When it comes to rugby, Germany isn’t exactly renowned for its success. However, Liam Mckenna-May compares it to the English rugby scene and how one small city in Germany is trying to level up the playing field. Heidelberg is the 51st biggest city in Germany, but when it comes to rugby they are miles ahead compared to the rest of the country…

When you think of domestic rugby, all the big sides come to mind. The Saracens, who are eleven-time Gallagher Premiership champions, or even Northampton Saints and their incredible ability to produce some of England’s best players.

There’s one thing that is usually a nexus that links all these. The amazing atmosphere at some of the best venues in world rugby. On matchday, the pints are flowing, the smell of freshly cooked food is under your nose, and everyone comes together to watch the best in the sport go head-to-head.

Whilst English rugby is up there with some of the best in the world, including the likes of New Zealand, South Africa, and Ireland, there’s one country missing which has always been renowned for dominating sports. Germany is rarely heard of on the rugby scene in both a national and domestic capacity. 

Both England and Germany have been known to be fierce rivals in other sports such as football, but the Gallagher Premiership by far trumps the Rugby Bundesliga in terms of viewing numbers and popularity. For the Gallagher Premiership final in 2024, it attracted over 1.25 million televised viewers, which is the most it has ever seen, according to the Premiership Rugby website.

In addition to this, The Premiership saw a 700,000 increase in viewers over the first six games of 2024 compared to the previous season, boasting a viewership of over three million people. Germany, on the other hand, has a lot to learn.

At the time of writing, the country sits 34th in the men’s national rankings, with their only major achievement coming in 1900 when they gained a silver medal at the Olympics. 

Whilst the sport may not be too popular in the country at the moment, there’s one city that is rugby crazy, and they’re trying to change this. Heidelberg is one of the smaller cities in Germany but is nicknamed the home of German rugby.

It’s home to four of the country’s top division sides, including RG Heidelberg, one of the founding members of the Rugby Bundesliga. 

Heidelberg (above) is home to four professional sides.

The side have won four top division titles with a history of oozing success running through the team. What makes them stand out from the rest is that they’re the only side to have remained in the league since it was formed in 1971, making them a true staple in the league.

Jamil Ehrmann is one of the young players trying to increase the level of rugby in Germany. He’s one of the youngest to have reached the senior

team for RG Heidelberg.

When asked why rugby wasn’t as popular, Jamil suggested that rugby isn’t a favoured sport in the country, with him going on to say, “In Germany, rugby isn’t the first sport we like to play. When we were younger, we were often given a choice between football and rugby and, like usual, many

people chose football.”

This was not only reflected by Jamil, but by a few of his teammates as well. One of those was Felix Meffert, who talked about how a lack of support has led to fewer youngsters picking up the sport in their teenage years. 

Felix stated, “We don’t give it (rugby) enough attention, especially once we get to the ages of 13 or 14, where we stop being encouraged into rugby and have to make our own path.”

Jamil Ehrmann (left) & Felix Meffert (right) are two of RG Heidelberg’s younger players to have come into the squad.

With little focus on the sport, it’s unsurprising that there are calls for more funding to help improve the position of rugby in Germany.

One of the many who call for funding is the head coach, Jeff Tigere. Jeff came over to Germany in his early twenties to study but fell in love with Heidelberg. He is a coach with experience, with his playing days including getting capped for the Zimbabwe national team.

When asked what the issues were, Jeff stated, “I don’t think there’s enough funding in the sport. We go on to fund sports such as football and handball, but for me there isn’t enough focus on rugby.”

It’s fair to say that Jeff is right. Looking at the RG Heidelberg ground, it looks very underdeveloped with a seating capacity of under 500 and only one main stand. The rest offers a lack lustre demeanour, with the ground outgiving the feeling of a lower division English club as opposed to that of a team in the topflight of German rugby

This is where RG Heidelberg train and often play matches. You can see the lack of infrastructure available to the team.

When it comes to the Rugby Bundesliga and the sport in Germany, it is clear to see that change is needed imminently to stop the downfall of the sport completely.

Both Felix and Jamil both had similar ideologies as to how the game could improve. “We need more younger people to play the sport. If we can increase the number of players joining the sport, we can start to improve the quality of the national team”, Felix stated. 

“I agree”, Jamil corresponded hastily with him, going on to state, “I think to do this we need more players to help improve the quality of not just the national team but the rugby Bundesliga as well.”

Meanwhile, their coach, Jeff, had a stern demeanour when he pressed for more funding towards the sport, quoting, “We need investment, so we can develop our academy, the facilities, and most of all improve German rugby.”

Through the eyes of those associated with the game, it is clear to see what needs to be done. More funding, more academy support, and more publicity to the German population.

If they provide this concrete scaffolding, it will be impossible to crumble and furthermore push German rugby back up the ladder.

One key question remains: how committed are Germany to reforming their ruins of a rugby system?