The 20 Best Rugby Shirts for Men in 2022, According to Style Experts

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You don't have to know the rules of rugby to pull off this winning style.

EVEN THOUGH it was invented in England, the rugby shirt feels like an American classic. They’re historically associated with prep schools and college campuses thanks to mid-twentieth century Ivy League style. Much like the oxford shirt, they’ve blown up from their original fashion niche. Today rugby shirts can be considered streetwear, workwear, gorp core, and dad core, just to name a few. It really is a shirt without style limits.

The reason for the rugby shirt's winning style lies in its enormous range of colors and patterns. Since they were originally meant as a sports jersey, they came in a variety of styles to rep different schools. What started as a couple wide horizontal or vertical stripes, turned into a kaleidoscope of hues and shapes. That deep variety of patterns meant a limitless supply of style applications, which also means they look great with just about anything in your closet. Yeah, rugby shirts were meant to get muddy on the field, but today's long-sleeve polos look perfectly at home with chinos, a blazer, and loafers. You can wear them with shorts to climb a mountain, or a suit to spruce up your formal look, and everything in between. Of course, you can also wear them to play rugby. Although modern rugby players wear something more akin to soccer jerseys. With all that styling possibility, it can be hard to settle on which rugby shirt to buy. So we rounded up the best rugby shirt for men available right now.

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Rowing Blazers is the official outfitter for the US Rowing team. Even though the brand was founded by a former member of the team, they still make nice enough gear to be chosen on merit alone. Most of the apparel that Rowing Blazers makes for the American team is available for the public to purchase, including this absolutely quintessential rugby shirt.

No brand has done more to popularize the rugby shirt than Ralph Lauren. They even had a sub-brand called Rugby from 2004 to 2013. Rugby embodied the early twentieth century Anglo-American university aesthetic that rugby shirts grew up in. Even though Rugby is long gone, Ralph Lauren still makes some of the best options out there.

There is an old tradition of sewing together pieces of rugby shirts that were destroyed on the field to make one mis-matched shirt. By the 1980s, brands started selling rugbys with pieces of different patterns already put together. This example from Orvis carries on the tradition. The embroidered dog driving a truck on the chest in just a bonus detail.

The beauty of a rugby shirt is that you can combine any combination of colors and it just works. Thanks to their heritage as sports jerseys, rugbys can get away bold and bright colors in any number of patterns. Take this rugby from J.Crew for example. You wouldn't wear these colors together in big block horizontal stripes on any other garment except a rugby shirt.

While you would never want to wear a cashmere sweater to play rugby, cashmere really does make a nice rugby shirt. This 100% cashmere option from Banana Republic is refined enough to wear to the office without anyone thinking twice about it. You just want to avoid getting any gras stains on it.

This solid, indigo dyed rugby from Todd Snyder will age like a great pair of jeans. The slight contrast on the collar comes from using a different fabric from the rest of the shirt but dying the whole thing together. It's a perfect alternative to a button down shirt if you find yourself wearing those too often... which happens to all of us.

Brooks Brothers has been making rugby shirts since they were actually used for playing. Their Classic Rugby design is true to those original shirts. The elbow patches and rubber buttons are more for looks than function these days.

The original English rugby jerseys did not have collars. This rugby from Beams+ is modeled after that English tradition. It is also cut in a boxier fit with a hidden placket, as rugby jerseys were back in the 1800's.

Croker is an Irish company that makes modern rugby apparel. While the jerseys worn by rugby players today are more like soccer jerseys, this is a reproduction of mid twentieth century rugby jerseys.

Gant made this rugby shirt to celebrate the Year of the Rabbit for the Chinese New Year. It is made out of heavy cotton in a boxy fit with a wide collar soft cotton collar. The rabbit patch is terry embroidered on felt. All details that are true to vintage rugby shirts.

This classic blue and red striped rugby is emblazoned with the USA Rugby Team logo. It is 100% cotton with the distinctive white soft cotton collar.

This is a unique take on a rugby shirt from Kavu. It features fabrics and detailing usually found in outdoors clothing. Considering the long history of traditional rugby shirts in outdoors adventure culture, this is a fitting mashup.

This rugby is a sweater. But it is also made out of cotton and has elements of a varsity jacket. Abercrombie cobbled together a bunch of different styles in this rugby shirt and it somehow all works perfectly.

Billionaire Boys Club offers a more modernist take on the rugby shirt here. Their space man logo blends well with the racing stripe designs on the sleeves.

Being a Scottish company, Mackintosh takes their wool seriously. This wool sweater rugby is made from supple and buttery smooth. Unusual for sweater rugbys, it features a cotton collar and inner placket like a standard rugby.

This is a great example of how colorful and fun rugby shirts can be. Even though this is a bold color combination, it would still work with a wide range of outfits. Lands End really nailed a classic rugby look here.

Carhartt WIP went with a more subtle but just as varied color combination here. The fact that the colors on the body and sleeves don't line up make for a interesting twist on the standard rugby design.

In a surprise twist, handball is the fastest growing sport of the past couple years. It has become so popular among rec leagues that fashion brands are starting to make merch for it. This handball themed rugby shirt from Palmes is our favorite example.

Levi's didn't mince words when they named this rugby shirt. They figured the only way to make a rugby more comfortable was to put a hood on it and make it a rugby hoodie. They were right.

This classic example of a rugby from Barbour is done in a subdued monotone color combination. Its a perfect rugby for anyone who likes to stick to black and white outfits.

Brad is a contributing style commerce editor. After a decade working for menswear brands including J.Crew and Ralph Lauren, Brad switched from selling fashion to writing about it. His words have appeared in Huckberry, Heddels, and The Manual.

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