Touch Rugby was first played in Australia in the 1960s, as a social game and as a way to train for rugby league. Since then, it has continued to grow and evolve, officially becoming a sport in 1968. The first national body was the Australian Touch Football Association, formed in 1976. The Federation of International Touch was set up in 1985 and as a result the first ever Touch World Cup was held in Queensland, Australia in 1988. Touch Rugby has seen a rapid growth with thousands of participants playing at all levels around the world. There were 28 countries participating in the 2019 World Cup compared to five at the first one.

Scotland has also had a long history with Touch Rugby. The first ever games of Touch in Scotland were believed to have been played in Edinburgh and Glasgow in 1991. In the same year, Scotland played in their first Touch World Cup and have not missed one since. As Touch Rugby grew in Scotland, there was a need to create a national body and so the Scottish Touch Association (STA) was established on the 7th August 2005. Their hope was to create a platform that would promote and develop touch at all levels and ages, allowing anyone, whether that be players, coaches or referees, to get involved.

Since the creation of the STA, Touch in Scotland has come on leaps and bounds. The first National Championships were held in 2007 and since then, the number of leagues, competitions and participants have increased every year. There are over 15 established clubs in Scotland, allowing opportunities to participate as a player, coach, referee or volunteer. The clubs provide touch for absolute beginners through to elite players hoping to compete in National Championships. Across Scotland, there are also university and social clubs looking to increase participation which is an important focus of the STA as we grow the sport at all levels.

In 2011, Scotland held the 7th Touch Rugby World Cup. This was a historic moment for Scottish Touch Rugby as Scotland was the first European country to host the event. Across 4 days, 448 games were played, and around 1500 players and officials took part. The event was a great success with 26 nations competing across 7 different categories. Since then, Scotland has hosted several other major competitions – the European Premiership Permit Competition in 2017, the Senior’s Championship in 2017 and the Junior Touch Championship in 2018.

The growth of Scottish Touch has resulted in improved results at an elite level, for example our Women 27s team winning gold at the 2019 European Touch Senior Cup and the Mixed Open team winning bronze in the 2019 Touch World Cup. With the ever-increasing number of players in Scotland at all ages, the improvement in quality of touch in Scotland is constant. The times ahead for Touch Rugby in Scotland are exciting and we’d love for as many people as possible to be a part of it!