The Ontario Arrows are one step closer to confirming their spot in the 2019 Major League Rugby season. An official release on Monday announced that the organization has secured exclusive rights to the Toronto-based franchise. Subject to the negotiation of “key terms and conditions of entry”, the team intends to compete in the 2019 MLR season.

If – as expected – those terms are agreed, the team will join expansion sides from New York and Los Angeles to form a 10-team competition for the new season slated to begin in late January 2019. Several matches will be played this fall with the first preseason contest confirmed to be Sunday, September 16, against the MLR finalist Glendale Raptors at York Lions Stadium in Toronto.

The team played seven matches during a spring schedule that saw them compete against two current MLR teams – the Houston SaberCats and Utah Warriors – as well as 2019 expansion side Rugby United New York, the Boston Mystics, and the Canada Selects. An eighth match against New York in Toronto was postponed due to inclement weather.