Chiangmai International Touch - Chiang Mai Citylife

By Citylife | Fri 15 May 2026

Chiangmai International Touch Comes to Chiang Mai This Weekend!

The weekend of May 16–17, teams from across Thailand and Asia will come together for the Chiangmai International Touch Tournament at Suthep Municipal Stadium

Hosted by the Chiangmai Hedgehogs and Lanna Rugby Club, the tournament will feature exciting Men’s, Women’s, and Mixed divisions with teams travelling from around the region

Expect:
Fast-paced touch rugby
International teams
Great atmosphere
Community spirit

To prepare the local kids who will be participating in the tournament, over the weekend of 28 April 2026, Brian from @thailand_touch and @southernerstouchrugby travelled to Chiang Mai to lead a fantastic Touch Rugby Clinic — and it was enjoyed by all!

The day started with a morning session at the @kidsarkfoundation where Brian delivered a touch rugby session for the @lannarugbyclub youth programme

In the afternoon, the clinic continued with players from the @touchrugbycnx , Lanna Rugby Club, and @cmurugbyclub.official coming together for a high-energy session.

All of this was a part of the build-up to this weekends Chiangmai International Touch Tournament.

A huge thank you to Brian for giving up his time, and to Thailand Touch for their continued support

Tournament format

Group games will be a round robin format with Mixed and Men’s playing in groups of 6. There are 3 group games on Saturday and 2 group games on Sunday. All games are 18 minutes long with a 2 minute break. Finals on Sunday will be 2 x 12 minute halves with a break. Teams on the left hand side of the fixtures will start the game.

On Saturday there will be 3 youth games involving the two foundations foundation you are helping us support these are the Kids Ark and Baan Dek Foundations.

We will also have a 2 games series involving the SEA Barbarians and the Thailand Women’s Open team the Thailand Firebacks. Very exciting!

Finals and drop off

In the finals, 1st V 2nd for the Cup, 3rd V 4th for the Plate and 5th V 6th for the Bowl. After the group stages, if teams finish with the same number of points it will go on tries scored then head to head and finally a coin toss.

If games are drawn in the final at the end of regular time it goes straight to a ‘golden try’

drop off. That means it will be 3 V 3 and first team to score wins. In the mixed open, at least one woman needs to be on the field during the drop off.

The event helps raise funds for local community projects and supports the continued growth of touch rugby in Northern Thailand

Matt Hirst, Tournament organiser and director of rugby at Lanna rugby Club said “we are really excited to have teams travel from around Thailand, Singapore and Sri Lanka to come compete at the Chiangmai International Touch Tournament. The kids from the Baan Dek and Kids Ark Foundation are excited to show off their skills. If you’re free this weekend come on down!’

Whether you’re a rugby fan, new to touch, or just looking for a great weekend of sport — come down and support the teams!

Where : Suthep Municipal Stadium
When : May 16–17

As with most sporting events there are social gatherings for teams and supporters to relax from the rigours of the days action, mingle and meet new friends. The Chiang Mai International Rugby event is no different!

The social nights are:

Friday- REAL GOOD PASTA– our annual pasta party

Saturday- THE MOAT HOUSE– The home of Lanna Rugby Club

Sunday- THE CAUSEWAY IRISH PUB– The sponsors of Chiangmai Hedeghogs

These events are open to all so please dont be shy and come on down.

For more information contact lannarugbyclub@gmail.com

See you there!