Leeds Universities invite residents to be part of Varsity

When is Varsity 2026?

This year's Varsity competition between Leeds Beckett University and University of Leeds takes place between 27-29 April across a range of local venues, with its largest event, the Rugby Union finale, taking place on Wednesday 29 April at AMT Headingley Stadium.

The finale consists of two matches, with the women's match kicking off at 17:15 before the men's at 19:15. The total crowd is expected to be 12,000.

How the local community can get involved in the lead-up

On Sunday 26th April, Beckett Sport Juniors will be running an open morning for local families to come along and try out junior sport activities at Headingley Campus – free for anyone to attend.

• From 9:00–10:00am on the track, there will be opportunities to take part in a range of run, jump and throw events, alongside SAQ (speed, agility and quickness) activities.

• From 9:00–10:30am in the Tennis Centre, participants can get involved in a variety of tennis activities, such as mini-matches and challenges.

Registration will take place in the Beckett Sport reception area on arrival.

You can book your place now through this online form. Any questions can be directed to beckettsportjuniors@leedsbeckett.ac.uk

Limiting community impact

The captains of all teams competing have once again signed up to the community pledge, which covers a range of anti-social behaviour, including litter and noise when leaving the venue. The pledge directly links behaviour during Varsity to the university disciplinary processes.

The stadium security is placing bins at every entry point, in which they will place any confiscated items. The stadium also has bins on the exits so that no rubbish is removed from the stadium.

Leeds Beckett and Leeds University Union will once again employ a team of litter pickers for the streets with the highest footfall surrounding the stadium. The litter picks will take place during the finale and first thing the following morning (Thursday 30 April) before schools open. The team will be in close contact with the council's cleaner neighbourhoods’ team to make sure that any hazards that cannot safely be removed, like smashed glass, are dealt with as quickly as possible.

The universities fund a dedicated noise nuisance service for inner north-west Leeds. Two dedicated response officers respond exclusively to calls in the area until 4am (last call out 3.30am) every night, seven days a week. The officers will be on patrol before and after the Varsity finale. People can also report anti-social behaviour online using Leeds City Council's web form for anti-social behaviour.

To report noise nuisance:

• Between 5pm-4am every day (last call-out 3:30am) call 0113 376 0337

• If you do not require an immediate response or the nuisance is occurring during office hours, call 8am-6pm Monday-Friday 0113 222 4402

You can also report anti-social behaviour and noise nuisance online using the council's online form. 

Further community events: MND Mile

The MND Mile is returning to Headingley Campus on 9 May, as part of the Rob Burrow Leeds Marathon weekend by Run For All.

We are running the Activation Zone, which will be on the inside of the athletics track and is free for juniors and families to experience. We’ll be running athletics, SAQ and tennis from 11:00am–3:00pm.

See more information, or sign up for the MND Mile: https://www.runforall.com/events/fun-runs/mnd-mile/#event-information