LONDON (AP) — As Ilona Maher accepted her breakthrough award at the ESPYs last month, she urged a theater full of fellow American sports glitterati to try and catch the upcoming Women's Rugby World Cup.
“You're not going to understand it the first time you watch it,” Maher said. “You're not going to understand the second time either, but just keep watching.”
What she was promising any perseverer was a rousing show — with Americans in it! — in an era-defining World Cup that has set records even before it kicks off on Friday when Maher's United States take on host England in front of 40,000 in Sunderland.
Rugby fans anticipating the 10th and best Women's World Cup yet have gobbled up tickets at a stunning rate. Faraway New Zealand hosted the last tournament in 2022 and sold a record 150,000 tickets.
This year more than 375,000 tickets — 80% of the total — have gone, and the Sept. 27 final is sold out, guaranteeing the largest crowd ever for a one-day women's rugby event.
The exact capacity for the final at 82,000-seat Twickenham has yet to be settled but it will comfortably eclipse the 58,498 who watched England beat France at the stadium in 2023 and the 66,000 at the Stade de France for the women's sevens during the 2024 Paris Olympics.
The buzz is driven by the tournament's flagship status and a host team that is the standard-bearer in women's rugby. England is the runaway trophy favorite, undefeated for nearly three years, and seemingly destined to continue the momentum of women's sport in the country after the soccer team's title win at the European Championship last month.
Brazil to debut
Surging interest and participation in the women's game prompted World Rugby to expand the World Cup back to 16 teams for the first time in 23 years. Ireland and Spain return after missing out on the pandemic-delayed 2022 tournament, Samoa qualified for the first time since 2014, and Brazil became the first South American qualifier.
There's been growth off-field, too.
World Rugby says 31% of all World Cup coaches are women, up from 15% in 2022. It adds it has met its minimum target of 40% of all team staff at the World Cup being women, though only Australia, France and Japan have female head coaches.
More than 60% of the tournament leadership and volunteers are women, World Rugby adds. Of the 16 teams' security advisers, 14 are women. And the final will have an all-women ground crew at Twickenham.
Another all-women panel of referees and assistant referees could offer a chance for Scotland's Hollie Davidson to control a second consecutive final.
The semifinals are seeded to be No. 1 England vs. No. 4 France, and No. 2 Canada vs. No. 3 New Zealand.
Canada beat New Zealand last year and conceded a 27-27 draw in May in Christchurch, but it would not surprise if the final was a third consecutive England-New Zealand affair, and sixth in history.
New Zealand's Black Ferns rise to the occasion like nobody else, having won six of the nine World Cups, including the last time in England in 2010.
The chance to win another drew out of retirement the only woman to be the world 15s and sevens player of the year. Portia Woodman-Wickliffe quit playing after winning the Paris Olympics gold medal to start having children, but as she won Super Rugby Aupiki this year and excelled, her mindset shifted.
“This World Cup is going to be out the gate — the talent, the actual legends that are still playing in the game, the atmosphere, the crowds,” Woodman-Wickliffe told the Rugby Pass website.
“England and the U.K. and Europe just support rugby in a totally different way to how we do here in New Zealand, so I'm really looking forward to that.”
England in ominous form
Rugby Pass named its top 50 women's players this month and chose Woodman-Wickliffe No. 1 and only two England players in the top 10. But there's a good argument that the top 10 should feature any eight forwards that start for England's Red Roses.
England's relentless dominance is based on almost unstoppable forward power. It's go-to try move is a lineout drive and rolling maul. Backline innovation since 2022 has made England more well-rounded and dangerous.
Ominously in its last two World Cup warmups, England crushed Spain 97-7 in Leicester then changed 11 players and whacked France 40-6 in Mont-de-Marsan.
England enjoys so much depth that of its four world players of the year — Ellie Kildunne (2024), Marlie Packer (2023), captain Zoe Aldcroft (2021) and Emily Scarratt (2019) — two may not make the starting XV.
“It's a privilege to have pressure,” England coach John Mitchell says. “We've earnt it over the three-year cycle so it's not something we are going to walk away from, we're going to walk towards it.”
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AP rugby: https://apnews.com/hub/rugby
Foster Niumata, The Associated Press
