Competitive inter-university sport first took place in New Zealand in 1902 between the universities of Canterbury, Otago, Auckland and Victoria. Over the years this developed into the Easter Tournament, which in 1915 was used to raise money for the Belgium Relief fund during World War I.  University Sport New Zealand (USNZ), or more accurately its precursor the NZ University Sports Union, was created in 1957 and it became an incorporated society in 1966. USNZ is now the governing body over all inter-tertiary sporting competitions in New Zealand.

USNZ now offers sporting opportunities to over 35 tertiary institutions reaching out to nearly 350,000 students. USNZ sends New Zealand’s high performance student athletes to international competitions, including the biennial World University Games.  It delivers three major domestic events on an annual basis; the New Zealand University Games, followed by the New Zealand Universities’ Blues Awards and the New Zealand University Snow Games.

The USNZ office is based in Wellington currently comprises one part time and two full time staff members along with 6 board members. Outside of the event season the staff offers training sessions to tertiary institution’s Club Development Officers and Team Managers. The proper training enables tertiary sport leader to have the knowledge and confidence to effectively direct athletes at their institution.