The Chicago Hounds have signed Ruben de Haas, the starting scrumhalf for the US Eagles, to a one-year contract that will keep him with the team through the 2026 Major League Rugby (MLR) season. De Haas, who is 27 years old, played for NOLA Gold during the 2025 season on loan from South Africa’s Free State Cheetahs. He is scheduled to start for the United States in their upcoming test match against Romania.
De Haas was born in South Africa and spent part of his upbringing in Arkansas. He began participating in USA Rugby’s Age Grade program in 2015 and captained the High School All American team. In subsequent years, he played for the Under-20 team and was called up to the US Selects side in 2017. At age 19, he made his senior debut for the Eagles during a win over Chile on February 17, 2018.
After completing his time at the Free State Cheetahs Academy, de Haas signed his first professional contract with the club in spring 2018. The initial two-year deal kept him with the Cheetahs until October 2020. He later extended his contract by another year through May 2021.
During the 2020/2021 season, de Haas made three appearances off the bench in Super Rugby and scored five points with a try. In early 2021, he moved to England to join Saracens on a two-year deal but first played briefly in MLR with Austin Gilgronis before their dissolution. While with Austin Gilgronis, he started four out of six games and completed nearly 89% of his passes.
De Haas returned to South Africa’s Cheetahs after spending two seasons with Saracens where he appeared in multiple competitions including Premiership games and European tournaments. In January 2025, he joined NOLA Gold on loan from Cheetahs for five months and participated in thirteen matches—starting six—and maintained a pass completion rate of over 96%.
Following his loan period and end of contract with Cheetahs, de Haas became a free agent this offseason. The Chicago Hounds have now added him to their roster alongside other capped Eagles such as Michael Baska and Chris Hilsenbeck.
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