The VVA-Podmoskovye is a Russian rugby union team playing in the Professional Rugby League. The team plays at Gagarin Air Force Academy stadium in Monino, a garrison town just outside Moscow. VVA-Podmoskovye have strong links to the air force and also supplied the bulk of Russia, with which they shared a head coach, Nikolai Nerush. The team had ambitious plans for the future - it lobbied hard for inclusion in the European Challenge Cup and was close to completing a 12,500-seat purpose-built rugby stadium.