List of Seattle Seawolves seasons

The Seattle Seawolves are a professional American rugby union team based in Seattle, Washington, that play in Major League Rugby (MLR). They were established in 2017 as one of the seven inaugural teams in MLR and began play in the 2018 season.[1] The Seawolves are a member of the Western Conference and play their home matches at Starfire Sports, a 4,500-seat multipurpose stadium in Tukwila, Washington.[2]
As of the 2025 season, MLR has 11 teams that play a regular season with 16 matches from February to June. The regular season consists of a full round-robin schedule against opponents in the same conference and several inter-conference matches.[3][4] The top four teams in each conference advance to the postseason playoffs, a single-elimination tournament in June that culminates in the championship final hosted at a predetermined venue.[5][6]
The Seawolves have won two MLR championships, tied for the most in league history with the New England Free Jacks, and have appeared in four finals.[7] The team have qualified for the playoffs in all but one of their full seasons in MLR.[1] They won the inaugural championship in 2018 under player-coach Phil Mack and the 2019 final under Richie Walker, an interim replacement for head coach.[8] The team missed the playoffs in the 2021 season, which they played under three coaches,[9] and did not initially qualify for the 2022 playoffs until the disqualification of the Western Conference leaders, the Austin Gilgronis and LA Giltinis.[10] The Seawolves qualified in a replacement berth under head coach Allen Clarke and finished as runners-up in the 2022 final, where they lost to Rugby New York.[11] The team finished as runners-up in the 2024 final to the New England Free Jacks, who won their second consecutive championship.[7]
As of the 2025 season, the Seawolves have played 109 total regular season games with a record of 62 wins, 2 draws, and 45 losses.
Seasons
[edit]- Key to colors
‡ | League champions |
---|---|
† | Conference champions |
§ | Other |
Season | Conference[a] | Regular season | Postseason results | Head coach | Refs. | |||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Pos. | Pld. | W | D | L | PF | PA | PD | BP | Pts.[b] | |||||
2018 | — | 2nd | 8 | 6 | 0 | 2 | 232 | 188 | +44 | 5 | 29 | Won Semifinal (San Diego) 38–24 Won MLR Final (Glendale) 23–19‡ |
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[16] |
2019 | — | 2nd | 16 | 11 | 1 | 4 | 498 | 405 | +93 | 12 | 58 | Won Semifinal (Toronto) 30–17 Won MLR Final (San Diego) 26–23‡ |
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[17] |
2020[c] | Western | 4th | 5 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 138 | 162 | −24 | 4 | 8 | Not held[c] | ![]() |
[19] |
2021 | Western | 5th | 16 | 4 | 0 | 12 | 343 | 461 | −118 | 10 | 26 | Did not qualify | ![]() ![]() ![]() |
[21] |
2022 | Western | 4th[d] | 16 | 9 | 0 | 7 | 435 | 354 | +81 | 10 | 46 | Won Conference Eliminator (San Diego) 43–19 Won Conference Final (Houston) 46–27 Lost MLR Final (New York) 15–30† |
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[23] |
2023 | Western | 2nd | 16 | 12 | 0 | 4 | 509 | 348 | +161 | 11 | 59 | Won Conference Eliminator (Houston) 37–26 Lost Conference Final (San Diego) 32–10§ |
[24] | |
2024 | Western | 2nd | 16 | 11 | 0 | 5 | 498 | 373 | +125 | 13 | 57 | Won Conference Semifinals (San Diego) 30–28 Won Conference Final (Dallas) 28–25 Lost MLR Final (New England) 11–20† |
[25] | |
2025 | Western | 4th | 16 | 8 | 1 | 7 | 460 | 422 | +38 | 15 | 49 | Lost Conference Semifinals (Utah) 21–27§ | [26] | |
Total (as of 2025) | 109 | 62 | 2 | 45 | 3,113 | 2,713 | +400 | 80 | 332 |
Notes
[edit]- ^ Major League Rugby divided its league into two conferences beginning in the 2020 season.[12] The league initially announced that the 2024 season would use a single-table format, but retained the conferences.[13][14]
- ^ In rugby union, 4 points are awarded for a win, 2 points for a draw, 0 points for a loss, and bonus points for close losses and scoring at least 4 tries.[15]
- ^ a b The 2020 season was postponed on March 12 after the fifth round of the regular season. The remainder of the season, including the playoffs, was canceled on March 19.[18]
- ^ The two highest-ranked Western Conference teams, Austin Gilgronis and the LA Giltinis, were disqualified from postseason play due to a breach of salary cap rules. As a result, Seattle were moved to second place and hosted the Western Conference Eliminator.[10]
References
[edit]- ^ a b Ackerman, Dylan (July 26, 2024). "Seawolves look for return to Major League Rugby championship game". The Seattle Times. Retrieved September 29, 2025.
