The first rugby club in Sussex was Brighton, formed in 1868. Following the formation of several other clubs in the 1880s, the Sussex Rugby Football Union was formed in 1883, several years prior to the national organisation of which it is now a constituent part, with the most recent members admitted in 2008.[3]
Sussex currently play in Division 1 of the Gill Burns County Championship having been promoted from Division 2 at the end of the 2017-2018 season after winning the South East Region competition. In 2019 they reached the final of Division 1 Gill Burns County Championship at Twickenham Stadium (the first in the county's history), losing to Yorkshire 11-27.
Affiliated clubs
There are currently 34 full member adult clubs affiliated with the Sussex RFU, most of which have teams at both senior and junior level and are based in East Sussex or West Sussex.[1][3]
^Hastings & Bexhill play in the Kent RFU regional leagues.
County club competitions
The Sussex RFU currently runs the following club competitions for club sides based in East Sussex and West Sussex:
Leagues
There are also 6 Sussex specific leagues at levels 9-12 sponsored by brewer Harveys Brewery, and named for their range of beers. These leagues contain a mixture of 1st, 2nd and 3rd teams.[6]
