Crowds were treated to a real feast of sport last week as DMU went head-to-head with The University of Leicester in the annual Leicester Varsity.
Our students lined up in 39 fixtures across 18 sports as diverse as cricket and climbing, badminton and basketball, with rowing, cross country, futsal, netball, equestrian, hockey, archery, cheerleading, volleyball, lacrosse, rugby union, football, karting and tennis all featuring too.
In the end, UoL comfortably took the Varsity 2026 crown with an overall score of 34-5. However, with some incredibly tight finishes and standout team performances, DMU came away with a lot of cheer and a huge amount to be proud of across the five days of competition.
Varsity’s opening day turned out to be the closest as DMU ended Wednesday on three wins. A dominant display on a sunny afternoon on the River Soar saw our men’s rowers coming away with a 10-2 win, whilst we also saw victories in the mixed climbing (899-881) and the men’s futsal which saw our boys finish 5-4 on top. UoL led 5-3 at the close of play.
Day two was comparatively quiet, featuring two netball fixtures, with a big day for UoL on Friday with wins in equestrian, hockey, archery, cheerleading and volleyball.
By the weekend the Varsity crown was sadly out of reach for DMU. However, there were two key wins on Saturday, with our women’s first football team edging a close contest 2-1 and our women dominating the rugby union, claiming a 25-7 win. The latter was even more remarkable given it was the first time DMU have won this fixture in over 25 years of Varsity.
A bumper crowd of nearly 1,000 students packed into the QEII sports hall on Sunday evening for the traditional flagship Varsity event, the basketball. Both universities showcased outstanding performances from their cheer teams, adding energy to an already electric atmosphere as the women, and then the men, took to the court.
UoL emerged victorious 59-46 in the women’s game before an incredibly close men’s game saw DMU fall one score short with the final Varsity fixture ending 62-59. You can read the write-up of the men’s basketball here.
A big thank you to every athlete, coach, volunteer, official and supporter who made this Varsity Series such a special celebration of student sport in Leicester. We can’t wait to do it all again next year!
David de Beger, Sport Performance and Business Operations Manager at DMU, said:
“Varsity really built across the week and we saw the atmosphere growing day by day, with students getting behind their peers. The wins in the women’s football and the first win ever in the women’s rugby were especially exciting to see. A huge thank you to all the students and staff who made Varsity happen this year!”
“For all students, we're actually increasing the number of ways to get involved in sport next term. For most sports there’s going to be a way in, a session to get involved, so if you’ve been inspired by Varsity, you don’t need to wait for next year.”
Keep in touch with DMU Sport on their webpage and Instagram.
Posted on Tuesday 24 March 2026