- ^ Leonard, Tod (July 6, 2018). "In San Diego for title match, Major League Rugby reflects on inaugural season, future". San Diego Union-Tribune. Retrieved August 23, 2025.
- ^ Warren, Sam (February 14, 2025). "The Houston SaberCats their seventh season. What to know about rugby, how to watch". Houston Chronicle. Retrieved September 29, 2025.
- ^ "ESPN and Major League Rugby Announce Multiyear Media Rights Agreement" (Press release). Major League Rugby. February 6, 2025. Retrieved September 29, 2025.
- ^ "Major League Rugby unveils 2025 slate of matchups" (Press release). Major League Rugby. November 19, 2024. Retrieved September 29, 2025.
- ^ Bong, Bob (March 28, 2023). "Comings & Goings: Rugby championship coming to Bridgeview, and more". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved September 29, 2025.
- ^ a b Ackermann, Dylan (August 4, 2024). "Seawolves unable to keep Free Jacks from back-to-back Major League Rugby titles". The Seattle Times. Retrieved August 23, 2025.
- ^ a b c d Arthur, Ben (March 4, 2020). "A budding dynasty? Seattle Seawolves gunning for 3rd straight Major League Rugby title". Seattle Post-Intelligencer. Retrieved August 23, 2025.
- ^ Hanson, Scott (February 4, 2022). "Seattle Seawolves look to rebound from disappointing 2021 as Major League Rugby season starts". The Seattle Times. Retrieved August 23, 2025.
- ^ a b Pengelly, Martin (June 7, 2022). "Major League Rugby in crisis as LA and Austin disqualified from playoffs". The Guardian. Retrieved August 23, 2025.
- ^ Bernstein, Jason (June 25, 2022). "Seawolves' unexpected postseason run ends with loss in Major League Rugby championship game". The Seattle Times. Retrieved August 23, 2025.
- ^ "Major League Rugby to add three new teams in 2020". ESPN. Reuters. April 12, 2019. Retrieved August 23, 2025.
- ^ Marrion, Jack (December 19, 2023). "Sabercats open 2024 season on March 2 in smaller league, expanded playoffs". Houston Chronicle. Retrieved August 23, 2025.
- ^ Walker, Sean (March 9, 2024). "Utah Warriors embark on home opener in very different Major League Rugby from a year ago". KSL.com. Salt Lake City. Retrieved August 23, 2025.
- ^ Harvey, Joe (June 8, 2023). "Looking to the 2023 MLR Championship Series". Major League Rugby. Retrieved October 18, 2025.
- ^ "2018 Major League Rugby". Americas Rugby News. Retrieved August 23, 2025.
- ^ "2019 Major League Rugby". Americas Rugby News. Retrieved August 23, 2025.
- ^ Davidson, Neil (March 19, 2020). "Major League Rugby calls off season instead of contending with coronavirus uncertainty". The Globe and Mail. The Canadian Press. Retrieved August 23, 2025.
- ^ "2020 Major League Rugby". Americas Rugby News. Retrieved August 23, 2025.
- ^ "Clarke Elevated to Director of Rugby and Head Coach, Tuilevuka Named General Manager of the Seattle Seawolves" (Press release). Seattle Seawolves. May 27, 2021. Retrieved September 29, 2025.
- ^ "2021 Major League Rugby". Americas Rugby News. Retrieved August 23, 2025.
- ^ Hanson, Scott (February 15, 2025). "Seawolves enter rugby season with title hopes after taking 2nd in 2024". The Seattle Times. Retrieved September 29, 2025.
- ^ "2022 Major League Rugby". Americas Rugby News. Retrieved August 23, 2025.
- ^ "2023 Major League Rugby". Americas Rugby News. Retrieved August 23, 2025.
- ^ "2024 Major League Rugby". Americas Rugby News. Retrieved August 23, 2025.
- ^ "Standings". Major League Rugby. Archived from the original on September 4, 2025. Retrieved August 23, 2025.