Everyone’s watching…women’s rugby

With the PWR back for its final two rounds of the regular season, the league will be hoping to capitalise on the record-breaking crowd figures seen during the Guinness Women’s Six Nations.

Four of the teams played games at their national stadiums attracting record crowds at all four with Twickenham seeing 77,120 fans watching the Red Roses play Ireland.

The total attendance for the Women’s Six Nations was 279,760, up by 85% from the previous year.

In the wake of last summer’s Rugby World Cup, the opening weekend of the PWR saw an attendance spike of 183% across the league compared to the first round of the 2024/25 season.

At Sandy Park, crowds are averaging at around 1,700 with the most attended fixture being against Harlequins, with Red Roses’ full-back Ellie Kildunne the big draw.

Last season, Exeter Chiefs Women’s home matches attracted an average of 1,500 including the anomaly 3,353 crowd for the Ilona Maher’s appearance for Bristol. Without this, Chiefs Women are seeing an uplift of 28%.

The trend towards support for women’s rugby is led by fans starting to identify their heroes amid the teams in the PWR and turning up grounds around the country.

Chiefs Women head to Shaftesbury Park this Saturday to take on eight-placed Bristol Bears Women before returning home for round 18 of the PWR with an all-important clash against Sale Sharks Women.

Sharks, who have announced big signings ahead of the 2026/27 season including Zoe Stratford and Tatyana Heard, are currently in fifth place in the league aiming for a top-four spot. Chiefs are currently nine points ahead in third place and Trailfinders Women are four points ahead in fourth.

Exeter Chiefs Women’s head coach Steve Salvin said: “The phrase ‘Everyone watches women’s sports’ is especially true for women’s rugby. We have seen the interest build since the Rugby World Cup as players start to become household names.

“The PWR is fairly unique in that is boasts so many international players from across the world. It is the best league without doubt. There isn’t really anywhere else for players to go to experience top-flight rugby for such a large part of the year.

“Among our squad alone, we have 22 international players from eight different nations. These are recognisable, talented players who light up our pitch on a regular basis, along with a whole host of youngsters and non-internationals who are proud to wear the jersey.

“The league is also so much more competitive this season. In previous season, you could be fairly confident who would make the top four. It is much tighter this year. Every game counts! Why wouldn’t you watch women’s rugby?”

Tickets for Exeter Chiefs Women v Sale Sarks Women for Sunday, June 7 - KO 15:30 - are available here.