History
Rugby league was introduced into Serbia in 1953, by then secretary of the Yugoslavian Sport Association, Dragan Maršićević. The first rugby league match in Serbia was held in Belgrade on November 26, 1953, between French students and Selection Provence. The game was part of an attempt by the French Rugby XIII Federation to stimulate interest in the sport in Serbia.
The first rugby league club formed in Serbia was Partizan, on November 1, 1953, followed a couple of months later by Radnički. The two teams played their first match on April 26, 1954, with Partizan winning 21-11. In 1961, the Yugoslav national team played their first and only match against a French amateur XIII, with the team going down 13-0.
Whilst rugby league was played in Serbia, Croatia played the rival code of rugby union and Yugoslav authorities demanded that Serbian clubs switch to rugby union to unite Yugoslavia under one form of rugby football in 1964.
Rugby league officially returned to Serbia in 2001, with the formation of the Serbian Rugby League Federation at meeting held in Kruševac. Journalist Slaviša Milenković was voted in as president of the new federation. The inaugural Serbian Rugby League Championship was held on November 10, featuring teams Donji Dorćol Belgrade, Morava Belgrade, Novi Sad and Beli Orao Kruševac. Belgrade's Dorćol team won the event.
Dorćol is champion for the 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012 year.
Read more about this topic: Rugby League In Serbia
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