The 2025 Women’s Rugby World Cup, taking place from 22 August to 27 September in England, marks the tenth edition of this prestigious tournament.
Featuring 16 teams, the competition brings together established rugby powerhouses, emerging nations, and debutants, highlighting the diversity, speed, and tactical skill of women’s rugby.
Defending champions New Zealand face strong challenges from England, Canada, France, and other top-ranked sides, promising thrilling matches and close contests.
Games will be held across eight cities: Sunderland, Brighton, Bristol, Exeter, Northampton, Salford, York, and London, with venues ranging from community stadiums to the iconic Twickenham Stadium, which hosts the final.
2025 Women’s Rugby World Cup Pool Stage
The participating nations will be split into four groups, labelled Pools A to D, each containing four teams. Within each pool, teams will face off against one another in a round-robin format. The two highest-ranked teams from each group will progress to the knockout stage.
| Pool A | Pool B | Pool C | Pool D |
|---|---|---|---|
| England | Canada | New Zealand | France |
| Australia | Scotland | Ireland | Italy |
| United States | Wales | Japan | South Africa |
| Samoa | Fiji | Spain | Brazil |
2025 Women’s Rugby World Cup Schedule
The 2025 Women’s Rugby World Cup will kick off with a spectacular opening ceremony in Sunderland, celebrating the best of women’s rugby and marking the start of an action-packed tournament.
The 2025 Women’s Rugby World Cup knockout stage ramps up the intensity as teams enter single-elimination rounds to decide the champion. The top two teams from each pool advance to the quarter-finals, with every match decisive.
If scores are tied, two 10-minute periods of extra time are played, followed by a 10-minute “sudden death” if needed, and finally a kicking competition if no winner emerges. Following are the complete details of the 2025 Women’s Rugby World Cup Schedule with venue and time details.
| Date | Time (BST) | Match | Venue |
|---|---|---|---|
| 22 Aug 2025 | 14:00 | England vs Samoa | Stadium of Light, Sunderland |
| 22 Aug 2025 | 17:30 | Australia vs the United States | Stadium of Light, Sunderland |
| 23 Aug 2025 | 13:00 | Canada vs Fiji | Twickenham Stoop, London |
| 23 Aug 2025 | 16:30 | Scotland vs Wales | Twickenham Stoop, London |
| 24 Aug 2025 | 15:00 | New Zealand vs Spain | Franklin’s Gardens, Northampton |
| 24 Aug 2025 | 18:00 | Ireland vs Japan | Franklin’s Gardens, Northampton |
| 25 Aug 2025 | 14:00 | France vs Brazil | Ashton Gate, Bristol |
| 25 Aug 2025 | 17:30 | Italy vs South Africa | Ashton Gate, Bristol |
| 26 Aug 2025 | 13:00 | England vs Australia | Amex Stadium, Brighton |
| 26 Aug 2025 | 16:30 | United States vs Samoa | Amex Stadium, Brighton |
| 27 Aug 2025 | 14:00 | Canada vs Scotland | York Community Stadium |
| 27 Aug 2025 | 17:30 | Wales vs Fiji | York Community Stadium |
| 28 Aug 2025 | 15:00 | New Zealand vs Ireland | Sandy Park, Exeter |
| 28 Aug 2025 | 18:00 | Japan vs Spain | Sandy Park, Exeter |
| 29 Aug 2025 | 14:00 | France vs Italy | AJ Bell Stadium, Salford |
| 29 Aug 2025 | 17:30 | South Africa vs Brazil | AJ Bell Stadium, Salford |
2025 Women’s Rugby World Cup Knockout Stage Schedule
Apart from listing the tournament’s Pool Stage game schedule above, here we have listed the 2025 Women’s Rugby World Cup Schedule for the knockout stage.
Quarter-finals
| Date | Time (BST) | Match | Venue |
|---|---|---|---|
| 13 Sept 2025 | 13:00 | Winner Pool C vs Runner-up Pool D | Sandy Park, Exeter |
| 13 Sept 2025 | 16:00 | Winner Pool B vs Runner-up Pool A | Ashton Gate, Bristol |
| 14 Sept 2025 | 13:00 | Winner Pool D vs Runner-up Pool C | Sandy Park, Exeter |
| 14 Sept 2025 | 16:00 | Winner Pool A vs Runner-up Pool B | Ashton Gate, Bristol |
Semi-finals
| Date | Time (BST) | Match | Venue |
|---|---|---|---|
| 19 Sept 2025 | 19:00 | Winner QF 1 vs Winner QF 2 | Ashton Gate, Bristol |
| 20 Sept 2025 | 15:30 | Winner QF 3 vs Winner QF 4 | Ashton Gate, Bristol |
Bronze Final
| Date | Time (BST) | Match | Venue |
|---|---|---|---|
| 27 Sept 2025 | 12:30 | Loser SF 1 vs Loser SF 2 | Twickenham Stadium, London |
Final
| Date | Time (BST) | Match | Venue |
|---|---|---|---|
| 27 Sept 2025 | 16:00 | Winner SF 1 vs Winner SF 2 | Twickenham Stadium, London |
2025 Women’s Rugby World Cup Venues
These venues will host the group stage, quarter-finals, semi-finals, and the grand final, offering fans across England the opportunity to witness world-class rugby. The matches will be held in the following cities and venues:
- Stadium of Light, Sunderland – Capacity: 49,000
- AMEX Stadium, Brighton – Capacity: 30,750
- Ashton Gate, Bristol – Capacity: 27,000
- Sandy Park, Exeter – Capacity: 15,600
- Franklin’s Gardens, Northampton – Capacity: 15,000
- Salford Community Stadium, Manchester – Capacity: 12,000
- York Community Stadium, York – Capacity: 8,000
- Twickenham Stadium, London – Capacity: 82,000
How to watch 2025 Women’s Rugby World Cup
Fans around the world can catch every try, tackle, and thrilling moment of the 2025 Women’s Rugby World Cup thanks to a wide network of broadcasters. The tournament will be available on both free-to-air and streaming platforms, ensuring rugby fans don’t miss any of the action.
| Territory | Rights Holder |
|---|---|
| Australia | Nine Network, Stan Sport |
| France | TF1, France Télévisions |
| Ireland | RTÉ |
| New Zealand | Sky New Zealand |
| United Kingdom | BBC |
| United States | CBS Sports, Paramount+ |
The broadcast coverage highlights the global appeal of the Women’s Rugby World Cup, providing fans with access to live matches, highlights, and expert commentary across multiple regions.
