7 h. ago Women’s Rugby World Cup: England’s Megan Jones on dealing with grief

The 28-year-old centre, whose last World Cup appearance was in 2017, will start for England at a home tournament the year after both her parents died.

Economics

8 h. ago Red Roses ‘look forward to being hunted’ at Women’s Rugby World Cup, declares John Mitchell

England kick off against USA in Sunderland on Friday Hosts unchanged from warm-up win over FranceJohn Mitchell has said he and his England team know they will be “hunted” at this Women’s Rugby World Cup as the world No 1 side and the favourites to lift the trophy on 27 September.The Red Roses start their campaign against the USA on Friday night at the Stadium of Light in Sunderland and have named an unchanged XV from the 40-6 win over France in their final warmup game. Continue reading...

Events

11 h. ago Women's Rugby World Cup: England at full strength as squad named to face USA in opener

Emily Scarratt is set to make her 119th cap

Politics

12 h. ago England Women at full strength for Rugby World Cup opener against the US

Emily Scarratt to win 119th cap at Stadium of Light in fifth World CupJohn Mitchell names unchanged side from 40-6 warm-up win over FranceEngland have named a full-strength side to open their Rugby World Cup campaign against the US on Friday, with Emily Scarratt in line to win her 119th cap off the bench and appear at her fifth World Cup at Sunderland’s Stadium of Light.John Mitchell has named an unchanged XV from the team’s 40-6 win over France in their final warmup game earlier this month. There are no injury concerns for the world No 1s as they start their pursuit of a trophy they are favourites to win in front of a record crowd for an opening game, with 40,000 tickets sold. Continue reading...

Politics

12 h. ago England Women at full strength for Rugby World Cup opener against the USA

Scarratt to win 119th cap at Stadium of Light in fifth World CupMitchell’s side unchanged from warm-up win over FranceEngland have named a full-strength side to open their Rugby World Cup campaign against the USA on Friday, with Emily Scarratt in line to win her 119th cap off the bench and appear at her fifth World Cup at Sunderland’s Stadium of Light.John Mitchell has named an unchanged XV from the team’s 40-6 win over France in their final warmup game this month. Holly Aitchison, Helena Rowland and Claudia Moloney-MacDonald are out injured but the world No 1s will look familiar as they start their pursuit of a trophy they are favourites to win in front of a record crowd for an opening game, with 40,000 tickets sold. Continue reading...

Politics

14 h. ago Ellie Kildunne exclusive: No excuses now, England have put in the work to be crowned world champions

Red Roses looking to go one further after their Women’s Rugby World Cup final defeat three years ago

Politics

15 h. ago Why the Red Roses are ready to finally crown their dominance with Rugby World Cup success

Unbeaten in their last 27 matches, the Red Roses must handle the pressure of being overwhelming favourites on home soil

Sport

18 h. ago World Cup provides launchpad as women’s rugby prepares for liftoff | Robert Kitson

The next few weeks have the potential to refresh rugby in all its guises – this tournament is going to hit differentlyBack in the day there was a low-profile sport called women’s rugby union. Few people went to watch, the media seldom took an interest and the world’s top players were enthusiastic amateurs. Anyone predicting Twickenham would one day be packed to the rafters for a standalone women’s fixture would have been dismissed as crazy. And now? There is a different sport in town. It is simply known as rugby and now more than ever it belongs to both sexes.Next month’s World Cup final, accordingly, has attracted a full house in excess of 80,000 and a huge global television audience. And if all goes to plan the Lionesses will not be the only female sporting queens adorning teenage bedroom walls in England. The Red Roses may or may not be crowned world champions at the end of September but public interest in them is about to soar. The organisers report that 375,000 tickets have bee...

Politics

34 h. ago Five to watch: the Wallaroos who can shape the Women’s Rugby World Cup | Angus Fontaine

From former gymnasts and versatile veterans, to a sevens convert and teenage sensation, these players can lift Australia to new heights in EnglandAustralia begin their Women’s Rugby World Cup campaign with a clash against Samoa on 23 August and high hopes of at least matching their best result at the tournament when it was last held in England. The Wallaroos finished third at the global showpiece 15 years ago but if the current No 6-ranked side are to survive their pool, let alone snatch a breakthrough World Cup crown, they must first face down the game’s biggest star, the US’s Ilona Maher, as well as host England.These are the five players who can help lift the Wallaroos to new heights and lay down a marker before Australia host the World Cup in 2029. Continue reading...

Politics

36 h. ago World Cup final tipped to smash attendance record for women’s rugby match

RWC 2025 chair Gill Whitehead reckons the Twickenham showpiece will “easily” surpass the 66,000 crowd for the opening sevens at last year’s Olympics.

