England triumphed in the Women’s Rugby World Cup held on their home soil, supported by the Princess of Wales, who donned a cowboy hat while celebrating with Prince William.
The Red Roses put on a consistently strong performance against Canada in the showdown at Twickenham on Saturday in front of thousands of supporters.
The team’s hard work paid off as they clinched victory in the highly anticipated finale of the nearly month-long tournament hosted in England.
However, the path to success wasn’t entirely smooth, as the team faced a challenge when Hannah Botterman received a yellow card, reducing their numbers for ten minutes at the 51-minute mark.
It came after the prop took Canadian flanker Karen Paquin over the horizontal, meaning her tackle saw the player’s feet lifted higher than her head.
They came back with a vengeance, however, claiming a well-deserved win in front of nearly 82,000 fans.
This was the largest crowd ever to watch a women’s rugby match – and the second biggest number ever for a final of either men or women.
This win adds to a remarkable summer for women’s sports in England, following the national women’s football team’s success in the Euros earlier in July.
England celebrated their victory in the Women’s Rugby World Cup at home, encouraged by the Princess of Wales in her cowboy hat, who congratulated them alongside Prince William.
The Red Roses put on a consistently strong performance against Canada in the showdown at Twickenham on Saturday in front of thousands of supporters
And their efforts were rewarded as they streaked to victory during the much-anticipated conclusion to the near month-long tournament held in England
The Princess of Wales, via the shared Instagram account with Prince William, expressed her support for the team before their crucial match (pictured, her post).
It is believed Saturday’s accolade for the women’s rugby team, won on home turf, could do the same thing for the sport as the Lionesses’ Euros win in 2022 did for football.
The Princess of Wales took to the Instagram account she shares with her husband Prince William to wish the ladies luck ahead of the big game.
Kate, 43, who is patron of the Rugby Football Union, wrote: ‘Good luck England! Wishing the very best of luck to the @redrosesrugby in their Women’s Rugby World Cup Final at Twickenham today. We’re so proud of you! C.’
Alongside the caption, the mother-of-three posted a photo of herself posing with players Megan Jones, Ellie Kildunne and Jess Breach.
In the snap, Kildunne and Breach were seen wearing white cowboy hats with an image of the team’s emblem of a red rose on the front.
Meanwhile, the royal wore a red stetson, decorated with an image of a tiara.
The official Red Roses Instagram account responded, writing in the comments section: ‘Thank you for your support!’
The Prince and Princess of Wales also took to X after the clock went red to praise both England and Commonwealth nation Canada.
They claimed a well-deserved win in front of nearly 82,000 fans
This was the largest crowd ever to watch a women’s rugby match
It was also the second biggest number ever for a final of either men or women. Pictured: English teammates Sadia Kabeya and Alex Matthews celebrate victory
The Prince and Princess of Wales also took to X after the clock went red to praise both England and Commonwealth nation Canada
It came after King Charles also weighed in before kick-off to express his support for both sides with a post on social media platform X
Meanwhile, Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer also took to X to praise the team after the final whistle
The British premier had wished the ladies good luck on the social media platform before kick-off too
They wrote: ‘Congratulations to @RedRosesRugby, the new Women’s Rugby World Cup Champions!
‘Well done to Canada – you had an outstanding tournament. Both teams should be so proud!’
It came after King Charles also weighed in before kick-off to express his support for both sides.
The monarch wrote on the Royal Family’s official X account to send his ‘warmest good wishes’ to the teams on behalf of himself and his wife Queen Camilla.
He said before the match: ‘What a remarkable achievement for both teams to have reached this pinnacle of the sport.
‘I know that supporters on both sides of the Atlantic will be cheering with equal and tremendous pride.
‘May the best team win and may you both play with the spirit of sportsmanship, determination and true grit that makes rugby such a wonderful game to watch.
‘Whatever the result, you have already done your countries proud. Good luck to you all. Charles R.’
It was not all plain sailing as the ladies had a woman in the sin bin at the 51-minute mark, after Hannah Botterman (right, with teammates Alex Matthews and Megan Jones celebrating the team’s win) was given a yellow card and sent off for ten minutes
The victory was just the latest addition to a glittering summer of women’s sport, with the England women’s football team winning the Euros back in July. Pictured: English captain Zoe Aldcroft after her team’s victory
It is believed Saturday’s accolade for the women’s rugby team, won on home turf, could do the same thing for the sport as the Lionesses’ Euros win in 2022 did for football. Pictured: England’s lock Abbie Ward kisses the winners trophy after Saturday’s victory
Saturday’s face-off came just over ten years after the English players took on the Maple Leafs in the final in 2014, when they won by 21 points to nine. Pictured: England’s Zoe Aldcroft after Saturday’s victory
Meanwhile, Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer also took to X to praise the team after the final whistle.
