The first women’s professional rugby league in the US will launch next year, key stakeholders said, vowing to demonstrate that “the commercial value in women’s sport is not a moment, it’s a movement” ahead of a Women’s World Cup in 2033 on American soil.
“The growth of women’s sports in general has been fantastic to see,” said Katherine Aversano, vice president of Elite rugby women (WER)told reporters, citing the impressive crowds for women’s rugby in Europe, but also the stunning rise of U.S. women’s basketball, especially through the March Madness college event.
“Personally, I love seeing the enthusiasm shine through,” Aversano said. “It really shows that the commercial value of women’s sport is not a moment, but a movement. And I think you’ll hear that across the board.
“On the rugby side of things with WER we are building a strong presence in the lead up to the 2033 Women’s Rugby World Cup, which will take place in the United States. It’s fantastic news that the international spotlight will be on rugby in America, really from 2028 with the Olympic Games [sevens]and then the US will host the 2031 men’s matches [15-a-side] Rugby World Cup ahead of the women’s competition in 2033. These are huge events that not only get the spotlight but also have financial support from international companies and World Rugby.”
WER aims to build on the foundations laid by the Women’s Premier League, a national amateur league founded in 2009 and kicking off Season 2024 this month. Currently seven teams competefrom Boston, New York, California (two), Denver, Minneapolis and Chicago.
Dr. Jessica Hammond-Graf, WER president, former US sevens international and assistant professor of sports management at Vermont State University, said: “For fifteen years, women’s rugby players have played in the Women’s Premier League in an amateur, pay-to-play League. -play, cross-country competition and the consensus is that this model is no longer sustainable.
“We are so proud of everything the WPL has done since 2009 to become such a strong blueprint for us, and we are ready to take our bold, exciting and powerful sport to the next level.”
A WER statement said it was “in active discussions with all current WPL teams for the inaugural season. The WER plans to start with six to eight teams, with a target model of 30 players per team, and then build towards a strategic expansion plan over the next ten years. Locations are still being determined.”
The financing, WER said, will come from “private investors and is currently 50% processed [a] pre-seed financing round. The league plans to open the seed round this summer. In addition to athlete compensation, the WER will have paid full-time front office staff who will handle the team’s administrative responsibilities.
Establishing professional men’s rugby in the US has proven difficult. Major League Rugby, now in its seventh season, has seen two championship teams (Los Angeles and New York) collapse due to their inability to generate sufficient revenue.
But World Rugby has now invested in an MLR team, Anthem Carolina, as it looks to boost American rugby ahead of the 2031 World Cup. WER officials cited similar initiatives.
Aversano said: “Yesterday, ahead of the 2025 Women’s Rugby World Cup in England, the Rugby Football Union announced an influx of $15 million over the next seventeen months, which they will use to help improve women’s rugby just within the small country England. With our enormous sports market, we can therefore expect even more robust financial injections over a much longer period.”
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Ali Gillberg also spoke to reporters. Gillberg, a former WPL director, plays in the amateur league for the Twin Cities Amazons and is an assistant coach with the Minnesota youth teams.
“Girls and women’s rugby is absolutely the next growth potential for the sport,” said Gillberg. “We’ve only just started participating and I can’t wait to see more and more people get introduced to our game.
“The biggest attraction for me about women’s rugby is the intensity, pace and joy of the game. It is a full, dynamic contact team sport where fans get to see the full range and ability of these athletes. WER will provide players with the opportunity to have a true professional league, ultimately promoting participation at all levels for both players and fans.
“I just saw a stat about NCAA March Madness, about how this is the first year all those athletes have had the WNBA [the women’s pro basketball league] for their entire lives. So it’s really exciting to hopefully start that here for us.
“Rugby has a super strong history as an inclusive space where we welcome athletes of all shapes, sizes and diversity, unlike many other elite sports where we are just starting to see them overtake us. You’ll see athletes of all body types and backgrounds on the field, because rugby really is a place for everyone.
“And with the US hosting the Men’s and Women’s World Cups in 2031 and 2033, we can’t stress enough the importance of growing that now. Why wait?”