The St. Louis Crusaders is a rugby club and team that works to promote the sport of rugby within under-represented populations, especially gay and bisexual men. We compete in Division III of the Missouri Rugby Football Union, and are members of the International Gay Rugby Association and Board (IGRAB).

Our Name

The city of St. Louis is named for a French king, Louis IX. Louis had a long and eventful reign, which we won’t go into here, and was canonized after his death. Like most saints, Louis has been represented many times in art: in paintings, statues, even the walls in the U.S. House of Representatives and Supreme Court chambers. One particularly notable image for us, though, is an iconic statue entitled “Apotheosis of Saint Louis”, which depicts a crowned Saint Louis in 13th-century armor on horseback, presumably riding to battle in one of his two Crusades. This statue was the emblem of the city until the Gateway Arch was built in the 1960s, and it helped inspire the “Crusaders” name.

Our Colors and Emblem

Our team colors are red, white, and black. The red and white came with our name — the knights who fought alongside Louis in the Crusades wore white tunics with red crosses — though we’ve placed more emphasis on the red (which symbolizes courage) than the original knights. The black entered later, as a symbol of dedication.

Our team’s coat of arms features a red-plumed helmet moving against a red arch and black rugby ball. The helmet represents us as a team; the arch represents our city; and the rugby ball represents our sport.