“Watershed Year” for Women’s Rugby

The 2025 season was hailed as a watershed year for women’s rugby in South Africa by Mr Mark Alexander, President of SA Rugby, on Thursday.

The performance of the Springbok Women’s team at the Rugby World Cup – at which they reached the quarter-finals for the first time – was a major highlight, but Mr Alexander was especially proud of the broadening and deepening of the female playing base.

Other notable firsts achieved during the year were:

• The first U16 Elite Player Development (EPD) camp for girls was held.
• The first national championship for women’s clubs, sponsored by Betway took place.
• The most teams yet played in the U20 Women’s Week.
• The Springbok Women’s team had the full suite of sponsors on kit for the first time.
• And SA Rugby also announced plans to launch an elite, fully professionalised women’s competition in 2026.

“Our Springbok Women definitely set the tone with their performances this year,” said Mr Alexander. “But from the Women’s Premier Division early in the season to the trio of landmark events last week, 2025 has truly been a phenomenal year for women’s rugby in South Africa.

“To see our best U16 girls gather for a high-performance camp for the first time, while the top U20s and club players competed simultaneously, underlined the depth and momentum building in the women’s game.

“Women’s rugby is a strategic priority for SA Rugby and what we’ve witnessed this year – alongside the Bok Women breaking broadcast records – confirms we are on the right path.”

Mr Alexander extended his gratitude to all those working behind the scenes and acknowledged the vital role of SA Rugby’s partners: “We cannot do this alone. I doff my cap to dedicated partners such as FNB, Betway, Pick n Pay, Coca-Cola and many others for the way they have embraced the women’s game.”

The triumvirate of women’s events taking place simultaneously this month were the first U16 Elite Player Development (EPD) camp for girls, which ran concurrently with a similar gathering for boys in Paarl, SA Rugby also hosted the inaugural Betway Women’s Club Championship and the U20 Women’s Week in Johannesburg.

This followed hot on the heels of the Springbok Women’s best performance at a Rugby World Cup when they reached the quarter-finals at the tournament hosted in England last month.

The EPD squad for girls was announced following a comprehensive talent identification process during the FNB Girls Week for U16s in Johannesburg. The 50 players were taken through their paces by former SA Schools head coaches Sean Erasmus and Katlego Lynch at La Rochelle Girls’ High School.

At the Betway Women’s Club Championship held in Alberton, Eastern Province side Kwaru made history by winning the Premier Division Final, beating Walker Bay Babes 17-14 to bring the curtain down on a wonderful week for women’s rugby.

And DHL Western Province beat the Blue Bulls by 33-0 in the final match of the U20 Women’s Week at Queens High School.

“The potential for growth in the women’s game in our country is fantastic,” concluded Mr Alexander. “As the playing base grows, so will excellence at the high-performance level. I believe it’s no longer a question of whether our women can win the Rugby World Cup, but when.”