The Varsity Series

Every year, Varsity fixtures take place in most competitive sports between the University of Oxford and the University of Cambridge. Whether the team involved is the Rugby Blues (first team) playing at Twickenham in front of a 20,000+ strong crowd, or a 3rd team playing in front of their friends and family, the Varsity match is often the most important fixture in any Oxford team’s calendar. The training and hard work that go into the run up to each Varsity fixture are a huge part of the sporting year at both institutions. For a full list of sports that compete in a varsity visit our Sports A to Z.

The History of Varsity

The man who began the Varsity match tradition was Charles Wordsworth of Christ Church, Oxford, who in June 1827 arranged a two-day cricket match against Cambridge at Lords. The first Boat Race between the two universities followed in 1829, and was rowed over 2 and a quarter miles between Hambleden Lock and Henley Bridge. The second Boat Race was not until 1836 which was rowed over more than double the distance, from Westminster Bridge upstream to Putney Bridge. It was in this race that one of the Cambridge oarsmen tied a light blue ribbon to the bows of the Cambridge boat (the colours of his school, Eton College). The colour dark blue was then ascribed to Oxford because it is the colour of Christ Church College, and the Oxford crew sported white jerseys with dark blue stripes during the race. These colours have remained over the years and even now student-athletes represent Oxford in dark blue and Cambridge in light blue, with first teams in both institutions generally know as 'the blues' in most competitive sports. Those student-athletes who have represented Oxford in a Varsity match against Cambridge in a Full Blue sport (and acheived the criteria within their sport) are deemed to have achieved a 'blue' and are entitled to wear a dark blue blazer. For more details regarding earning a 'Blue' please visit our Blues Awards page.

Varsity Eligibility

Eligibility for Varsity matches and events is established by a set of rules that are governed by the Joint Blues Committee of Oxford and Cambridge Universities. The current eligibility rules can be found in the document below:

 

Any queries regarding eligibility should be sent to competitions@sport.ox.ac.uk.

