On Wednesday 22 March, we finally saw the return of Varsity to UWE for the first time since 2019! VP Sports and Health Doha Laftimi successfully brought together four universities, University of South of Wales, University of Bristol, University of Cardiff and University of Bath for an exciting day of sport.

The games were played across Centre for Sport at Frenchay, and Lockleaze Sports Centre. At Centre for Sports we saw some very competitive games from Badminton, Hockey, Netball and Basketball as well as a dance performance from our amazing dance squad. Over at Loackleaze the competition continued with some exciting games from Ultimate Frisbee, Lacrosse, Football and Rugby as well as an incredible display from UWE Comets Cheerleading!

All of the teams played amazingly and we saw some great sportsmanship, but ultimately after a long and competitive day, teamUWE came out on top and brought home the 2023 Varsity Trophy!

To make for a safe and enjoyable event, we released free spectators tickets ahead of the date to manage capacity. All 550 UWE spectators’ tickets sold out showing amazing engagement and support from students, and they all brought their supportive energy on the day to cheer to the teams on, sporting their UWE red t-shirts and homemade signs to show their support. Spectators could also make use of a special Varsity discount on food at Union 2 to refuel between supporting their teams.

This year Doha introduced live streaming for the first time for non-performance teams. This meant that supporters could watch the games from the comfort of their own home. Due to its success during Varsity, Doha is working on instating live streaming opportunities for team next year. This will help to improve the visibility and engagement with teams and enable them to reach even more people than they did previously.

If you missed out on all of the action, or just want to look back at the day, you can watch the 2023 Varsity video here!