World Rugby has confirmed the date for the draw, for the upcoming 2025 Women’s Rugby World Cup. The draw will take place on Thursday October 17th at 7pm, and will be broadcast live on BBC’s The One Show, and also on RugbyPass TV.
There has already been Huge ticket demand for the tournament, with over 60,000 tickets already sold for the opening and final matches, in what is set to be a generational moment for rugby.
World Rugby has confirmed that the Women’s Rugby World Cup England 2025 draw will take place on Thursday, 17 October, with the match schedule set to be released on Tuesday 22 October.
10 teams have already qualified, Canada, France, Brazil, Ireland, South Africa, Japan, USA, Fiji, reigning champions New Zealand, and hosts England with the remaining six places to come from WXV 2024.
The top four teams in the World Rugby Women’s Rankings (as of 14 October) will be placed into band 1 and prepopulated into the first position in each pool. The remaining 12 teams will be drawn into bands 2,3 and 4 based on their rankings and drawn one by one.
The bands are:
· Band 1 – Seeds 1 to 4
· Band 2 – Seeds 5 to 8
· Band 3 – Seeds 9 to 12
· Band 4 – Seeds 13 to 16
BBC Sport’s Gabby Logan and Women’s Rugby World Cup winner Maggie Alphonsi, along with a presenter from The One Show, will host the draw.
Following the draw, the match schedule will be revealed on Tuesday 22 October, giving teams, host locations and fans clarity on fixtures. It has already been confirmed that England will play their opening match in Sunderland FC’s Stadium of Light, with their remaining two pool matches being played in Northampton Saints’s Franklin’s Gardens and Brighton and Hove Albion’s Amex Stadium.
All fans will have the opportunity to apply for tickets for all matches from 11:00 (GMT +1) on Tuesday 5 November until 11:00 (GMT+1) on Tuesday 19 November. Ballots will be used for any price categories which are oversubscribed.
Prior to the two-week ticket application phase, Worldwide Partner Mastercard is offering its cardholders access to a 48-hour priority sale for all matches from 11:00 (GMT +1) on Tuesday 22 October until 11:00 (GMT+1) on Thursday 24 October. Only Mastercard debit and credit cards will be accepted during this priority window.
Sarah Massey, Managing Director of Women’s Rugby World Cup 2025, expressed her excitement: “This is a significant milestone as fans will be able to plan their Women’s Rugby World Cup England 2025 experience. With over 60,000 tickets already sold, the demand and enthusiasm across the country is clear. We look forward to announcing the match schedule and expect high demand across the tournament and all around the country”.
Editor of The One Show, Joanne Vaughan Jones, said “we’re excited that The Women’s Rugby World Cup will be coming to England, it’s a big moment for women’s sport across the whole of the UK and we’re delighted to be teaming up with BBC Sport to bring One Show viewers right to the heart of these very special announcements”.
