The Celtic Crusaders are based at Bridgend in Wales in the UK. The Celtic Crusaders were a part of the National League Two until the 2007 season when they were promoted to National League One. The Celtic Crusaders play their matches at the Brewery Field in Bridgend, although occasionally they have been known to play at other locations in South Wales. The vast majority of the Celtic Crusaders are Welsh-qualified having been recruited from the Welsh Conference sides, mainly Bridgend Blue Bills and Aberavon Fighting Irish. The Celtic Crusaders also run an academy side drawn from every club in the Welsh Conference.

A large amount of the fans of the Celtic Crusaders used to support the now defunct rugby union team Celtic Warriors who took part in the League during the 2003-2004 season before they were disbanded by the WRU. The Crusaders attracted the highest ever attendance at Brewery Field in 2007 when 3,441 people watched them do battle with Oldham Roughyeds National League Two match. Thanks to a huge marketing effort by the club the majority of people witnessing this event were fans of the Celtic Crusaders, although there were a few fans who had travelled to Wales to watch the Millennium Magic weekend in Cardiff. Whilst in their second season the Celtic Crusaders won the 2007 National League Two and earned automatic promotion to National League One in 2008.

Initially the team had planned to re-use the Celtric Warriors title but it was abandoned in favour of the Crusaders after consideration by the rugby union franchise. The aim of the club and their primary focus was to eventually reach the Super league and to represent South Wales. Previous attempts to create rugby league franchises in areas not traditionally associated with rugby have met with mediocre success. The concept behind the creation of the club was that everything should be focused on a bottom up approach to ensure that the club grows on its own and learns to walk before attempting to run. This also allows Celtic Crusaders to grow into a brand rather than being thrust into the limelight immediately.

The team played their first match against the Harlequins at Brewery Field and the match ended up in a 22-22 draw. Their first real competitive matches took place as members of the National League Cup, the Celtic Crusaders were placed in a group with the London Skolars, The Hemel Stags and St Albans Centurions. The Celtic Crusaders won every match that they played in a crushing series of victories, and the team went on to finish third losing out 26-27 in the Final Eliminator to Swinton Lions.