For Jana Wessels, the most critical part of her week doesn’t happen on a rugby pitch or in a classroom. It happens during an “Attack” sports course—an intensive cardio grind of strength and flexibility—shared with her father. The workout is followed by a ritual: a protein shake and a long conversation about the week. For the 29-year-old English and physical education teacher at KGS Leeste, these moments of family connection are the anchor that allows her to pursue a high-octane athletic career.
Wessels is currently balancing the demands of teaching grades five through 13 and caring for her grandmother with a rigorous training schedule. Her goal is the European Championships in Vichy, France, where she will represent Germany in the “Mixed Open” category. It is a journey that has taken her from the rugby heartlands of Australia and Ireland back to her home in Bremen, where she is now working to plant the seeds of a sport that remains largely unknown to the German public.
The rise of touch rugby in Bremen is a grassroots success story centered at Union 60. In 2023, Wessels and John Baldwin founded the club’s touch rugby department, which has quickly grown to 16 members. While the team is young and focuses on basics and enjoyment, Wessels has already ascended to the national stage, winning her first international tournament in Belgium with the German women’s team earlier this year.
From Sligo to Armidale: A Global Education
Wessels’ path to the national team wasn’t linear. Her introduction to the sport came in 2016 during her university studies, where she first discovered rugby sevens. After several years playing for clubs in Oldenburg and Bremen, she sought to elevate her game by immersing herself in the culture of the sport abroad. She spent time in Sligo, Ireland, and Armidale, Australia—two regions where rugby is more than a game; it is a social cornerstone.
These international stints provided Wessels with a higher level of competition and a deeper understanding of athletic development. It was during this period that she encountered touch rugby, a non-contact derivative of the game developed in Australia. Unlike the collision-heavy nature of traditional rugby, touch focuses on agility, tactical precision, and inclusive play, allowing athletes of varying experience levels and genders to compete on equal footing.
Upon returning to Bremen in 2023 following a legal clerkship in Leer, Wessels recognized a void in the local sporting landscape. By establishing the department at Union 60, she aimed to create a space where the sport’s integrative nature could thrive, focusing on “playing and having fun” while steadily building a competitive edge.
The Mechanics of Touch Rugby
For those unfamiliar with the sport, touch rugby strips away the tackles and scrums of the traditional game, replacing them with a “touch” of the opponent’s hand. The objective remains the same: grounding the ball behind the opponent’s score line. However, the tactical layer is significantly different.
The game is played on a 50 by 70-meter field over two 20-minute periods. A team has six “touches” to move the ball down the field and score. Once a player is touched, they must stop immediately and play the ball, forcing the attacking team to rely on rapid passing and deceptive running lines to breach the defense. The “Mixed Open” format, in which Wessels competes, is particularly noted for its high level of gender integration, requiring a strategic blend of speed and strength from both men and women.
| Category | Details |
|---|---|
| Event | European Touch Championships |
| Location | Vichy, France |
| Dates | July 21–25 |
| German Teams | Mixed Open & Senior Mixed (30+) |
| Key Rivals | England and France |
The Road to Vichy and the ‘Bronco’
Preparation for the European Championships is a grueling process. Wessels’ routine now includes specialized sprinting units, strength training, and technical drills, supplemented by monthly intensive training camps in Berlin or Frankfurt. A central part of this preparation is the “Bronco test,” a dreaded fitness benchmark in the rugby world that involves shuttle runs of 20, 40, and 60 meters, repeated five times.
The German delegation heading to France is not composed solely of players. Bremen’s influence extends to the officiating side of the game, with Raphael Grüneberg representing the Hanseatic city as a referee. This dual presence underscores the growing professionalization of the sport within the region.
Despite the individual success of national players, the sport faces systemic challenges in Germany. At Union 60, young players like 12-year-old Nils Funke—a two-time Young Player of the Year—highlight a gap in the pipeline. Funke has called for better integration of rugby into school curriculums, noting that without project weeks or school-based working groups, the sport struggles to attract new talent. The lack of a professional national league means that even the most talented players cannot make a living from the game, keeping it firmly in the realm of passionate amateurism.
For Wessels, the upcoming tournament in France is more than a quest for gold; it is a validation of the work started at Union 60. As she prepares to face the powerhouses of England and France, she remains grounded by the simple things: the support of her club, the growth of her 16-member squad, and the anticipation of that post-tournament shake with her father.
The European Championships in Vichy will conclude on July 25, marking the next major checkpoint for the German national team and a critical test of Wessels’ preparation.
Do you think non-contact sports like touch rugby could help grow the popularity of traditional rugby in Europe? Share your thoughts in the comments below.
