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Women's Rugby World Cup facts for kids

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Quick facts for kids
Rugby World Cup
Current tournament
2025 Women's Rugby World Cup
Rugby World Cup footer logo (post-2023).svg
Rugby World Cup logo
Sport Women's rugby union
Instituted 6 April 1991; 34 years ago (1991-04-06)
Number of teams 12; 1991 — 1994 & 2006 — 2021
16; 1998 — 2002 & 2025
Regions Worldwide (World Rugby)
Holders England (3rd title)
Most titles New Zealand (6 titles)

The Women's Rugby World Cup is a super exciting women's rugby union tournament. It's like the Olympics for women's rugby teams from all over the world! World Rugby organizes this big event.

The very first Women's Rugby World Cup happened in 1991. At first, it wasn't officially supported by the main rugby board. But by 1998, it got full official backing. Later, the 1991 and 1994 tournaments were also officially recognized.

This amazing competition usually takes place every four years. The 2021 tournament was moved to 2022 because of the COVID-19 pandemic, but it was still called the 2021 event. So far, three countries have won this cup. New Zealand has won it a record six times, showing how strong they are! England won the most recent tournament in 2025.

History of the Women's Rugby World Cup

The Start of Women's Rugby World Cup

Before the official Women's Rugby World Cup began, there were a few similar tournaments. One of the first was in New Zealand in 1990. It was called the "World Rugby Festival for Women." Teams from the United States, Netherlands, Russia, and host New Zealand played. New Zealand won that festival!

The first tournament actually called the Women's Rugby World Cup happened in 1991 in Wales. Twelve countries competed. The United States surprised everyone by winning the first championship! They beat England 19-6. After this, it was decided to hold the tournament every three years for a while, to match up with the men's World Cup.

The next tournament in 1994 was supposed to be in Amsterdam but moved to Scotland. Eleven teams played. This time, England won, beating the United States in the final.

In 1998, the tournament finally got official support from the International Rugby Board (now World Rugby). Amsterdam hosted this big event, with a record sixteen teams competing. New Zealand joined in and won their first World Cup title, beating the United States.

Champions Through the Years

Spain hosted the tournament in 2002. New Zealand won again, beating England 19-9. In 2006, the World Cup went to Edmonton, Canada. This was the first time a major women's rugby tournament was held in North America. New Zealand won their third title in a row, again defeating England!

Women's Rugby World Cup 2010, Wales v South Africa (5) - geograph.org.uk - 2030132
Wales v South Africa match in 2010

Many countries wanted to host the 2010 World Cup. England was chosen, and the games were played in London. New Zealand continued their winning streak, taking home their fourth title.

Kendra Cocksedge and Stacey Waaka re-enacting celebrating the WRWC win
New Zealand celebrating their title in 2017

The 2017 World Cup took place in Ireland. Games were played in Dublin and Belfast. This tournament happened a year earlier than usual to better fit with the Summer Olympics. New Zealand won again, making it their fifth title!

RWC Women's logo
Logo prior to 2021, when gender designation would be removed

In 2019, World Rugby decided to call the women's championship simply "Rugby World Cup" starting in 2021. They wanted to show that women's rugby is just as important as men's rugby. This was a big step for gender equality in sports!

The 2021 tournament, planned for New Zealand, was moved to 2022 because of the COVID-19 pandemic. It was still called the 2021 Rugby World Cup. New Zealand won this tournament, their sixth title!

The 2025 competition expanded to include 16 teams, up from 12. England hosted the 2025 tournament. Australia and the United States are set to host the next two women's tournaments in 2029 and 2033. This is exciting because it means both the men's and women's World Cups will be held in the same countries around the same time! England won the 2025 tournament, making it their third title.

In October 2023, World Rugby decided to change the names again. Starting in 2025, the women's tournament is once more called the "Women's Rugby World Cup." The men's tournament will be called the "Men's Rugby World Cup" from 2027. This change helps everyone know which tournament is which.

Amazing Records and Winners

Many incredible players have set records in the Women's Rugby World Cup!

