The Rifles are members of the Canadian Junior Football League and play their home games in Maple Grove Park.

The Winnipeg Hawkeyes were the last Winnipeg-based team prior to the Rifles, folding in 1996.

In 1999, an effort to bring back a team to Winnipeg was headed by James Ladd (Manitoba Football Hall of Fame inductee).

As of the 2021 season, home games are played at Maple Grove Rugby Park in St. Vital.

The team is named after the Royal Winnipeg Rifles Regiment which was founded in 1883.