‘Congratulations @RedRosesRugby! You have shown the very best of England and inspired a generation,’ he wrote.
The British premier had wished the ladies good luck on the social media platform before kick-off too.
‘On behalf of the whole nation, wishing @RedRosesRugby the very best of luck in today’s World Cup Final.
‘Already you have smashed records – the biggest women’s Rugby World Cup in history, hosted here on home soil. We are all rooting for you!’
Saturday’s face-off came just over ten years after the English players took on the Maple Leafs in the final in 2014, when they won by 21 points to nine.
The team also reached the final of the two most recent World Cups, in 2017 and 2021, but were just pipped to the post by New Zealand in both.
But not today, as members of the English squad and their team also took home several individual accolades on top of their trophy win on Saturday.
Flanker Sadia Kabeya celebrated taking home the player of the match trophy (pictured)
England head coach John Mitchell celebrated winning coach of the year (pictured)
Canadian prime minister Mark Carney (pictured, with his wife Diana Fox Carney), who was at Saturday’s match, took to X after the final whistle to express his admiration for his nation’s team
Flanker Sadia Kabeya celebrated taking home the player of the match trophy while England head coach John Mitchell celebrated winning coach of the year.
Canadian prime minister Mark Carney, who was at Saturday’s match, took to X after the final whistle to express his admiration for his nation’s team.
He wrote: ‘On behalf of a proud nation, massive congratulations to Team Canada for an incredible run in the Rugby World Cup.’
It was a showcase of the incredible talent on both teams, with Megan Jones among some of the most impressive and resilient players on the English side.
Born in Cardiff, the centre and fly-half, 28, is a fluent Welsh speaker and between the ages of six and 12, was the only girl in a team of boys.
‘No one wanted to tackle the girl,’ Jones said of her school years, ahead of Saturday’s match.
‘And then as soon as they saw my ability, it didn’t matter what gender I was. I used to play scrum-half with the boys and they used to love how bossy I was!’
Now, after a journey which has involved the loss of both her parents, subsequent grief and redundancy, she has led England to World Cup final glory – and is on the verge of being named the best women’s rugby player on the planet.
It was a showcase of the incredible talent on both teams, with Megan Jones (right, with teammate Ellie Kildunne) among some of the most impressive and resilient players on the English side
Ahead of Saturday’s final, the biggest game of her career, she was nominated as one of three nominees for World Rugby’s women’s 15s player of the year award.
‘Particularly with the last year I had, obviously losing mum and dad in 2024, I think it was nice recognition and an appreciation of what I’m doing,’ Jones said of her nomination.
‘I’m doing it for them, which is huge. But it’s also a little bit sad as well in the respect I couldn’t share that moment with them. Of course, it’s been difficult.
‘But it’s been a huge fuel for me. I hate being the victim. I was never brought up that way – my mum and dad would hate that….
‘The bit I want to get over is that through difficult times, through adversity, you can still fulfil your dreams and you can actually use that to drive you in such a good way.’
Jones’ English-born mother Paula suffered with alcoholism and passed away last year, while her father Simon died earlier in 2024 after losing his battle with advanced lung cancer.
The star of her teammate Ellie Kildunne is also on the rise – only further shown after the fullback, 26, scored the first try in Saturday’s game.
Born in the West Yorkshire market town of Keighley, her love of rugby began at a young age, when she often found herself the only girl on a pitch of boys.
The star of her teammate Ellie Kildunne (pictured celebrating Saturday’s win with her parents Nigel and Alison Kildunne) is also on the rise – only further shown after the fullback, 26, scored the first try in Saturday’s game
She told the BBC: ‘I just loved the pressure of proving myself. I wanted to make a statement. “You are looking over your shoulder and laughing but just wait…”‘
As she hit her teenage years, options for women to continue playing rugby grew more sparse as the teams expanded to 15 players.
It made the lifelong Liverpool FC fan temporarily move her focus to football, playing for a Farsley Celtic team which saw her beat Manchester City’s academy side 7-1.
But Kildunne realised rugby was still her passion – and soon played for her county, then West Park Leeds and Castleford, before her nation.
She made her debut for England at just 18 years old, immediately proving she belonged on the world stage by scoring in the team’s 79-5 win over Canada.