Player Records

  • Emily Scarratt from England has the most points ever in World Cup games, with 175! She also scored 70 points in one tournament in 2014.
  • Magali Harvey from Canada scored 41 points in a single match in 2017. That's a lot of points!
  • Kendra Cocksedge from New Zealand made 13 conversions in one game.
  • Her teammate, Portia Woodman-Wickliffe, scored 8 tries in a single match in 2017. Portia also holds the record for most tries in one tournament (13) and in her whole World Cup career (20 tries).
  • Only a few drop goals have been scored in the tournament's history, showing how rare they are!
  • In the 2025 World Cup, Braxton Sorensen-McGee (New Zealand) and Julia Schell (Canada) both scored two "hat tricks" (three tries in a game). Julia Schell even scored six tries in one match against Fiji!

Team Records

  • The game between New Zealand and Germany in 1998 set many records. New Zealand won 134-6! This was the highest score by one team (134 points) and the biggest winning difference (128 points).

Tournament Winners and Hosts

Ed. Year Host First place game Third place game Num.
teams
1 Champion Score 2 Runner-up 3 Third Score Fourth
1 1991 Wales
United States
19–6
Cardiff Arms Park, Cardiff

England

France
Shared
New Zealand
12
2 1994 Scotland
England
38–23
Edinburgh Academicals, Edinburgh

United States

France
27–0
Edinburgh Academicals, Edinburgh

Wales
12
3 1998 Netherlands
New Zealand
44–12
NRCA Stadium, Amsterdam

United States

England
31–15
NRCA Stadium, Amsterdam

Canada
16
4 2002 Spain
New Zealand
19–9
Olympic Stadium, Barcelona

England

France
41–7
Olympic Stadium, Barcelona

Canada
16
5 2006 Canada
New Zealand
25–17
Commonwealth Stadium, Edmonton

England

France
17–8
Commonwealth Stadium, Edmonton

Canada
12
6 2010 England
New Zealand
13–10
Twickenham Stoop, London

England

Australia
22–8
Twickenham Stoop, London

France
12
7 2014 France
England
21–9
Stade Jean-Bouin, Paris

Canada

France
25–18
Stade Jean-Bouin, Paris

Ireland
12
8 2017 Ireland
New Zealand
41–32
Ravenhill Stadium, Belfast

England

France
31–23
Ravenhill Stadium, Belfast

United States
12
9 2021 New Zealand
New Zealand
34–31
Eden Park, Auckland

England

France
36–0
Eden Park, Auckland

Canada
12
10 2025 England
England
33–13
Twickenham Stadium, London

Canada

New Zealand
42–26
Twickenham Stadium, London

France
16
11 2029 Australia To be determined To be determined 16
12 2033 United States To be determined To be determined 16

Team Performance Records

Team Champions Runners-up Third place Fourth place Total top 4
 New Zealand 6 (1998, 2002, 2006, 2010, 2017, 2021) 2 (1991, 2025) 8
 England 3 (1994, 2014, 2025) 6 (1991, 2002, 2006, 2010, 2017, 2021) 1 (1998) 10
 United States 1 (1991) 2 (1994, 1998) 1 (2017) 4
 Canada 2 (2014, 2025) 4 (1998, 2002, 2006, 2021) 6
 France 7 (1991, 1994, 2002, 2006, 2014, 2017, 2021) 2 (2010, 2025) 9
 Australia 1 (2010) 1
 Wales 1 (1994) 1
 Ireland 1 (2014) 1

Participating Nations Over Time

Team 1991
Wales
1994
Scotland
1998
Netherlands
2002
Spain
2006
Canada
2010
England
2014
France
2017
Ireland
2021
New Zealand
2025
England
2029
Australia
2033
United States
 Australia 5th 7th 7th 3rd 7th 6th 6th 8th Q
 Brazil e 15th
 Canada 5th 6th 4th 4th 4th 6th 2nd 5th 4th 2nd Q
 England 2nd 1st 3rd 2nd 2nd 2nd 1st 2nd 2nd 1st Q
 Fiji w e 9th 12th
 France 3rd 3rd 8th 3rd 3rd 4th 3rd 3rd 3rd 4th Q
 Germany w 14th 16th e
 Hong Kong e e e e 12th w e
 Ireland 7th 10th 14th 8th 7th 4th 8th e 5th
 Italy 8th w 12th 12th e e 9th 5th 10th
 Japan 11th 8th 13th e e e 11th 12th 11th
 Kazakhstan 9th 9th 11th 11th 11th 12th e e
 Netherlands 7th w 13th 15th e e e e e
 New Zealand 3rd w 1st 1st 1st 1st 5th 1st 1st 3rd Q
 Russia 11th 11th 16th e e e e
 Samoa 9th 10th e 11th w 16th
 Scotland 5th 6th 6th 6th 8th e e 10th 7th
 South Africa 12th 10th 10th 11th 6th
 Spain 6th w 7th 8th 9th e 9th 10th e 14th
 Sweden 10th 10th 15th 12th e
 United States 1st 2nd 2nd 5th 5th 5th 6th 4th 7th 9th Q
 Wales 9th 4th 11th 10th 9th 8th 7th 8th 13th

