Benetton Rugby, coach Calum MacRae will say goodbye at end of season
Calum MacRae’s experience as head coach of Benetton Rugby will end on June 30, 2026. This was announced by the Venetian club itself in a note in which it summarized the career of the coach born Jan. 26, 1980 in Edinburgh who, as a player, was a three-quarter in the jerseys of Edinburgh, Worcester Warriors as well as Venezia Mestre. MacRae also played seasons with Scotland’s Melrose and Border Reivers. Adventures in 7-a-side rugby are also noted for him, where he defended the Scottish national team uniform on 13 occasions with Scotland A.
Retired in 2011, MacRae immediately embarked on a coaching career. From 2011 to 2014 he worked as an attack coach and served as skills coach for the Newcastle Falcons. In 2014, he was designated as head coach of the Scottish national 7-a-side team and in May 2016, they won a historic victory in London in the World Rugby Sevens Series. Since 2017 MacRae has worked on the Edinburgh coaching staff, fulfilling the position of defense coach for four years. In 2022, he came to the green-and-white court as a defense specialist until 2025, within coach Marco Bortolami’s staff. In the summer of 2025 he was named head coach of Benetton Rugby.
“My family and I have come to Treviso, and to Benetton Rugby, for a new adventure – said MacRae – and I am very grateful to Antonio Pavanello, Amerino Zatta and the club for giving me the opportunity to coach the team, both as an assistant and as head coach for the past 4 years. During this time I feel I have grown and learned a lot by experiencing a new culture. I believe we have made remarkable progress as a team, qualifying for the playoffs, both in the URC and European Cups, and I hope we have given our passionate fans moments they will remember fondly. Last year my family resettled in Scotland for school reasons, related to my children’s education. I had hoped that the agreement with Benetton Rugby could be protracted over the long term, but as a husband and father I am losing important milestones in my family life and feel the need to return to Scotland to be close to my family. For this reason I will leave the club at the end of the season”.
“I would like to thank Antonio and the club for their understanding and support for this decision– finally stressed the Benetton coach.”
I remain fully focused on Benetton Rugby between now and the end of the season as we aim for the URC playoffs and finishing at the bottom of the Challenge Cup. Finally, I would like to thank the fantastic group of players, my fellow coaches and the staff at the Acorn for making my time at Benetton Rugby so special. With the birth of my son Rían here, Treviso will always be a very special place for our family to return to in the future”.
“We fully understand Calum’s family situation and respect a choice that stems from deep and shared motivations – commented president Antonio Pavanello. In these years MacRae has shown great professionalism, competence and sense of responsibility, qualities that he will continue to put at the service of Benetton Rugby until the end of the season. On our part there is great appreciation for the commitment and dedication with which he will face this last stretch of the journey. We look forward to the coming months with confidence, aiming to experience an ambitious and positive end to the season, maintaining a calm, united environment fully focused on our sporting goals. To Calum goes our sincerest thanks for what he has given to the club and our best wishes for his future, both personally and professionally”.
