Eighteen captains from all three levels of WXV met in each of their host locations ahead of a blockbuster weekend of action. Stakes are high with WXV titles and six Women’s Rugby World Cup 2025 places up for grabs.
The second edition of World Rugby’s global tournament will kick-off this weekend with three levels of action across Cape Town, Dubai and Vancouver.
There will be a combination of standalone, double and triple header fixtures across the three match weekends in September and October, maximising fan attendance and helping to create an exciting atmosphere in each of the host cities.
WXV 1 captains reach new heights in Vancouver
No stranger to hosting international rugby, BC Place in Vancouver will open proceedings on Sunday, 29 September with a triple header treating fans to a jam-packed day of rugby action that kicks off with USA against England. Hosts Canada will be facing France with the support of the home crowd with WXV 1 newcomers Ireland beginning their campaign against world champions, New Zealand.
The six captains were met with sunshine and blue skies at the captains’ photo event against the backdrop of BC Place. They then scaled new heights and tested their mettle venturing into the stadium’s rooftop walkway to catch a unique viewpoint of the pitch they’ll running out to this weekend.
Canada captain Tyson Beukeboom is relishing the opportunity to play in front of a home crowd at BC Place, commenting: “I think it’s so exciting to be able to be at home and have our friends and family be able to come support us and watch us.
“It’s the top six teams in the world playing here, and it’s going to be exciting rugby.”
Tickets for WXV 1 2024 went on sale at the end of July and are available via rugby.ca.
Cape Town set to shine for WXV 2
Over in Cape Town, captains from Australia, Italy, Japan, Scotland, South Africa and Wales came together late afternoon at the iconic DHL Stadium with Table Mountain in the background ahead of Friday’s kick-off.
Scotland captain Rachel Malcolm is serious about retaining their WXV2 title: “Our goal for the tournament is to go out and put in three good performances for Scotland, but ultimately, we’re here to win three games and do everything within our control to retain our title.
“We love South Africa. We spent a month here last year, and I think the people, the culture, the scenery, everything about it is just so special, and we’re really looking forward to the competition.”
WXV 2 will kick-off on Friday when the hosts, South Africa, take on Japan at the DHL Stadium.
Saturday will see a double-header of action when Australia and Wales start their campaigns first before Italy and Scotland take to the field later that day.
Tickets for WXV 2 are on sale from R35 for adults, with two adult tickets available for R50 and a package of four adult tickets priced at R100. Fans aged under 18 will pay just R10 when accompanied by a paying adult. Tickets are sold per round, meaning they are valid for three matches over two days, and are only available from Ticketmaster.
Captains discover Dubai in WXV 3
WXV 3 kicks off at The Sevens Stadium in Dubai on Friday, with Spain facing Madagascar before Fiji and Hong Kong China and Netherlands and Samoa conclude round one on Saturday.
All six captains got a first glimpse of the trophy they’re vying for at the promenade running along Dubai Creek.
WXV 3 represents the first time many of these teams have played each other, offering up exciting challenges with the added incentive of scooping one of the six Women’s Rugby World Cup 2025 qualification places.
“I find it difficult to put into words how excited I am but also the whole team is,” said Netherlands captain Linde van der Velden. “It’s been so amazing to win the qualification game, and we’ve prepared so well. We need to put all that hard work into the games now.
“There’s an amazing opportunity to qualify for a World Cup and, let’s be honest, everybody is here to do that!”
Tickets for WXV 3 are free throughout the tournament and fans are encouraged to head down and catch all the action at The Sevens Stadium.
Watch on RugbyPass TV
Don’t worry if you are not able to make it to Cape Town, Dubai or Vancouver to watch the action in person as all 27 matches will be broadcast worldwide.
All three levels of WXV will be available to watch globally either on RugbyPass TV or your local broadcaster. Your local broadcaster can be found on the fixtures page of the WXV website. – WORLD RUGBY