Q = nation qualified for Final Tournament not yet played
w = nation withdrew from (final) Tournament
e = nation eliminated in qualifying stage and did not reach Final Tournament
– = nation did not enter competition.

The following nations have participated in qualifying stages, but have never reached the Final Tournament:

Team 1991
Wales
1994
Scotland
1998
Netherlands
2002
Spain
2006
Canada
2010
England
2014
France
2017
Ireland
2021
New Zealand
2025
England
2029
Australia
2033
United States
 Belgium e e
 China e
 Cameroon e
 Colombia e e
 Czech Republic e
 Finland e
 India e
 Kenya e e e
 Laos e
 Madagascar e e
 Papua New Guinea w e e e
 Philippines e e
 Singapore e e e
 Switzerland e
 Thailand e e
 Tonga w e
 Uganda e e

e = nation eliminated in qualifying stage and did not reach Final Tournament
w = nation withdrew from qualifying stage
p = nation possibly eliminated in qualifying stage and will need to be successful in Repechage in order to reach Final Tournament
– = nation did not enter qualifying stage competition.

Debut of National Teams

Year Nation(s) Total
1991  Canada
 England
 France
 Italy
 Japan
 Netherlands
 New Zealand
 Russia
 Spain
 Sweden
 United States
 Wales
12
1994  Ireland
 Kazakhstan
 Scotland
3
1998  Australia
 Germany
2
2002  Samoa 1
2006  South Africa 1
2010 (none) 0
2014 (none) 0
2017  Hong Kong 1
2021  Fiji 1
2025  Brazil 1
2029 TBC TBC

Refereeing the Big Games

Here are the referees who have overseen the exciting final matches:

  • 1991: Wales Les Peard
  • 1994: Scotland Jim Fleming
  • 1998: England Ed Morrison
  • 2002: Italy Giulio De Santis
  • 2006: Ireland Simon McDowell
  • 2010: Australia Sarah Corrigan
  • 2014: Australia Amy Perrett
  • 2017: Ireland Joy Neville
  • 2021: Scotland Hollie Davidson
  • 2025: Scotland Hollie Davidson

How the Tournament Works

The tournament format has changed a bit over the years. In 2006, 12 teams played in groups, and the best teams moved on to knockout rounds.

The 2010 and 2021 tournaments also had 12 teams. In 2021, they added quarter-finals, just like in the men's Rugby World Cup. For the 2025 tournament, the competition grew even bigger, with 16 teams competing!

The Special Trophy

A brand new trophy was created for the 2025 tournament in England. It was designed by Thomas Lyte, a famous silversmith in London. The trophy is made of shiny sterling silver and covered in 24-carat gold. It stands 38 centimeters tall and weighs 4.5 kilograms, just like the men's Rugby World Cup Trophy!

Watching the Games

The Women's Rugby World Cup has become much more popular over the last 15 years. More people watch it on TV and attend the games now.

In the United Kingdom, Sky Sports showed many live matches from the 2010 World Cup. This included the semi-finals and the final. From 2017 onwards, the games have been shown on free TV channels like ITV and the BBC.

In Ireland, the channel TG4 broadcast the 2014 World Cup. They received praise for showing all of Ireland's matches, plus the semi-finals and final. Many people in England, France, and the United States watched the knockout games in 2017.

See also

Kids robot.svg In Spanish: Copa Mundial Femenina de Rugby para niños

  • Rugby World Cup (men)
  • Women's rugby union
  • Women's international rugby
  • Women's Rugby League World Cup
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