If you thought the summer of women’s sport ended with the Lionesses’ Euro victory last month, you’d be mistaken.
Later this month, the Women’s Rugby World Cup kicks off and it is being hosted right here in England. Yes, I already have my tickets.
I grew up watching the men’s sport and I had a sports mad brother, but it was more the national game we got into. The school I was at was big into rugby – for the boys, with no option for girls to play.
Since then, I’ve felt frustrated that all sports aren’t catering to women, particularly rugby – people think it is just a men’s game, but it isn’t.
In March, I took my two daughters – a newborn and a two-year-old – to the Women’s Rugby Premiership Final and we loved it. While I won’t embarrass us all by attempting any sort of sporting punditry, I would like to tell you about the queue for the hotdog stand.
We stood sandwiched between a young couple in Saracens scarves and an entire family of Gloucester supporters. I felt that familiar pulse of enthusiasm that makes live sporting fixtures such a thrill for crowds.
And it was such an exciting place for my girls to be. Watching this sport and not yet being old enough to understand that the women on the pitch may have needed to be back at their desk jobs in the morning.
That these same women have had to overcome stigma and prejudice to excel in a career that has long since been thought of as traditionally masculine. That these strong and powerful women may have been made to feel ashamed of their passions.
Or simply fight for the opportunity to play.
I’m so passionate about women’s rugby that I recently became an ambassador for the Women’s Rugby World Cup.
Their new ‘Strong Bodies, Strong Minds’ campaign launched after the finding that more than one million girls are disengaging from sports after primary school in the UK, with body confidence cited as the biggest barrier.
That finding didn’t shock me at all because I was one of the million. I stopped doing all sports while I was in school because I hated my body. I would lie about being on my period so I didn’t have to go swimming and I never did any exercise because I didn’t want to be perceived as making an effort, and I hated how I looked.
Now, as a mum to two very little girls – a two-year-old and newborn – I am determined that my daughters won’t join me. I want them to have the opportunity to see themselves in the world around them.
Representation is everything. In fact, it occurred to me – as we sat together and watched the nail-biting Euros final penalty shoot-out last month – that women playing sports might be an exciting novelty to me, but it’s likely to be totally normal to them. And it’s this exposure that I feel is so powerful.
Women’s rugby has experienced a surge in popularity recently, thanks in no small part to the cult following of American Olympian and Bristol Bears player Ilona Maher.
At just 28 years old, Maher has amassed over 5million Instagram followers, adorned the cover of Sports Illustrated, and is one of the biggest names in women’s sport. She’ll be one of the most-watched players at the World Cup.
On top of all that, she’s done a huge amount to change the public perception of female rugby players, and bring the sport into the limelight.
Women’s rugby has seen an uptake in participation in recent years. According to the Rugby Football Union, it grew in England from 25,000 players in 2017 to 40,000 just five years later.
They’re aiming to have 100,000 women playing by 2027 as part of their ‘Every Rose’ strategy.
But there are still significant barriers keeping women out of the sport; from body image concerns, social stigma, a lack of grassroot initiatives and a staggering gender pay gap.
Prior to 2019, the England women’s rugby team weren’t on full-time contracts. So the 2014 team – who won the whole competition – included plumber Marlie Packer, PE teacher Emily Scarratt, police officer Claire Allen, and school teacher (and captain!) Katy Mclean.
The move by the RFU to recognise the women’s squad as professional signified a huge shift within the sport, yet almost two thirds of professional female rugby players are still working other jobs to subsidise it.
Unfortunately, the gap between the men’s and women’s teams is massive. This is not due to a lack of potential or even skill, but thanks to a systemic lack of funding, interest, or enthusiasm for the women’s team.
Without crowds, there are no sponsors. Then without sponsors, there’s no investment. And without investment, well, there’s not much of anything.
This is why I feel so excited by the part we have the chance to play in ensuring this sports’ longevity by hosting a major tournament in this country.
I’ll be watching on the TV, and we will be going to as many games as possible. The girls will be watching while wearing their England shirts, the same way dads do with their sons. I want to foster that with both football and rugby for my girls.
As an ambassador, I want to lend my platform to these amazing women; I think it’s really important that people realise that the sport can thrive with as little as our energy.
We’re not asking people for a lot; just their eyeballs on the screen.
The bigger this is on the world stage, the more that enthusiasm for women’s rugby will trickle down into schools, which’ll make more and more grassroots opportunities happen – and that is very exciting.
England is the birthplace of rugby as a sport, but at no point was it said that it had to be played only by men.
Let’s keep building on the momentum of the Lionesses’ achievement and create a world where we stop thinking of these sports as being for men by default.
And so, it’s with the promise of a world that ensures our girls get to grow up with the same dream as our boys, that I’d encourage you all to join me in supporting the Women’s Rugby World Cup this summer. Our girls depend on it.
Do you have a story you’d like to share? Get in touch by emailing Ross.Mccafferty@metro.co.uk.
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