Year after year, Cambridge reaps little reward for the surly teams that travel there: no matter the sport, the result is often the same. An away day fixture is always a difficult one – any sports fan knows that. A hostile atmosphere, a longer journey, and an unfamiliar pitch or court all combine to trouble the travelling team. These challenges are further amplified when pitted against a rival. With Varsity season fully underway, conquering the complications of an away day is key to a successful display of Oxford’s sporting superiority.
Does the answer lie with the fans? In football, there is a common claim that the supporters are the extra man, making the game easier for the home team. For example, Newcastle United’s stadium, St James’ Park, is an away fixture notorious for its intimidating atmosphere. There, away fans are shoed into a high-up corner far from the pitch, making their voices difficult to hear. Their local rivals, Sunderland, are unbeaten at home so far this season with the Stadium of Light something of ‘a fortress’; yet they reside in a modest tenth place due to their away day struggles. Fans do matter.
Sporting executives have long understood the impact fans can have on a game. During the COVID-19 pandemic, NBA matches were played behind closed doors, with players arguing that these were the most difficult games as everyone performed at their peak with no fan interference. A former Blues captain for Oxford University Athletics told Cherwell of their experience running the 200m at home: “When I made it to the home straight, it hit me. Wow. The crowd pushed me that little bit harder to win”. Perhaps even a small crowd does make a difference on a warm summer’s day: OUAC won handily in the home fixture of Varsity in 2024, yet were beaten away in 2025.
However, replicating the atmosphere of a professional football stadium, lined with thousands of fans, is a task that even the fiercest and most anticipated Varsity matches would struggle to achieve. While Oxford and Cambridge can match the intensity and passion of those fans, the noise is a different matter – especially in fixtures that do not feature two Blues teams competing against each other.
How is it then that these (relatively) lesser-attended events are still dictated by location? Familiarity must play a role. To refer to football once again, a recent ban on artificial pitches will be implemented from the 2026/27 season in the Scottish Premier League. No doubt this is to force a level of parity, preventing teams from gaining an unfair advantage playing at home. Manchester City recently lost to the (relative) minnow Norwegian team Bodo/Glimt – who play on an artificial pitch – in the Champions League. Whilst the differences between Oxford and Cambridge pitches are not as stark as those of artificial versus natural, athletes are undoubtedly more familiar with the pitches they train on and compete upon regularly.
What about when neither side is at home? In Eton Fives, a sport akin to squash where points are won by striking a ball against a wall (with gloves rather than rackets), our Varsity match takes place at Eton itself – a neutral, if unsurprising, venue – and consequently the matches are neither a ‘gimme’ nor an uphill struggle. They are even. Rugby Varsity is held at the StoneX Stadium, home of Premier League side the Saracens. Not only is this a neutral venue, but it is also almost equal in distance from Oxford and Cambridge: London. Neutral venues offer the clearest test of skill and pure ability in sport: neither team is familiar with the pitch, and both are allocated an equal number of seats for the travelling fans.
In order to compensate for those matches that do not have a neutral venue, the location of Varsity alternates between the two cities every year. For those students that are on three year undergraduate courses – or for visiting students and many postgraduate students – this presents either a peculiar advantage or disadvantage, as they play an odd number of matches either home or away. It is a cruel reality of too many talented Oxford athletes that they are forced to play away from home for the majority of their university careers. This cruelty is furthered by the criteria some sports impose for obtaining the famed Oxford Blue award: it is a requirement of Men’s Basketball, for example, to win the Varsity match in order for the athletes to receive a full blue rather than a half-blue.
Circumstances of Varsity away matches can differ vastly – a former University basketball Blues captain told Cherwell: “Cambridge took us to eat at a burger place, whilst we hosted them at a formal dinner.” The captain was not impressed by the quality of the burger place either. Psychological warfare on show? Oxford Women’s Basketball won the most recent Varsity home fixture, and lost the away fixture. As if the fans and location was not enough of a disadvantage, there are psychological elements in play as well. All of these factors add up: some athletes have an understated disadvantage in pursuing their Oxford sporting dream.
Even with this rather bleak report, hope is not lost. Everybody knows that an underdog story is the best in sport: Buster Douglas vs Mike Tyson, Leicester’s 2015/16 Premier League title win, the 1980 Miracle on Ice. To those brave soldiers advancing to the frontlines of Cambridge this year, bring a packed lunch and some of your mates along with you, and know that all of Oxford supports you in your endeavours.
