NOLA Gold Rugby hosts playoff game for the first time

The big picture: Major League Rugby is growing in the U.S., Harry Hardy, the organization's chief commercial officer said in a press conference Thursday.

• Average stadium attendance is up 29% across the league since 2021, MLR says, and household viewership for its games is up 80% on Fox Sports in the same time frame.
• And the U.S. is poised to host the Rugby World Cup in 2031, which is driving the organization to engage younger athletes who have the potential to play in that game.

What he said: "Rugby is the ultimate game," said NOLA Gold head coach Cory Brown on Thursday.

• "It doesn't matter what size you are. You could be short. You can be wide. You can be a little bit heavier. You could be tall, but there's a position in rugby for everyone."

As for the NOLA Gold, the focus is all on Sunday.

• The team, which started league play in 2018, has gotten to the semi-finals by finding a way to work together, said Brown, who joined the team last fall, and he hopes to see fans support that effort this weekend.
• The players "are gonna go out there, and it's gonna be an extremely tough game," he said. "It's gonna be physical. It's gonna be hot. But they're gonna go and put everything on the line for this club and for the city."

If you go: The team plays at the Shrine on Airline, though its leadership would prefer you call it the Gold Mine on Airline.

• See the schedule for ticket information.