Sports Editors Joel Lim and Abyan Memon recap Day 7 and 8 of Varsity.
Five fixtures across three sports were held during the final two days of the 2026 London Varsity Series. Here’s how the season ended:
Football
The Women’s match began with UCL applying pressure early on KCL, allowing them to score an early goal for a 1-0 start. KCL countered with a penalty from No. 23 that shifted the momentum in their favour. Unfortunately, KCL was not able to convert another goal and UCL took the opportunity to pile on three more goals, winning the fixture 4-1.
The Men’s match featured a tigth and physical start. Despite both sides creating multiple chances, neither could convert, and the game came down to a second half goal by UCL. UCL scored on a counter-attack with a tap in off a square across the goal, securing the win 1-0.
Pole Fitness
Pole fitness has been going strong at Varsity for many years with KCL dominating against UCL last year (210-150). Across two poles in King’s Great Hall contestants competed for the highest score from a panel of three judges. Performers showed some really incredible skill and dexterity across all skill levels.
The advanced and later categories showed off some of the best skills but it would go remiss not to mention Efia O.’s great intermediate performance. For advanced, both of UCL’s contenders floated and played with carefully controlled falls; for King’s, Dora M was peaceful, graceful and skilled whilst Livia S cleverly used her clothing as part of her routine. Freestyle saw really incredible performances from both Julia K (UCL) and Karis C (KCL) having had just minutes to prepare their routines and performances in the group stage ranged from flowing movements to cantilevered holds. With a great performance from both sides, KCL snatched the win with 680 points.
Rugby
As Varsity tradition, the season ends with the KCL Rugby teams battling the UCL teams. After starting 10-0 with a try and penalty score, UCL Women’s were shown a yellow card for aggressive play. UCL managed to add twelve more points off two more tries before halftime, extending their lead to 22-0. 51 minutes into the fixture UCL added a fourth try for a 27-0 lead, and 66 minutes in KCL finally scored. The attack from KCL continued with two more late game tries in the span of two minutes. Unfortunately, time ran out and UCL rode their first half scoring rampage to a 27-17 victory.
In terms of scoring, the Men’s match was off to a slower start, with UCL putting points on the board first 32 minutes in, but the crowd was no quieter. KCL roared back before halftime with a try and a successful conversion kick setting them up with the lead at 7-5. UCL added three more tries to start the second half, before KCL scored an epic one: sprinting down the byline past five defenders. At 79 minutes KCL scored another try and a conversion kick, bringing the score up to 19-24. Unfortunately, with one last possession, the scoring came to an end and KCL lost the match to UCL.
With that the London Varsity Series 2026 comes to an end. Roar is proud of every KCL and GKT club that participated and we hope our coverage allowed you to feel the same way. We will continue following King’s sports club as another year leads up to a new Varsity season.
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