Women’s rugby can teach the men’s game exactly what it needs right now Sport Business For the last 10 years, the story of women’s rugby has been told through the lens of investment and comparison. How quickly could it catch up with the men’s game? When would attendances improve? When would broadcasters pay for it and big brand sponsors follow? Those were understandable questions, but they are now the wrong [...]
England rugby chiefs axe bonus scheme that led to coup attempt on CEO Sweeney Sport Business The Rugby Football Union (RFU) has scrapped the controversial long-term incentive plan (LTIP) that led to a major rebellion against CEO Bill Sweeney earlier this year. Sweeney faced and survived a vote of no confidence in February after it emerged that he had been paid £1.1m in 2023-24 despite the RFU making a loss of [...]
Kildunne and Maher honoured with Barbie dolls, celebrating women’s sport Sport Business England Red Roses star Ellie Kildunne has been honoured with her own Barbie doll alongside US sensation Ilona Maher. The pair are two of four players – alongside New Zealand’s Portia Woodman and France’s Nassira Konde – to have dolls created for them by Barbie owner Mattel. It comes after the Red Roses partnered with [...]
Where to watch the Women’s Rugby World Cup in London September 26, 2025 The Women’s Rugby World Cup final between England’s Red Roses and Canada gets underway on Saturday afternoon. And with a third-place play-off between New Zealand and France beforehand, there’s a bumper day of rugby in the capital. Unsurprisingly it is a sell-out in south west London so we have you covered for a couple of [...]
Women’s Rugby World Cup opener peaks at 2.4m viewers August 26, 2025 England’s opening Women’s Rugby World Cup match against the USA peaked at nearly 2.5m as records tumbled during the competition’s opening weekend. The 69-7 victory over the States was watched by an average 1.5m viewers on BBC 1 while the 42,723 in attendance at Sunderland’s Stadium of Light surpassed the crowd for the previous final, [...]
Women’s Rugby World Cup: Red Roses key to wider success August 22, 2025 Whatever happens at the Women’s Rugby World Cup over the next few weeks all eyes are going to be on that Allianz Stadium final in Twickenham, where 82,000 fans are set to break a world record for a women’s rugby match attendance. I think in the aftermath of the 2022 Euros, where the Lionesses sent [...]
Women’s Rugby World Cup shows UK’s love of live sport August 21, 2025 The Women’s Rugby World Cup arriving in England is a timely reminder of what live sport can do. Sporting events forge some of the most positive and enduring moments of our lives, whether we’re stood on the terraces of our local club or sat in the stands at the biggest events on the planet. Live [...]
RFU backing of Red Roses can aid better English pro structure August 21, 2025 So it begins. Red Roses vs USA at the Stadium of Light. Friday night, BBC 1. That’s a USA fielding the rugby player with by far the biggest social media following on the planet, Ilona Maher. You won’t find a hotter ticket this year than the Women’s Rugby World Cup final at Twickenham on 27 [...]
Birmingham Phoenix tee up Castore as Hundred teams ditch New Balance August 6, 2025 Birmingham Phoenix have agreed a kit deal with Castore for next season, with The Hundred’s long-term apparel supplier, New Balance, increasingly being phased out by the franchises that are under new ownership. City AM revealed last week that London Spirit are also dropping New Balance after the current campaign, with their new co-owners, Cricket Investor [...]
Ease of Red Roses Six Nations run worries me ahead of Rugby World Cup April 26, 2025 England Rugby’s Red Roses have a problem: nobody looks remotely close to beating them in Europe at the moment. But this was the case ahead of the previous two World Cups and, in both instances, England lost in the final. This year, however, there’s no room for error, with the final set to be staged [...]