Sport

37 h. ago Women’s Rugby World Cup final sold out with Twickenham set for record attendance

375,000 tickets have already been sold for the tournament overall with records set to tumble

Sport

37 h. ago Jade Shekells exclusive: Women’s rugby is on the rise, a home World Cup will make it explode

Jade Shekells targeting special moments at the tournament on home soil

Politics

38 h. ago Brazil aim to make waves at their first Women’s Rugby World Cup

Tournament debutants will make history as the first South American team to qualify, just 17 years after their first matchSixteen. That is how many Tests Brazil’s women’s rugby team has played, just six more than England played in 2024 alone. The Yaras have recorded five wins but one of those was history-making: a first victory against Colombia last June that secured qualification for the Rugby World Cup. They will be the first South American country at the women’s tournament and the first Brazil team, male or female, to compete in rugby’s global showpiece. “It is incredible,” says their captain, Eshyllen Coimbra.The remarkable story began in 2008 with their first international match. Brazil lost 10-0 to the Netherlands in what would be their sole fixture before an 11-year hiatus, mainly due to a lack of regional opponents. Brazil’s union focused on women’s sevens and rugby league before the 15s team was revived in 2019. One of the main reasons for doing so was the potential for Worl...

Politics

39 h. ago Wales captain's heartbreaking interview blows people away as viewers left in tears

Alex Callender will lead Wales at the Women's Rugby World Cup alongside co-captain Kate Williams

Politics

39 h. ago The Breakdown | Brazil aim to make waves at their first Women’s Rugby World Cup

Tournament debutants Brazil are making history in England, as the first South American team to qualify for a Women’s Rugby World CupSixteen. That is how many Tests Brazil’s women’s rugby team has played, just six more than England played in 2024 alone. The Yaras have recorded five wins but one of those was history-making: a first victory against Colombia last June that secured qualification for the Rugby World Cup. They will be the first South American country at the women’s tournament and the first Brazil team, male or female, to compete in rugby’s global showpiece. “It is incredible,” says their captain, Eshyllen Coimbra.The remarkable story began in 2008 with their first international match. Brazil lost 10-0 to the Netherlands in what would be their sole fixture before an 11-year hiatus, mainly due to a lack of regional opponents. Brazil’s union focused on women’s sevens and rugby league before the 15s team was revived in 2019. One of the main reasons for doing so was the potenti...

Politics

40 h. ago How the expressive Ellie Kildunne emerged as the face of England’s home World Cup

The full-back enters a home World Cup as the reigning World Player of the Year - and the tournament could catapult her to superstardom

Politics

42 h. ago Raffle tickets to record gates: The story of every Women’s Rugby World Cup final – in pictures

Ahead of the 2025 tournament, we take a look back at each of the finals since the inaugural tournament 34 years ago. Continue reading...

Sport

57 h. ago Women’s Rugby World Cup’s brutal reality: Samoa players fundraising costs

Guardian survey of team finances reveals mixed picture for playersEngland contracts range from £39,000 to £48,000 plus match feesThe Women’s Rugby World Cup will make a glitzy start on Friday night in front of a global TV audience, but a Guardian survey of the 16 competing nations has discovered the brutal financial reality for many athletes taking part.Half of the 32-strong Samoa squad are raising funds to cover the costs of their mortgages and household bills while taking part in the tournament in England, according to one of their players, Nina Foaese, a 36-year-old mother of three. Continue reading...

Sport

62 h. ago Zoe Aldcroft: ‘This World Cup has the potential to change women’s rugby for ever’

Red Roses captain on the chance to grow the sport in England this summer, how she benefits from impostor syndrome and playing youth rugby against boys“I was playing for Scarborough against Whitby,” says Zoe Aldcroft as the England women’s rugby captain pauses before the start of the World Cup this week and describes one of her formative experiences in the game. “I must have been 12 at the time as I was the only girl playing rugby and we were up at Whitby. It was the coldest day ever and the wind was whipping. There was such a steep slope at Whitby Rugby Club and they had this massive guy playing for them. Whenever he broke the line they always used to shout ‘Cannonball.’”Aldcroft, the inspirational 28-year-old leader and lock forward, lets slip a gap-toothed grin as she remembers the scene. “He’d broken the line and, as the full-back, I was the last one between him and the try line. I knew I had to stop him so I dropped my shoulder and just nailed him. I think it stunned a lot of pe...

Politics

66 h. ago Rugby’s family fortunes: From a Hollywood movie star dad to a World

As the world’s elite descend on England 2025, meet the famous parents, aunts, uncles, cousins and siblings who have inspired themWhen the loosehead prop Hannah Botterman made her England debut, on the sidelines, her aunt shed a tear; knowing full well what it meant to wear the Red Rose for the first time. Jane Everett also knows what it feels like to lift the Rugby World Cup, having been part of the victorious England side of 1994, a feat her niece’s team will try to emulate on home soil this September.Everett, an unused replacement tighthead prop when England beat the United States 38-23 in Edinburgh, also coached another member of the 2025 cohort, the prop Kelsey Clifford, at Old Albanian Juniors once she retired from playing. Continue reading...

Culture