Denver Barbarians 2023 National Championship Fund

The Denver Barbarians have qualified for the 2023 playoffs which commence this spring season!

The team will be attempting to repeat 2018's success by progressing through 4 sudden-death rounds to win the USA Club Rugby Men's National Championship.

Rounds 1 and 2 will be held May 20th and 21st in Lemont, IL. The first game (round of 16) will be held on Saturday-- with the exact opposition and kickoff time to be announced. Should we win, the quarter-finals (round of 8) will be held the following day.

Should the Barbos make it this far, then next up we'll have the semi-final and then the big dance-- the NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP...!

Rounds 3 and 4 will be held on June 3rd and 4th, in St Charles, MO. It will get harder not only physically and mentally, but especially financially.

So far the Barbos have already progressed to be ranked as one of the top 16 teams in the country for the 2022-23 season. In total, there are roughly 130 teams in the Barbos division, so the current ranking is no easy feat. However, the Barbos have one goal and one goal only-- to finish the season as the number 1 team in the country.

To get to where it is today, it's taken the Barbos months of practices, matches, blood, sweat, and tears (the wind blew some dust into the players' eyes, promise). To get to where the club wants to be, it'll take another 6 weeks of everything just mentioned, in addition to a whole lot of money.

As much as everyone wishes this weren't the case, the travel for 32 players and coaches to and from nationals is not cheap. Typically, the players pay for their own flights completely out of pocket, and the club pays for hotels and vans. With inflation ripping along at 7.5%, gas prices soaring over $4/gallon, and rental vans costing hundreds of dollars a day, the struggle is real, and the cost of an away trip is more than ever before.

The club is doing its part to raise money. First off, players dues are higher now than they've ever been in the clubs history. Second, we have all hands on deck planning our second annual concert fundraiser on May 12th, 2023 at Bierstadt Lagerhaus in Denver (tickets HERE). Lastly, we are also hosting the Annual Golf Tournament on August 4th 2023, which should be a great day out while also bolstering our finances.

That being said, despite the increased efforts to raise money, the club is still feeling the pressure that a travel-intensive schedule brings. ANYTHING you can do to help is GREATLY appreciated, and will help the club take one step closer to securing another NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP!

Cheers,

Noah Pflaum

Barbarians Treasurer