876 and was used as a cricket ground until

Oxford University Cricket Club Oxford University Cricket Club (OUCC), which represents the University of Oxford, has always held first-class status since 1827 when it made its debut in the inaugural University Match between OUCC and Cambridge University Cricket Club (CUCC). ...

moved to

the Parks The Oxford University Parks, commonly referred to locally as the University Parks, or just The Parks, is a large parkland area slightly northeast of the city centre in Oxford, England. The park is bounded to the east by the River Cherwell, thoug ...

in 1881. Oxford Union RFC bought the field from Christ Church in the 1890s for £1,000. It was called the New Football Ground, and the cricket pavilion continued to be used by the new owners.

Oxford University A.F.C. Oxford University Association Football Club is an English football club representing the University of Oxford. The club currently plays in the BUCS Football League, the league system of British Universities and Colleges Sport (BUCS). In 2020 ...

shared the facilities until they moved to a neighbouring field in 1921.

Rugby union

Iffley Road is the home ground of the

. Many matches against international teams have been played at Iffley Road. Oxford University has played there against

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...

six times (1906, 1912, 1931, 1951, 1960 and 1969),

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...

5 times (1905, 1924, 1935, 1953 and 1963) and

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

8 times (1908, 1927, 1947, 1957, 1966, 1975, 1981 and 2001). In 2013 and 2014, the University played

Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia, Northern Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the ...

. Other games include

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

vs Maori All Blacks in 2012 and England under-16s vs Wales under-16s.

Rugby league

Rugby league was first played at Iffley Road in 2008 when the University of Oxford played

Oxford Brookes Oxford Brookes University (formerly known as Oxford Polytechnic) is a public university in Oxford, England. It is a new university, having received university status through the Further and Higher Education Act 1992. The university was named ...

. Semi-professional rugby league arrived in 2013 when

entered Championship 1 based at Iffley Road, commemorated by the draw for the 3rd round of the

2013 Challenge Cup The 2013 Challenge Cup (also known as the Tetley's Challenge Cup for sponsorship reasons) was the 112th staging of the most competitive European rugby league tournament at club level and was open to teams from England, Wales, Scotland and France. ...

being held there. Oxford RL moved to

Tilsley Park Tilsley Park is an athletics stadium in Abingdon-on-Thames, Oxfordshire, which is home to Oxford Saints American Football Club. It is managed by Abingdon School on behalf of Vale of White Horse District Council Vale of White Horse District Cou ...

, Abingdon in the 2016 season, but folded a year later.

References

Year of establishment missing Oxford Rugby League Sport at the University of Oxford Sports venues in Oxford University of Oxford sites Rugby league stadiums in England Rugby union in Oxfordshire University sports venues in the United Kingdom {{England-sports-venue-stub