Be part of the action
The London Varsity Series makes an epic return from 21-28 March! Brace yourselves as Team UCL gear up for battle with rivals KCLSU. With 45 fixtures spread across London over eight action-packed days, come and celebrate some of the best sporting talent across both teams.
Whether you're a die-hard fan or just after a fun night out - we promise excitement, great vibes and plenty of surprises at our big screen Varsity viewings in Phineas across the week. Drinks will flow, pizza will be eaten, sport will be watched, Kings defeated and good times had. Why not join...
- On Friday 21 March we'll be screening UCL's hockey match so get ready to scream at some TVs.
- Wednesday 26 March it's time to start shouting about basketball. Stick around afterwards to join an awesome Sports Night in Phineas.
- Friday 28 March we'll rounding up the week with a must-watch screening of the rugby.
Want to keep the party going? Why not stick around Phineas and enjoy yourself at Sports Night, Taylor Swift and Friends Party or one of the other events happening after our watch parties and throughout Varsity.
Bring your friends, wear your Varsity merch, and let’s make some noise for TeamUCL.
A quick history lesson...
You may be familiar with the King's vs UCL rivalry now, but how did it all start?
Phineas, our previous mascot, was borrowed by a UCL student from outside a shop on Tottenham Court Road in 1900. In 1932, the shop donated the statue to UCL for good. Kings, on the other hand, originally chose a beer bottle as their mascot - but decided to change to Reggie the Lion in 1922.
In 1922, King’s were feeling sore after a rugby defeat and plotted their revenge: they kidnapped Phineas. Phineas was locked away at the Strand and protected by secret defences. But UCL had an extensive network of spies within King’s and made their move to liberate him. After more than an hour of combat (and a visit from the Police), an armistice was arranged and Phineas was returned to UCL, minus an arm that had been broken off in the battle.
Years of rivalry followed, with multiple kidnappings of UCL's and Kings' respective mascots. Incidents ranged from Phineas being kidnapped and locked away at the Strand to Reggie being buried on Hampstead Heath. Over the years, the mascot abuse stopped, with a notable intermission in 1989 when King's students went off-piste and stole Jeremy Bentham's head and played football with it (cue a formal complaint from UCL and threats of expulsions and fines).
