The London Varsity is an annual university students' union match contested between the University College London and King's College London, the two founding colleges of the University of London. In rugby, the Varsity is traditionally known as the "Jeremy George Cup" named after the founders of the respective universities, Jeremy Bentham and King George IV. Founded in 2004 by Adam Sommerfeld as a rugby union match, the game celebrates the rivalry between University College London and King's College London, which spans nearly two centuries.[1]
The London Varsity is organized by the UCLU and the KCLSU. It is held at the very end of the University Rugby season in March and until 2011 was held at Richmond Athletic Ground. In 2012 the game took place for the first time at the Twickenham Stoop.
In 2014, the London Varsity expanded to include six other sports with fixtures taking place over a week from 7 to 14 March, and is known as the London Varsity Series.[2]
The current Varsity title holder is University College London.[3]
Every Year a charity is supported at the game with previous sponsors including KPMG and Adamant Partners.
In the modern era:
Men's Games:
2004: UCL 19–7 KCL
2005: UCL 11–7 KCL
2006: UCL
2007: UCL 18–5 KCL
2008: UCL
2009: KCL 12 -10 UCL
2010: UCL
2011: KCL 17–15 UCL
2012: UCL 24–7 KCL
2013: Not played
2014: UCL 16–9 KCL
2015: KCL 37–10 UCL
2016: KCL 23–11 UCL
2017: UCL 16 –10 KCL
2018: UCL 15 –11 KCL
2019: Not played
2020: KCL 27–12 UCL
2021: UCL 49–7 KCL
2022: UCL 12-8 KCL
2023: UCL 17-12 KCL
Women's Games:
2007: UCL
2008: UCL
2009: UCL
2010: UCL
2011: UCL 38–5 KCL
2012: UCL 28–5 KCL
2013: Not played
2014: UCL 10–7 KCL
2015: UCL 30–12 KCL
2016: KCL 48–0 UCL
2017: KCL 17–0 UCL
2018: KCL 5–0 UCL
2019: UCL 15–10 KCL
2020: KCL 29–10 UCL
2021: KCL 38-0 UCL
2022: KCL 12-5 UCL
2023: KCL 12-10 UCL
| Total Matches (Men's) | KCL Wins | UCL Wins | Draws |
|---|---|---|---|
| 18 | 5 | 13 | 0 |
| Total Matches (Women's) | KCL Wins | UCL Wins | Draws |
|---|---|---|---|
| 16 | 7 | 9 | 0 |
In 2014, a decision was made jointly by University College London Union and King's College London Students' Union to expand the varsity competition to include six sports in addition to the traditional rugby fixture.
Since 2014 the London Varsity series has flourished, becoming a staple feature in the calendar of both universities and now including over 30 sporting fixtures played across one week in March.
The lineup for the 2018 London Varsity Series included fixtures in:
The fixtures usually include both a men's and women's game and the Hockey, Netball and Football fixtures include matches between both unions' hockey clubs as well as both unions' medics' hockey clubs.
Every year an overall Player of The Series Award is a presented to the outstanding performer of the series. The inaugural winner of The Player of The Series Award was Septimus Theodoulou Knox from UCLU Men's Rugby.