Varsity Fixtures and Results 2022/23

 
Club  Proposed date Venue Result
Oxf-Cam
Winner
Amateur Boxing 10/03/2023 Oxford Town Hall 3-6 Cambridge
American Football 13/05/2023 University Parks, Oxford 41-7` Oxford
Athletics - Men's Blues 07/05/2023 Wilberforce Road Sports Ground 108-102 Oxford
Athletics - Women's Blues 07/05/2023 Wilberforce Road Sports Ground 109-102 Oxford
Athletics - Men's 2nd 07/05/2023 Wilberforce Road Sports Ground 106.5-104.5 Oxford
Athletics - Women's 2nd 07/05/2023 Wilberforce Road Sports Ground 102-106 Cambridge
Aussie Rules - Men's 18/03/2023 Cambridge 67-2 Oxford
Aussie Rules - Women's 18/03/2023 Cambridge 24-14 Oxford
Badminton  05/03/2023 Cambridge University Sports Centre 45-30 Oxford
Badminton - Mixed 19/11/2022 Iffley Road Sports Centre 17-1 Oxford
Baseball 11/03/2023 Horspath 18-12 Oxford
Basketball – Men Blues 11/03/2023 Iffley Road Sports Centre 84-74 Oxford
Basketball – Women Blues 11/03/2023 Iffley Road Sports Centre 69-50 Oxford
Basketball – Men 2s 11/03/2023 Iffley Road Sports Centre 61-55 Oxford
Basketball – Women 2s 11/03/2023 Iffley Road Sports Centre 38-36 Oxford
Bowmen (Archery)
Canoe Polo 13/05/2023 Oxford  5-2 Oxford
Canoe Marathon 13/05/2023 Oxford  191m35s-188m43s Cambridge
Clay Pigeon Shooting - Men's 04/03/2023 EJ Churchill, Stokenchurch 321-326 Cambridge
Clay Pigeon Shooting - Women's 04/03/2023 EJ Churchill, Stokenchurch 228-326 Cambridge
Clay Pigeon Shooting - Men's 2s 04/03/2023 EJ Churchill, Stokenchurch 296-289 Oxford
Clay Pigeon Shooting - Women's 2s 04/03/2023 EJ Churchill, Stokenchurch 116-182 Cambridge
Contemporary Dance 12/02/2023 St John's College Oxford 4-3 Oxford
Cricket (Three Day) 04/07/2023 Fenner's
Cricket - 50 over, Mens 18/06/2023 Arundel
Cricket - 50 over, Womens 17/09/2023 Arundel
Cricket - T20 Men's 11/05/2023 Lord's Cricket Cricket 175/5 (20.0) - 176/3 (18.4) Cambridge
Cricket - T20 Women's 11/05/2023 Lord's Cricket Cricket Tie on DSL Draw
Croquet
Cross Country - Men's Blues 03/12/2022 Wimbledon Common 38-40 Cambridge
Cross Country - Women's Blues 03/12/2022 Wimbledon Common 29-50 Cambridge
Cross Country - Men's 2s 26/11/2022 Shotover 26-57 Cambridge
Cross Country - Women's 2s 26/11/2022 Shotover 27-51 Cambridge
Cross Country - Men's 3s 26/11/2022 Shotover 37-41 Cambridge
Cross Country - Women's 3s 26/11/2022 Shotover 402-152 Oxford
Cross Country - Men's 4s 26/11/2022 Shotover 661-339 Oxford
Sailing - Cruising (Dinghy)
Cycling - Mountain Bike ?? ?? Cambridge
Cycling - Time Trial 26/03/2023 Newmarket
Dancesport 13/05/2023 Cambridge
Eton Fives - M1 04/03/2023 Eton College, Windsor 3-0 Oxford
Eton Fives - M2 04/03/2023 Eton College, Windsor 3-0 Oxford
Eton Fives - M3 04/03/2023 Eton College, Windsor 2-0 Oxford
Eton Fives - W1 04/03/2023 Eton College, Windsor 3-0 Oxford
Eton Fives - W2 04/03/2023 Eton College, Windsor 3-0 Oxford
Fencing 04/03/2023 Examination Schools, Oxford 3-1 Cambridge
Football - Men's Blues 01/05/2023 Oxford City Stadium 2-0 Oxford
Football - Women's Blues 01/05/2023 Oxford City Stadium 0-4 Cambridge
Football - Mens 2nd 05/03/2023 Huntingdon Town FC 5-6 Pens Cambridge
Football - Mens 3rd 05/03/2023 Huntingdon Town FC 2-0 Oxford
Football - Womens 2nd 05/03/2023 Huntingdon Town FC 0-2 Cambridge
Gliding 
Golf
Gymnastics - Women's Blues 05/03/2023 Abingdon Gymnastics Club, Berinsfield 196.5-186 Oxford
