UCFB Wembley retain Varsity title after thrilling championship at Trafford FC 

UCFB’s Varsity is an annual event that takes place between the two campuses. It is the showpiece event for UCFB Sport and was particularly enthralling this year after the great success both campuses had in the BUCS season. Read about that here.

UCFB Wembley have retained the title of UCFB Varsity champions after a 2-2 draw away at UCFB Manchester in the annual championships. 

The draw across the four events meant that UCFB Wembley retained the title after being crowned champions in 2025’s Varsity held at Silver Jubilee Park. 

Trafford Football Club was the base of the 2026 Varsity, with the darts fixture taking place at Riley’s Sports Bar. 

UCFB Manchester were named as the darts champions, before UCFB Wembley Men’s and Women’s Football teams won the first two matches at Trafford FC, reclaiming the title prior to the Men’s Football Academy match. 

The first football match played was the women’s academy match, which saw UCFB Wembley take a two-goal lead before a quick Manchester comeback, with two goals in four minutes, saw the teams go in level at half time. 

However, UCFB Wembley showed their dominance with two further goals in the second half, coming away 4-2 victors. 

As that game came to a close, the men’s football second team match was being played on Trafford FC’s Chassen Road pitch. 

The home side went ahead twice in that game, before a second-half comeback from UCFB Wembley saw the away side leave victorious by three goals to two.  

With that win, UCFB Wembley had the two points they needed to retain the Varsity trophy. 

But UCFB Manchester were not finished and refused to be beaten. The men’s academy match took place in a packed out Shawe Lane Stadium, where the home team ran riot. 

After an early red card was shown to UCFB Wembley’s Goalkeeper, UCFB Manchester asserted their dominance by going 3-0 up, before a consolation penalty was scored by Wembley.  

Unlike in the other two matches, there was to be no comeback, as UCFB Manchester went on to score three further goals, with the final scoreline 6-1. 

Following the final match, UCFB Wembley were awarded the trophy and lifted it high in the post-event celebrations. 

Fabio Ceccarelli, a UCFB Wembley men’s player, said: “The best thing about playing Varsity against Manchester is the day out with all of our mates both on the pitch and in the crowd supporting the other teams.  

“Winning it is a special feeling as we can say we proudly represented our Wembley campus and ended the season on a high.” 

Fellow UCFB Wembley Academy footballer Sarah Sparrow shared her thoughts, adding: “Winning Varsity is amazing!  

“I’m lucky enough to say in my years at Wembley, we’ve been unbeaten in Varsity, which is no easy feat. 

“Manchester always put up an outstanding fight and want to win, which really makes the win feel all the better!” 

We look forward to the next Varsity in a year’s time, to be held at our London-based campus. 

Find out more about UCFB’s athletic union which allows our students to thrive on the pitch while studying for their careers away from it. 

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