The Irish Rugby Football Union has unveiled a comprehensive Rugby Strategy for Women and Girls in Ireland.

This comes on the back of the release of the Union’s overall strategy in June 2024, which had the acceleration of the women’s game as one of four key priorities.

Since then Lynne Cantwell has been appointed to the newly created role of Head of Women’s Strategy.

With a mission to double participation, elevate performance, and expand visibility, the women’s strategy focuses on five objectives: Thriving Grassroots, Winning Teams, Leadership & Governance, Revenue & Investment and Visibility & Engagement.

These are supported by a detailed roadmap of 26 objectives and performance indicators aimed at building a world-class ecosystem for women and girls in rugby.

They are attributable to individual owners across the spectrum of the sport, which is a good thing.

The strategy aims to inspire participation by creating inclusive and engaging experiences from minis to elite, including specific focus on how to build a system with women & girls in mind.

To connect communities by fostering pathways and volunteer engagement across clubs and provinces.

To thrive through excellence, with ambitions for Ireland to consistently rank in the top five of the women’s XVs game globally and qualify for the LA 2028 Olympic Games.

Speaking at the launch, Lynne Cantwell, IRFU’s Head of Women’s Strategy, said:

“This strategy is about far more than sport. It’s about creating meaningful and lasting system change for women and girls in Irish Rugby – whether they’re playing their first mini game at six, representing Ireland on the world stage, or volunteering at their local club.”

“We’re building an environment where women can thrive at every level – where talent is nurtured, contributions are valued, and success is shared.”

“With a unified national and provincial approach and a commitment to inclusivity, visibility, and quality rugby embedded in domestic & High Performance we’re ready to unlock the full potential of women’s rugby in Ireland.”

Already, the growth in women and girls’ participation is evident, with clubs having a women or girls team having risen from 12% of all Clubs in 2008 to 75% in 2025. With 391 teams now established across all four provinces, and attendance and media engagement reaching record highs, the IRFU sees this strategy as a springboard to sustainable, generational impact.

There are plenty of areas that need improvement, especially at leadership levels in the club game where gender equality is a long way short of the national level.

That is one of the areas we will cover with Lynne Cantrell in a Sport for Business interview tomorrow morning.

The strategy will be implemented through collaborative partnerships across national, provincial and Clubs, with annual progress reporting, a leadership pipeline, and an emphasis on female athlete welfare and development.

Download the Women’s Rugby Strategy Document here: IRFU Women’s Strategy 2025

 

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