Gymnastics - Men's Blues 05/03/2023 Abingdon Gymnastics Club, Berinsfield Oxford
Gymnastics - W2 05/03/2023 Abingdon Gymnastics Club, Berinsfield 93.7-80.9 Oxford
Handball - Womens 25/02/2023 Cambridge University Sports Centre 28-14 Oxford
Handball - Mens 25/02/2023 Cambridge University Sports Centre 44-23 Oxford
Hockey - Mens Blues 12/03/2023 Southgate Hockey Club Penalties Cambridge
Hockey - Womens Blues 12/03/2023 Southgate Hockey Club 0-1 Cambridge
Hockey - M2 19/02/2023 Wilberforce Road Sports Ground 0-3 Cambridge
Hockey - W2 19/02/2023 Wilberforce Road Sports Ground 1-0 Oxford
Hockey - M3 19/02/2023 Wilberforce Road Sports Ground 4-5 Cambridge
Hockey - W3 19/02/2023 Wilberforce Road Sports Ground 0-2 Cambridge
Hockey - M4 19/02/2023 Wilberforce Road Sports Ground 3-0 Oxford
Hockey - W4 19/02/2023 Wilberforce Road Sports Ground 2-3 Cambridge
Ice Hocke – Men 04-05/03/2023 Oxford Ice Rink 0-4 Cambridge
Ice Hocke – Women 04-05/03/2023 Oxford Ice Rink Penalties Oxford
Jitsu 14/05/2023 Iffley Road Sports Centre
Judo - Mens A 05/03/2023 Iffley Road Sports Centre 4-3 Oxford
Judo - Mens B 05/03/2023 Iffley Road Sports Centre 6-1 Oxford
Judo - Womens A 05/03/2023 Iffley Road Sports Centre 2-3 Cambridge
Judo - Womens B 05/03/2023 Iffley Road Sports Centre Oxford
Karate 05/03/2023 Cambridge University Sports Centre 22-32 Cambridge
Kendo - A 05/03/2023 Iffley Road Sports Centre 0-5 Cambridge
Kendo - B 05/03/2023 Iffley Road Sports Centre 0-2 Cambridge
Korfball - Blues 25/02/2023 Cambridge University Sports Centre 21-10 Oxford
Korfball - 2nds 25/02/2023 Cambridge University Sports Centre 13-10 Oxford
Korfball - 3rds 25/02/2023 Cambridge University Sports Centre 14-8 Oxford
Lacrosse – Men 25/02/2023 Jesus College Cambridge Sports Grounds 6-6 Draw
Lacrosse – Women 25/02/2023 Jesus College Cambridge Sports Grounds 15-14 Cambridge
Lawn Tennis - Blues Trinity
Lawn Tennis - 2s-5s 24-25/06/2023 Iffley/Uni Parks
Modern Pentathlon
Mountaineering - Men's Indoor Climbing 04/03/2023 Harrowall Climbing Centre 1114-1190 Cambridge
Mountaineering - Women's Indoor Climbing 05/03/2023 Harrowall Climbing Centre 905-904 Oxford
Netball - Blues 26/02/2022 Cambridge University Sports Centre 51-45 Cambridge
Netball - 2s 26/02/2022 Cambridge University Sports Centre 37-38 Oxford
Netball - 3s 26/02/2022 Cambridge University Sports Centre 50-36 Cambridge
Orienteering 01/04/2023 Drabovna, Czech Republic
Pistol 04/03/2023 Wantage Shooting Range
Polo  Trinity
Powerlifting - Mens 04/02/2023 Iffley Road Sports Centre 682.05-691.94 Cambridge
Powerlifting - Womens 04/02/2023 Iffley Road Sports Centre 609.4-617.79 Cambridge
Rackets Hilary Queen's Club 4-2 Cambridge
Real Tennis - Mens Hilary The Tennis Club, MCC 4-2 Oxford
Real Tennis - Womens Hilary The Tennis Club, MCC 4-3 Oxford
Riding / Equestrian (Blues) 10/05/2023 Cambridge Cambridge
Riding / Equestrian (2nds/3rds) 15/05/2023 Oxford (Hall Place) Oxford
Rifle - .22 Varsity Women's 04/03/2023 Bedford Rifle Club 763-761 Oxford
Rifle - .22 Varsity 04/03/2023 Bedford Rifle Club
Rifle - Match Rifle Varsity 13/07/2023 Bisley Shooting Ground
Rifle - Fullbore Varsity 22/07/2023 Bisley Shooting Ground
Rifle - 2nd Team Varsity 11/03/2023 Cambridge Rifle Club
Rowing - Men's Boat Race 26/03/2023 Tideway, River Thames Cambridge
Rowing - Women's Boat Race 26/03/2023 Tideway, River Thames Cambridge
