Catalans Dragons is a professional rugby league team which competes in the Super League. The club plays home matches at Stade Gilbert Brutus in Perpignan, France. The club's home colours are gold, red, and white.
📜Catalans Dragons History
Catalans Dragons was founded in 2000, following the merger of 2 sides local to Perpignan, AS Saint Estève and XIII Catalan. The newly-formed team became known as Union Treiziste Catalane (UTC). In 2002, Saint-Cyprien, another team from near Perpignan, joined the new UTC team. As of 2002, the 3 teams had won 17 French Championships between them, bringing a wealth of experience and many fans with them. In 2005, UTC won the French Championship for the first time, as well as its second Lord Derby Cup.
In 2006, the club became a professional side, joined the Super League, and changed its name to Catalans Dragons. The club was only the second non-English team to feature in the division, following the ill-fated Paris Saint-Germain side, which only competed in the first 2 Super League seasons. In its first Super League campaign, Catalans Dragons was exempt from relegation, a condition of its entry which proved to be a lifeline, as the side would go on to finish bottom of the table. The exemption would remain in place for 2 further seasons, but it would not be required again, as the Dragons consolidated a place in the Super League, finishing higher up the table in subsequent years. The club also adapted impressively to the rigors of the Challenge Cup, reaching the final in 2007.
More recently, Catalans Dragons has continued to compete with the Super League's finest. In 2018 the club won its first Challenge Cup, overcoming Warrington Wolves in the final to become the competition's first non-English winners ever. During the 2019 season, Dragons held a Super League match at Barcelona's Nou Camp stadium; the match was the first Super League fixture contested in Spain, and attracted a historically large crowd for a non-grand final match. In 2021, the club then won the League Leaders Shield, after finishing the Super League season at the top of the table. St. Helens would best the French side in the grand final 10-12, however.
