Heidelberger RK
The Heidelberger Ruderklub (Heidelberger RK or HRK for short) is a German rowing club and rugby union club from Heidelberg, currently playing in the Rugby-Bundesliga.
| Full name | Heidelberger Ruderklub 1872 e.V. | |
|---|---|---|
| Union | German Rugby Federation | |
| Founded | 9 May 1872 | |
| Location | Heidelberg, Germany | |
| Ground(s) | Sportgelände an der Speyererstraße (Capacity: 1,500) | |
| Chairman | Peter Jeffs | |
| League(s) | Rugby-Bundesliga | |
| 2018–19 | Rugby-Bundesliga South/West, 4th | |
| ||
| Official website | ||
| hrk1872 | ||
The club is one of four professional rugby clubs in Germany. The turn to professionalism in a sport otherwise fully amateur in Germany was made possible through the support of Hans-Peter Wild, who owns a soft drink manufacturing business.
Heidelberger RK was to become the first German club to take part in either of the two major European rugby union competitions after they qualified for the 2018-19 European Rugby Challenge Cup via winning their semi-final against Timișoara Saracens in the 2017-18 European Rugby Continental Shield. European Professional Club Rugby announced that Heidelberger would be excluded as they were under the ownership of Wild, who was simultaneously the owner of another Challenge Cup side, Stade Francais.
Following the decision, Wild announced he was withdrawing support for the club.