It is said that Austin’s celebrated weirdness is being alloyed by corporate conformity as the Texan capital gentrifies, but its Major League Rugby club is here to show that rampant commercialism can be off-the-wall, too.
In a nation known for quirky team nicknames (hello, Hartford Yard Goats, Batavia Muckdogs and Binghamton Rumble Ponies), Austin’s may be the most bizarre of all.
Last month, less than two weeks before the start of the third MLR season, the artists formerly known as the Austin Herd declared that they are now the Austin Gilgronis, in reference to “a new Texas-sized cocktail, to be released soon”.