About Us
First bounce of the 3rd Women's AFL Varsity in 2020
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Founded in 1906, the Oxford University Australian Rules Football Club (OUARFC) welcomes male and female players of any ability, nationality and with no regard to University affiliation. OUARFC is the oldest AFL Club outside of Australia, and one of the oldest Varsity clubs of the University of Oxford. Formed in 1906, the Club saw its first match against Cambridge in 1911, which makes the Club the oldest running AFL Club outside of Australia, and the Cambridge Varsity the longest contested fixture outside of Australia. OUARFC is also one of the first clubs in the UK to start a women’s AFL team, with the first Oxford women’s match played in February 2015. |
OUARFC is open to all - you do not need to be a student of the University to play with us.
In recent years our team has comprised of a mix of Oxford residents, employees at the University of Oxford, students of the University of Oxford (forming the majority of members) and students of Oxford Brookes University. We predominantly have players from Australia and the UK, however we have members from Ireland, New Zealand, South Africa, Zimbabwe, Mexico, France and the United States.
AFL with OUARFC is a fun, social and welcoming environment, and we encourage anyone interested to get in touch with the President or the Captains to hear more. We are an integrated Club, meaning we mix our Men and Women teams for training as much as possible.
Past OURAFC members include current AFL Commission Chairman and dual Carlton Football Club Premiership Captain, Mike Fitzpatrick, Chairman of the Australian Sports Commission, John Wylie, and prominent businessman, Sir Rod Eddington. Rupert Murdoch was a former umpire for OUARFC and multiple former Australian Prime-Ministers have kicked the Sherrin with OUARFC while studying at Oxford, most recently Kevin Rudd. In 2011, we were proudly the subject of an Australian Broadcasting Corporation documentary.
Social
OUARFC is a very social club with multiple events, big and small, regularly throughout the year.
Footy Trip
OUARFC organises an annual footy trip for members. This is a social event which typically features a friendly versus a local AFL team and a chance to travel with friends. The 2022 Footy Trip was to Bordeaux, France, where we were hosted by the Bordeaux Bombers. It was a huge success with 28 members travelling. 2021 was in Edinburgh, Scotland, where we were hosted by the Edinburgh Bloods, and was attended by 32 members. Other previous trips have been to Italy, France, Germany and The Netherlands.
Development Pathways
In Great Britain (GB) there are national AFL teams for both Men and Women who were born in GB. Development has predominantly been focussed on Women's AFL. OUARFC has multiple women who have played for the Great Britain Swans and for the England Vixens. Men born in GB can aim for selection to the GB Bulldogs and/or the England Drangonslayers.
In recent years our team has comprised of a mix of Oxford residents, employees at the University of Oxford, students of the University of Oxford (forming the majority of members) and students of Oxford Brookes University. We predominantly have players from Australia and the UK, however we have members from Ireland, New Zealand, South Africa, Zimbabwe, Mexico, France and the United States.
AFL with OUARFC is a fun, social and welcoming environment, and we encourage anyone interested to get in touch with the President or the Captains to hear more. We are an integrated Club, meaning we mix our Men and Women teams for training as much as possible.
Past OURAFC members include current AFL Commission Chairman and dual Carlton Football Club Premiership Captain, Mike Fitzpatrick, Chairman of the Australian Sports Commission, John Wylie, and prominent businessman, Sir Rod Eddington. Rupert Murdoch was a former umpire for OUARFC and multiple former Australian Prime-Ministers have kicked the Sherrin with OUARFC while studying at Oxford, most recently Kevin Rudd. In 2011, we were proudly the subject of an Australian Broadcasting Corporation documentary.
Social
OUARFC is a very social club with multiple events, big and small, regularly throughout the year.
Footy Trip
OUARFC organises an annual footy trip for members. This is a social event which typically features a friendly versus a local AFL team and a chance to travel with friends. The 2022 Footy Trip was to Bordeaux, France, where we were hosted by the Bordeaux Bombers. It was a huge success with 28 members travelling. 2021 was in Edinburgh, Scotland, where we were hosted by the Edinburgh Bloods, and was attended by 32 members. Other previous trips have been to Italy, France, Germany and The Netherlands.
Development Pathways
In Great Britain (GB) there are national AFL teams for both Men and Women who were born in GB. Development has predominantly been focussed on Women's AFL. OUARFC has multiple women who have played for the Great Britain Swans and for the England Vixens. Men born in GB can aim for selection to the GB Bulldogs and/or the England Drangonslayers.
Documentary
Below is a documentary made by the ABC on the occasion of the 90th Varsity Match in 2011.
