Lynne Cantwell remains one of Ireland’s most influential figures in women’s rugby — a former standout international and, since early 2025, the Head of Women’s Strategy at the Irish Rugby Football Union (IRFU).
Her playing career is among the most decorated in Irish women’s rugby history: she earned 86 caps for Ireland — still the record — and was a key member of the squad that won the Grand Slam in the 2013 Women’s Six Nations. She also helped lead Ireland to a historic first-ever win over New Zealand during the 2014 Women’s Rugby World Cup, reaching Ireland’s first World Cup semi-final.
Following retirement, Cantwell’s impact has not diminished—and arguably deepened. After leaving the pitch, she accepted a role as Women’s High Performance Manager with the South African Rugby Union (SARU) in 2021, where she spearheaded a revitalisation of their women’s rugby programme, boosting performance pathways, expanding participation, and building sustainable development structures.
Her international experience and leadership in South Africa enhanced her credentials when the IRFU announced in October 2024 — as part of its 2024–28 strategic plan for Irish rugby — that Cantwell would return to Dublin to take up the newly created position of Head of Women’s Strategy from January 2025.
In her IRFU role, she is charged with delivering a broad strategy to accelerate the growth of women’s rugby across Ireland. The plan lays out five strategic pillars — Thriving Grassroots, Winning Teams, Leadership & Governance, Revenue & Investment, Visibility & Engagement — supported by a roadmap of 26 key objectives and performance indicators.
Her priorities include strengthening club-level pathways, increasing participation, raising performance standards, improving visibility and creating sustainable investment models.
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Previously Listed
Dr Una May, Moira Aston, Mary O’Connor, Michelle Carpenter, Brenda O’Donnell, Sarah Keane, Karen Coventry, Michelle Tanner, Mary McAleese, Rosie Barry, Sinead Hosey, Laura Heffernan, Jacqui Hurley, Aoife Lane, Tracy Bunyan, Lisa Clancy, Aoife Clarke, Thelma O’Driscoll, Catherine Tiernan, Helen O’Rourke, Niamh Tallon, Julie Nicholson, Aisling O’Reilly, Evanne Ní Chuilinn, Avalon Everett, Ashley Morrow, Eimear O’Sullivan, Kelli O’Keeffe, Sarah O’Connor, Jill Downey, Ger McTavish, Aifric Keogh, Rebecca Trevor, Lyn Savage, Suzanne Eade, Joanna Byrne, Bethany Carson, Irene O’Gorman
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This is the 13th edition of the Sport for Business listing of 50 Women of Influence in Irish Sport in partnership once more with our friends at AIG.
We began this journey in 2013, when we were challenged to produce a list of 20 Influential Women in Irish Sport. The 20 stretched to 30, then 40 and 50, and it still does not do justice to the talent out there.
Substantial progress has been made during this time. The Government, mindful of the importance and need for gender equity, challenged Irish sporting bodies to achieve a 60/40 gender split on their main boards or leadership entities by the end of 2023
Internationally, the gender split in doctors ranges from 46 per cent female in New Zealand to 48 per cent in the UK, 52 per cent in France, and 54 per cent in the United States. Sport has, for too long, lagged.
The gender gap in participation is targeted to be non-existent by 2027, and the profile of our elite athletes is as high for Katie Taylor, Katie McCabe, Rhasidat Adeleke and Leona Maguire as it is for the best of our men.
We are nearing the point where sport is sport regardless of gender.
The gap remains too big in media, sponsorship, attendance, and funding, but it is only by highlighting the wrongs that we can make them right.
This year’s list will again draw from all the multiple areas that make up sport. From the fields of play to the corridors of power, from the boardroom to the studio, and from every corner of the country.
We will divide the list into the CEO Club, the Influencers, and the Sponsors Lounge. the Administrators and others
This year, once again, we will challenge ourselves to generate at least 40 per cent of new entrants to ensure that fresh recognition is given to those making a mark.
This will mean some who fully deserve to remain stepping aside but that is part of what influence and leadership is about and they are in no way diminished by their not being on the list this year.
The list we will build over the coming weeks is a snapshot of women who are changing the way sport is played, consumed, grown, and delivered.
They are part of making the role of women in sport unexceptional by being exceptional in what they do.
Recognition of their contribution is rarely asked for but is entirely deserved, and we want your help in identifying those who you feel should be among them.
So, who else do you think should be on the list for 2025?
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