Mike Petri is a professional rugby player and team captain for Rugby United New York in Major League Rugby.  He has over 50 test caps for the USA Eagles national team and competed in three Rugby World Cup tournaments.  He has won national championships with the New York Athletic Club and Belmont Shore, featured for the prestigious Barbarians international side, and played professionally in the UK for both Sale Sharks and Newport Dragons.  He was a four time College All American at Penn State University and played for the USA U19 National Team in two Junior World Championships while studying at Xavier High School in New York City.

Mike’s rugby family spans far and wide but he lives with his wife and daughters in Brooklyn, New York where he is a high school teacher and coach.  He is also the author and creator of R is for Rugby, which includes a line of children's books and rugby gear, most notably the international hit, R is for Rugby: An Alphabet Book.  He is also the founding director of NYC Summer Rugby Camps, Up & Under Kids' Rugby Classes, Empire Sports Summer Camps, and the non-profit Rugby For All Inc. He is also a surf instructor during the summer months in Rockaway Beach, NY and the creator of the A Game Notebook, a notebook journal designed specifically for rugby players, which will be released in late summer 2022.