Rowing - Men's Reserve Boat Race 26/03/2023 Tideway, River Thames Cambridge
Rowing - Women's Reserve Boat Race 26/03/2023 Tideway, River Thames Cambridge
Rowing - Lightweight Men's 20/03/2023 Tideway, River Thames 11 Lengths Cambridge
Rowing - Lightweight Women's 20/03/2023 Tideway, River Thames 6 Lengths Cambridge
Rugby Fives - Mens Neutral 279-245 Oxford
Rugby Fives - Womens Neutral 151-94 Cambridge
Rugby League - Men's Blues 04/03/2023 Grange Road, Cambridge 12-14 Cambridge
Rugby League - Men's 2s 04/03/2023 Grange Road, Cambridge 34-8 Oxford
Rugby League - Women's W2/3 Trinity OURFC pitch, Iffley Road Sports Centre Oxford
Rugby Union - Men's Blues 25/03/2023 Twickenham Stadium 10-15 Cambridge
Rugby Union - Women's Blues 25/03/2023 Twickenham Stadium 31-12 Oxford
Rugby Union - Women's 2s 15-19 Oxford
Rugby Union - Men's 2s 46-0 Cambridge
Rugby Union - Women's 3s 47-0 Cambridge
Rugby Union - Men's 3s 24-31 Oxford
Ski & Snowboard - Men's Blues Team 02-10/12/2022 Val Thorens Oxford
Ski & Snowboard - Women's Blues Team 02-10/12/2022 Val Thorens Cambridge
Ski & Snowboard - Women's Individual 02-10/12/2022 Val Thorens Oxford
Ski & Snowboard - Men's Individual 02-10/12/2022 Val Thorens Cambridge
Rifle - Small Bore
Squash - Mens Blues 18/02/2023 Royal Automobile Club 4-1 Cambridge
Squash - Womens Blues 18/02/2023 Royal Automobile Club 5-0 Cambridge
Squash - 2nds 04/03/2023 Cambridge University Sports Centre Oxford
Swimming - Blues 25/02/2023 Parkside Pools, Cambridge 99-81 Oxford
Swimming - 2nd 25/02/2023 Parkside Pools, Cambridge 95-85 Cambridge
Swimming  Window 3-8 July 23 Channel Team Relay Swim
Table Tennis - Mens Blues 04/03/2023 Cambridge University Sports Centre 6-4 Cambridge
Table Tennis - Womens Blues 04/03/2023 Cambridge University Sports Centre 6-4 Cambridge
Table Tennis - Mens 2nd 04/03/2023 Cambridge University Sports Centre 6-4 Cambridge
Table Tennis - Mens 3rd 04/03/2023 Cambridge University Sports Centre 4-1 Oxford
Touch Rugby Hilary
Trampoline 05/02/2023 Iffley Road Sports Centre Oxford
Triathlon - Men's Blues 21/05/2023 Cambridge
Triathlon - Women's Blues 21/05/2023 Cambridge
Triathlon - Men's IIs 21/05/2023 Oxford
Triathlon - Women's IIs 21/05/2023 Oxford
Triathlon - Men's Mob 21/05/2023 Cambridge
Triathlon - Women's Mob 21/05/2023 Cambridge
Ultimate 05/03/2023 Iffley Road Sports Centre Cambridge
Volleyball - Mens Blues 04/03/2023 Cambridge University Sports Centre 3-0 Oxford
Volleyball - Womens Blues 04/03/2023 Cambridge University Sports Centre 3-2 Cambridge
Volleyball - Mens 2nd 04/03/2023 Cambridge University Sports Centre 3-2 Oxford
Volleyball - Womens 2nd 04/03/2023 Cambridge University Sports Centre 3-2 Oxford
Water Polo - Mens Blues 25/02/2023 Parkside Pools, Cambridge 16-23 Cambridge
Water Polo - Womens Blues 25/02/2023 Parkside Pools, Cambridge 10-6 Oxford
Water Polo - Mens 2s 25/02/2023 Parkside Pools, Cambridge 5-7 Cambridge
Water Polo - Womens 2s 25/02/2023 Parkside Pools, Cambridge 12-7 Oxford
Windsurf BTW 17-25 June TBC Farmoor Reservoir
Yacht
 
Past Results

 

 

See a missing result or have fixture details to update? Contact competitions@sport.ox.ac.uk with the details.

Varsity Eligibility


Student eligibility for Varsity can be found using the link below

Varsity Eligibility

Contact Us


  sportsfed@sport.ox.ac.uk

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