World Rugby has reported the first locations, dates and a dynamic brand for WXV, the new international competition to increase elite women’s rugby’s competitiveness, reach and impact.
Starting in October 2023, WXV has an assignment– to raise the profile and ambition of women’s 15s as long as the global platform between Rugby World Cups to grow the sport’s reach, impact and value, growing the game as a whole. It will double the annual international match for most competing teams and merge with World Rugby’s ‘Accelerate’ scheme to raise standards at Rugby World Cup 2025 and behind.
Vibrant brand, vibrant hosts
World Rugby has revealed a new brandmark that gives the tournament its unique visual identity, reflecting today’s women’s game’s energy, attitude and personality. The brandmark intentionally provides WXV with its platform to attach with women’s rugby fans and new spectators, and it sets the tournament apart from the international federation’s existing competition brands.
Fresh off hosting a record-breaking Rugby World Cup 2021, where the Black Ferns were invested champions, New Zealand will welcome the world’s top group in the six-team top-level WXV 1 over three contest weekends on 21 and 28 October and 4 November.
Cape Town in South Africa will relax host to the six-team second-level WXV 2, with matches settled across the weekends of 14, 21 and 28 October. Both rivalries will be played in a cross-pool format, and the match schedule and ticketing detail will be announced in due course.
With the qualification process gathering pace, England, France, and Wales have reserved their place in WXV 1. Scotland has secured a place in WXV 2, and Ireland is established for WXV 3. Italy will now play-off against Spain to control the final European agent in WXV 2 and WXV 3.
The Earth Rugby Pacific Four Series 2023 will control the remaining three teams in WXV 1 and one group in WXV 2, with Australia, Canada, New Zealand and the USA contesting the competition in the top two Oceania and North America.
Dates Confirmed for the 2023 WXV Float Celebration
The remaining places will be determined via zonal qualifiers, starting in May, with rivalry in Africa, Asia and Oceania being played separately in Madagascar, Kazakhstan and Australia, while Brazil and Colombia will encounter in a two-leg play-off to determine South America’s attribute for WXV 3. The third quantity of WXV 3 dates will mirror the identical weekends as WXV 2, with the give set to be style once the engaged team picture becomes clearer to maximise attendance, reach and collision.
WXV is bear by partners Mastercard, Capgemini and Gallagher. World Rugby is also injecting multi-million-pound investment funding in the sprint over two years to grow the 16-team Rugby World Cup 2025 in England. A complete analysis will be undertaken in 2025 with all members to ensure that, collectively, WXV continues to support high-performance goals as World Rugby looks to define a viable global calendar for the worldwide game.
WXV Float’s Hosts and Brand Reveal
Earth Rugby Chairman Sir Bill Beaumont said: “We pledged at a spectacular Rugby World Cup 2021 in New Zealand to accelerate the development of the women’s game. Much progress is being made rapidly, and today, we are marking another milestone by verifying the dates and place for the inaugural WXV competition.
“With women and girls main our strategy to grow the wear on a global basis, this competition will grow the reach and impact of the sport and drive the overall cutthroat of women’s international rugby as we glance forward to a balloon 16-team Rugby World Cup 2025 in England and ensuing Rugby World Cups in Australia in 2029 and USA in 2033.”
World Rugby Chief of Women’s Rugby Sally Horrox attaches: “WXV is the flagship of the rivalry pillar of our Accelerating the global evolution of women in soccer strategy. It is more than a world-class rivalry; it is a statement of intent, an automobile to supercharge the reach, ambition and value of elite women’s soccer and growing rugby more broadly, projecting the wear to new spectators in new sales.
Dates and Brand Reveal for the WXV Float
“We are on a three-year race to an enlarged Rugby World Cup 2025 in England. WXV will ensure that the world’s top group can access unprecedented and sustainable annual fixtures and a transparent rivalry pathway for all that will improve performance.
“Additionally, our relationship with the participating group is more than simply an event holder. We will be a partner, a backer and an investor, with our ‘Accelerate’ programme helping unite and advance the women’s game on and off the field, not just in the short expression at Rugby World Cup 2025, but as a long-word dedication through to a transformative Rugby World Cup in 2033.”
