Curitiba Touch started in 2015. Susi and Keith started touch training sessions at Curitiba Rugby Club, initially for rugby players interested in developing their ball skills and learning more about the game. Slowly but surely those players began bringing their families and friends, and today Curitiba Touch is a healthy mix of rugby players and touch players: young and not so young, students, parents, children, brothers and sisters. We train three times a week, working on basic touch skills, physical conditioning, skills development and the tactical aspect of the game. Because we are still the only team in Brazil, we have yet to play against an opposition, but our love for the game keeps bringing us back to training even without a competition. Saying that, we hope our participation at the Capital Cup will inspire more people to play touch and make the game grow in the country (there are currently people in other parts of the country interested in learning more about touch).

About Curitiba Rugby Club. Curitiba Rugby Clube (CRC) belongs to the national rugby elite, winning the Mens XV’s national championship in 2014 and 2016, and the Women’s national 7’s series in 2015 and 2016. CRC has a fantastic social project – Vivendo o Rugby (VOR) – which won World Rugby’s Spirit of Rugby Award in 2014. The project brings rugby and its values to public schools in Curitiba, giving children the opportunity to grow both as athletes and as people. Those that demonstrate dedication are invited to join the grassroots team of Curitiba Rugby, giving them the opportunity to become part of the CRC squad and receive an academic scholarship. Several of the Curitiba Touch players come from the VOR project and balance their time training and studying at the club’s university partner.

The Capital Cup is an annual tournament organised by Touch Berlin. 2018 will mark its 10th anniversary and, to celebrate, Touch Berlin have invited teams from around the world to participate in the big event. Curitiba Touch is confirmed as one of those teams!  The tournament will take place on the 1st and 2nd of June at the Maifeld, a former Olympic field at the world-class Berlin Olympic Stadium complex. 40 teams and around 500 players from all corners of the globe will be participating. This will be the first ever participation of a Brazilian touch rugby team in a touch tournament and the aim of Curitiba Touch is to finish in the Top20.

Before arriving in Berlin, Curitiba Touch will play a couple of preparatory warm-up games against Touch Muenchen in Munich and Touch Rugby Colonia in Cologne. In both cities Curitiba Touch players will be hosted by local players and will have the opportunity to experience the local culture with their new chums. This will be an once in a life opportunity for some of the players, but it will also mean applying for passports and learning some English and basic German.

Our first target will be to raise funds for 6 players, so we can play at the tournament with 8 players (Susi and Keith will be paying their own way). The more funds we raise, more players we can take with us (funding for 12 players so we can play with a full team of 14 players). The estimate includes airfare from Curitiba to Munich and Berlin back to Curitiba, transportation between and within cities, accommodation in Berlin and a moderate amount to cover food.