Welcome to the fundraising page for the Maccabi USA Men's Open Rugby team that will compete at the 2025 Maccabiah in both 7s and 15s rugby with an aim toward winning two gold medals!

The team comprises Jewish athletes from across the country, competing with Major League Rugby teams, international clubs, and high-performance domestic men's clubs, boasting names like Chase Schor Haskin (Miami Sharks), Mason Pedersen (Seattle Seawolves), Taylor Howden (NOLA Gold), and Judd Berman (USA U23).

These names only add to legends leaving the jersey in a better place in years past, including Olympian Zack Test, USA 7s and 15s stars Dallen Stanford and Kevin Swiryn, and internationally capped rugby and Jewish Hall of Famer Shawn Lipman.

To select the team, over 50 Jewish athletes competed at two training camps in New Orleans and Los Angeles, capped off with big wins against New Orleans RFC (45-14) and RFCLA Academy (38-33). The team will head to Israel in July to face off against South Africa, Australia, Great Britain, and Israel, among other nations.

To get there, we need your help. In addition to individual fundraising goals, the team needs to raise significant funds to pay for everything from jerseys to travel and lodging. That is where you come in. Any donation, no matter how small, goes a long way toward helping us win gold in Israel.

As the chair of the organization, I am happy to make myself available, either by phone or email, to discuss ways you can follow along and support the team, the team's storied history, or what it means to me to represent the United States as a Jewish rugby player.

I hope you join us on this journey. Am Yisrael Chai!

Matthew Sarna
Chair, Maccabi USA Men's Rugby
matthew.sarna@umaryland.edu
(201) 921-2929