Malaysia Rugby to build new rugby stadium

This week, Malaysia Rugby Union have confirmed they will be building their own rugby stadium in Putrajaya, south of Kuala Lumpur, due to be completed over the next few years.

Malaysia Rugby Stadium

Photo Credit: Malaysia Rugby Union FB

On the Malaysia Rugby Union Facebook page, the MRU said they “are delighted to deliver the confirmation that we will be having our own rugby stadium in a few years time.”

The stadium will apparently be built in Precinct 14, Putrajaya on land covering 6.47 hectares. The stadium is believed to cost RM17 million with funds from the Ministry of Youth and Sports.

In total, the development will include two rugby fields to be used for rugby tournaments and training. The fields will also have “powerful 1200 lux spotlights, changing rooms and other first-class facilities.”

Malaysia Rugby went on to say:

“Perhaps, with the presence of this new stadium, it will create a new platform to unite all rugby fans around Malaysia and even the world. In a few years time, this stadium will become a sacred home ground for Malaysia rugby teams to win more matches, as well as to discover new talents in the future. Malaysia Rugby Union is very serious to make rugby the number one sport in Malaysia.”

Rugby in Malaysia

Rugby is massive in Malaysia already. Since we started RugbyAsia247, we have seen how prolific the number of rugby tournaments and events are in the country. Equally, it is very hard to track as the different regions have sub-unions and tournaments don’t always get publicized very well.

At the end of 2020, Malaysia Rugby Union said they “are currently planning to develop a longer local competition, as we create pathways from the state level to the national level. Apart from providing a more competitive platform for the players, longer rugby competition will make it more commercially viable & sustainable.”

The Union is also keen to have more professional players and compete at the highest levels. Grassroot development programs via the National Rugby Development Program (NRDP) & Get Into Rugby (GIR) program strive to grow the game across the nation. In addition, the MRU said ‘Akademi Ragbi Malaysia’ will support the development by collaborating with IPTAs, colleges, teacher’s institute and schools.

Financing is the biggest challenge throughout most of Asia. The Union did say that RM2 million supports the ongoing NRDP program & more than RM1 million additional funds would be made available for the development of women’s rugby.

Malaysia Rugby 2019 highlights

The national XVs coach for Malaysia is Brad Mika, a former professional NZ rugby player who won 3 caps for the All Blacks. Late in 2019, the MRU confirmed he will stay on as the coach in 2020.

The Global Rapid Rugby tournament will also have a team based in Malaysia, the Malaysian Valke, who will compete in the 2020 tournament.

• SEA Games: The Malaysia men’s 7s team won silver, while the ladies retained bronze at the 2019 SEA Games.
• Malaysia U19 Men: Won the Asia Rugby U19 Division 2 title to gain promotion to Division 2 in 2020.
• Women’s 7s: Aside from the SEA Games medal, the ladies (Panthera) also retained their spot in the top Division of Asia Rugby 7s.
• Men’s 7s: The Malaysia men’s 7s rugby team won the Asia rugby Trophy Series and qualify for the AR 7s Series in 2020.
• U18 Boys: The team won the 2019 Asia Rugby U18s Boys Sevens Championship.

Discover more rugby in Asia

• The NRDP Rugby Carnival 2020 is in February.
• The top Asian national rugby tournaments in 2020.
• What are the top international rugby tournaments in 2020?
• Follow our rugby calendar for all rugby events in Asia.
• Asia Rugby committee structure 2020.