Ulster Rugby is one of the four professional provincial rugby union teams from the island of Ireland. They compete in the Irish regional pool of the United Rugby Championship and in the European Rugby Champions Cup, each of which they have won once. Ulster were the first Irish team and the first team outside England and France to win the European Cup in 1999.
David Humphreys MBE is a former Irish rugby union player. He played 72 times for Ireland, scoring 560 points, including 6 tries, and at the time of his international retirement was Ireland's most capped out-half. He played his club rugby for London Irish and Ulster, winning the 1998-99 Heineken Cup, the 2004 Celtic Cup and the 2005–06 Celtic League with the latter. Since retiring as a player he has served as director of rugby for Ulster and Gloucester, as a performance consultant with the Georgian Rugby Union, and is currently Director of Performance Operations with the England and Wales Cricket Board. He will succeed David Nucifora as the IRFU Performance Director in 2024.
William Iain Henderson is a professional rugby union player who plays as a lock for United Rugby Championship club Ulster and the Ireland national team, and has been selected for two tours with the British & Irish Lions. He has been the captain of Ulster since 2019, and captained Ireland in 2021 and 2023.
Robert Patrick Herring is a professional rugby union player who plays as a hooker for United Rugby Championship club Ulster. Born in South Africa, he represents Ireland at international level after qualifying on ancestry grounds.
Stuart McCloskey is a professional rugby union player from Northern Ireland, who plays as a centre for United Rugby Championship club Ulster and the Ireland national team.
Sammy Arnold is an English-born, Irish rugby union player for English club Newcastle Falcons. He plays as a centre.
Alan O'Connor is an Irish professional rugby union player who plays lock for Ulster. He was Ulster's player of the year in 2020–21, and won the United Rugby Championship's Tackle Machine award for 2021–22.
Dan Goggin is an Irish rugby union player who plays as a centre for French Pro D2 club Montauban.
Jacob Alexander Stockdale is a professional rugby union player who plays as a wing for United Rugby Championship club Ulster and the Ireland national team.
James Hume is an Irish rugby union player who plays centre for United Rugby Championship and European Rugby Champions Cup side Ulster.
Greg Jones is an Irish rugby union player who is currently without a club. He played in the back row for Ulster in the United Rugby Championship and European Rugby Champions Cup from 2017 to 2024.
Matthew Abramo Gallagher is a professional rugby union player for Benetton Rugby in the United Rugby Championship. His primary position is fullback, though can also play on either wing. Gallagher's father is John Gallagher, who won the 1987 Rugby World Cup with New Zealand.
Alex McHenry is an Irish rugby union player for RFU Championship club Jersey Reds. He plays as a centre.
Ethan McIlroy is an Irish rugby union player who plays wing or fullback for Ulster in the United Rugby Championship and the European Rugby Champions Cup.
Aaron Sexton is an Irish rugby union player who plays wing or fullback for Ulster in the United Rugby Championship
Tom Stewart is a professional rugby union player who plays as a hooker for United Rugby Championship club Ulster and for the Ireland national rugby union team.
The 2021–22 season was Ulster Rugby's 28th season since the advent of professionalism in rugby union, and Dan McFarland's fourth season as head coach. They competed in the inaugural United Rugby Championship and the European Rugby Champions Cup.
The 2020–21 season was Ulster's 27th season since the advent of professionalism in rugby union, and Dan McFarland's third season as head coach. Iain Henderson was captain. They competed in the Pro14, the Pro14 Rainbow Cup, the European Rugby Champions Cup and the European Rugby Challenge Cup.
The 2019–20 season was Ulster's 26th season since the advent of professionalism in rugby union, and Dan McFarland's second season as head coach. Lock Iain Henderson was named captain in place of retired hooker Rory Best. They competed in the Pro14 and the European Rugby Champions Cup. Both competitions were disrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic, he later stages being played in August, September and October 2020. In the Pro14, Ulster finished second in Conference A, making the playoffs and qualifying for next season's Champions Cup. They beat Edinburgh in the semi-final, but lost to Leinster in the final. They finished second in Pool 3 in the Champions Cup, qualifying for the quarter-finals, where they were beaten by Toulouse.
The 2023–24 season was Ulster Rugby's 30th season since the advent of professionalism in rugby union. They competed in the United Rugby Championship the European Rugby Champions Cup, and the EPCR Challenge Cup. It was Dan McFarland's sixth season as head coach. Despite some good results, including a home win against Racing 92 in the Champions Cup and an away win against Leinster in the URC, Ulster slipped back in the league, and poor performances against Bath, Harlequins and Toulouse dumped them out of the Champions Cup. After an away defeat in the URC against Ospreys in February, McFarland left his position, replaced by former Ireland under-20 head coach Richie Murphy. CEO Jonny Petrie also left, replaced on an interim basis by Hugh McCaughey. Murphy oversaw two away losses in South Africa and a quarter-final exit in the Challenge Cup, but form improved in the league, with four straight wins, including a home win against Leinster, and a losing bonus point away to Munster secured a quarter-final place, losing away to a full-strength Leinster side, and qualification for next season's Champions Cup.
