World Rugby has today unveiled the pools and match schedule for WXV, the return of the women’s 15s competition which will take place this time in Vancouver, South Africa and Dubai with the final six Women’s Rugby World Cup 2025 places up for grabs.
Kicking off on Friday, 27 September and scheduled to run across three weekends through to Saturday, 12 October, the three-level tournament will see 27 fixtures played across the globe. Dubai (WXV 3) and South Africa (WXV 2) are returning hosts having each welcomed six teams in 2023 with Canada the new host of WXV 1 in 2024.
There will be a combination of standalone, double and triple header fixtures across the match weekends, maximising fan attendance and helping to create an exciting atmosphere in each of the host cities.
No stranger to hosting international rugby, BC Place in Vancouver will open proceedings with a triple header treating fans to a jam-packed day of rugby action that kicks off with USA against England and hosts Canada facing France.
Ireland will be aiming to make their mark on WXV 1 having leapfrogged from winning WXV 3 to the top level of the tournament after finishing third in the Guinness Women’s Six Nations earlier this year.
They will face World Champions New Zealand on the opening day.
A week later they will play Canada and then on the third weekend in a game scheduled for 20:30 Irish time on Friday, 11th October they will play the USA.
“We are delighted to reveal the fixtures for what is set to be an incredibly exciting and important second edition of WXV,” said Sally Horrox, World Rugby Chief of Women’s Rugby.
“We are delighted to reveal the fixtures for what is set to be an incredibly exciting and important second edition of WXV.
“With six Women’s Rugby World Cup places up for grabs, teams will be vying to secure qualification by ranking as highly as possible at the end of the tournament. No doubt, there will be some exhilarating matches, some new match ups and star players that will captivate fans around the world.
“We look forward to welcoming 18 of the top teams to Dubai, Cape Town and Vancouver in September, WXV is the next important milestone on the road to the Women’s Rugby World Cup 2025 in England.”
“With six Women’s Rugby World Cup places up for grabs, teams will be vying to secure qualification by ranking as highly as possible at the end of the tournament. No doubt, there will be some exhilarating matches, some new match ups and star players that will captivate fans around the world.
“We look forward to welcoming 18 of the top teams to Dubai, Cape Town and Vancouver in September, WXV is the next important milestone on the road to the Women’s Rugby World Cup 2025 in England.”
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