Canterbury Rugby Unon & Crusaders buy into Seattle Seawolves

The Canterbury Rugby Union and Crusaders have minority ownership stakes in the American professional rugby side, the Seattle Seawolves.

The Canterbury union is a major stakeholder of the Crusaders and both say they will do what they can to help develop players for the Seattle-based side.

The Seawolves were formed last year and will play in the Major Rugby League (MRL), the new North American professional tournament which begins in April.

"As the oldest rugby organisation in New Zealand we are excited to have secured a small stake in the future of professional rugby in the US," Canterbury Rugby CEO Nathan Godfrey told Stuff.

"We look forward to sharing our expertise of developing some of the world's best rugby players with the Seawolves."

The Seawolves will have their first MRL game on April 22 against San Diego Legion in Tukwila, which borders Seattle.