The Scottish Varsity is an annual rugby union fixture between the University of St Andrews and the University of Edinburgh in Scotland. In the Men's match, as of 2026, St Andrews have eight victories which leads Edinburgh's seven since the revival of the match in 2011. First played in the 1860s, it is the oldest varsity match in the world in a code of football.
History Edinburgh University RFC was founded in 1857 and the University of St Andrews Rugby Football Club the following year. Fixtures began in the 1860s, making this the oldest varsity match in the world in a code of football.
In 1873, the University of St Andrews RFC and the Edinburgh University RFC, along with six other clubs, were foundering members of the Scottish Football Union (now, Scottish Rugby Union). Edinburgh University had joined the Rugby Football Union in 1871 and renounced their membership to join the SFU.
The Scottish Varsity was resurrected in 2011 after a hiatus of over 50 years and was staged in London at the home of London Scottish RFC in order to build alumni relations. In 2015, the match returned to Scotland in Murrayfield Stadium and drew a crowd of over 10,000 spectators. In 2021, the match was played at University Park, the home of University of St Andrews RFC, due to Covid-19 pandemic crowd restrictions. The match is normally held in late September and has received coverage from Sky Sports, the BBC and IRB’s Total Rugby.
The match has been named after its sponsor, The Royal Bank of Scotland, since 2015, and has enjoyed popular support since the rivalry was renewed in 2011.
Men's Results
Varsity matches were initially held on St. Andrew's Day but have been moved earlier to late September, they have attracted notable attendees including her Royal Highness Princess Anne in 2012.
No. Date Venue Score Winner 1 30 November 2011 Richmond Athletic Ground, London 32 – 0 Edinburgh 2 30 November 2012 Richmond Athletic Ground, London 28 – 8 Edinburgh 3 28 September 2013 Richmond Athletic Ground, London 24 – 15 St Andrews 4 27 September 2014 Richmond Athletic Ground, London 17 – 12 St Andrews 5 26 September 2015 Murrayfield Stadium, Edinburgh 27 – 26 St Andrews 6 24 September 2016 Murrayfield Stadium, Edinburgh 24 – 12 St Andrews 7 23 September 2017 Murrayfield Stadium, Edinburgh 31 – 7 Edinburgh822 September 2018Murrayfield Stadium, Edinburgh 26 – 15 Edinburgh921 September 2019Murrayfield Stadium, Edinburgh 62 – 0 Edinburgh1025 September 2021University Park, St Andrews 18 – 5 St Andrews1124 September 2022Peffermill, Edinburgh 24 – 14 St Andrews1223 September 2023University Park, St Andrews 32 – 29 Edinburgh1321 September 2024Edinburgh Rugby Stadium, Edinburgh 24 – 13 St Andrews1420 September 2025Edinburgh Rugby Stadium, Edinburgh26 – 23Edinburgh1518 September 2026Edinburgh Rugby Stadium, Edinburgh21 - 12St Andrews
By total wins (Men's) Total matches St Andrews victories Edinburgh victories Draws 15 8 7 0
Women's Results In 2014, the inaugural Women's Varsity Match took place in the form of a 7-a-side match; it continued to take place as a 15-a-side match until 2019. Edinburgh won all six matches played between 2014 and 2019. No. Date Venue Score Winner 1 27 September 2014Richmond Athletic Ground, London 24 – 0 Edinburgh 2 26 September 2015Murrayfield Stadium, Edinburgh 36 – 7 Edinburgh 3 24 September 2016Murrayfield Stadium, Edinburgh 97 – 0 Edinburgh 4 23 September 2017Murrayfield Stadium, Edinburgh 53 – 5 Edinburgh 5 22 September 2018Murrayfield Stadium, Edinburgh 49 – 0 Edinburgh 6 21 September 2019Murrayfield Stadium, Edinburgh 52 – 0 Edinburgh
By total wins (Women's)
Total matches St Andrews victories Edinburgh victories Draws 6 0 6 0
See also List of British and Irish varsity matches The Varsity Match
Notes
References
External links
University of Edinburgh: Edinburgh University RFC