Last month, on a stage at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood, Ilona Maher had another ‘first’ in a year full of them.
She had already taken the lid off the 2024 Paris Olympics. She had finished second on Dancing With The Stars. She even became a social media sensation, generating more TikTok views in 2024 than Taylor Swift.
The latest ‘first’ came at the ESPYS in Los Angeles. She was nominated for the Best Breakthrough Athlete award — the first time anyone from rugby, men’s or women’s, had ever been included. She added another first when she won it.
“It’s taken me seven years and two Olympics, but I finally broke through. Amazing stuff,” she told the audience when accepting the award.
But, this wasn’t all about her. She had a point to make, too. Or maybe it was more of a call-to-action.
“PSA, there is a Women’s Rugby World Cup this year,” she said.
“Watch it. Tune in.”
The Women’s Rugby World Cup, which kicks off on Friday with the United States national team taking on favourites England, will see 16 teams competing for the biggest prize in the sport. It will undoubtedly be the best-attended and most high-profile edition of the tounament in its 34-year history.
You can imagine how pleased the tournament organisers are to have Maher as their face of the competition, and how much impact her words will have.
Three days after walking the red carpet in L.A., mixing with the biggest stars in sport and picking up her ESPY, Maher was back to ripping it up on the rugby field in front of a record crowd against Fiji in Washington D.C.
It is those few days that sum up what Maher and the USA Eagles are about: As comfortable posing for cameras and dominating social media as they are making a tackle or scoring a try. Friday’s tournament opener will be a baptism by fire, but Maher and her teammates wouldn’t have it any other way.
Their goal is to take rugby to the masses.
“It’s funny that it’s the biggest game in pool play even though we’re ranked No. 10 in the world,” Maher tells ESPN in an exclusive interview. “That’s because of what we’ve done off the pitch. We’re game changers. That’s what we’re bringing into the World Cup.
“It’s going to be a really tough game, but we want to put in a performance, we want that sold out stadium to leave thinking we got to watch something exciting.”
The numbers speak for themselves. 15,198 fans turned out for the clash against Fiji, thanks in no small part to Maher’s popularity. If she can get a fraction of her 8.8 million followers on Instagram and TikTok along to some games, they will be well on their way to achieving their goal.
Women’s rugby’s global star
1:57
Ilona Maher on the power of social media in Women’s rugby
USA’s Ilona Maher speaks about how using social media the right way can help increase the popularity of Women’s rugby.
The United States — nicknamed “the Eagles” — are aware that performance is paramount. But sport is also about entertainment, especially when trying to attract new fans. After a disappointing tournament in 2022 — when they were knocked out in the quarterfinals — the U.S. are desperate for success on and off the pitch.
Getting fans through the gates is also their responsibility.
“People have to come and show that this is an exciting and entertaining thing to watch,” Maher says. “Our sporting events have to be something that drives people in: It’s a fun thing to go to.
“I think also what we’re seeing in this World Cup is more personalities coming through. I like to think the amount of people that are posting … that’s how kids are connecting with it. Our fan base is becoming young women and it’s the mums bringing their daughters and college girls and girls in their 20s and 30s.
“That’s who our fanbase is and they’re following us on TikTok and social media. I’m really excited to see that because if they can see us there, they’ll come and see us on the pitch as well.”
Maher is a trailblazer, make no doubt about it. No other player has had the kind of impact that she has had on the game.
She is the global star women’s rugby needs and she has come at exactly the right time.
People in men’s rugby still talk about Jonah Lomu; the All Blacks legend who helped make rugby mainstream. Non-rugby fans knew Jonah — everyone knew Jonah.
There’s every chance in 30 years’ time, Maher will be talked about in a similar vein when it comes to the women’s game in terms of how she changed perceptions of the sport.
Part of Maher’s ambition is to encourage others to show their personality on social media, or however else they please. To be vulnerable and put themselves out there. Only then, Maher believes, can the women’s game truly grow.
The 28-year-old is also a force on the pitch. Having helped the U.S. to a bronze in rugby sevens at the Paris Olympics last year, Maher turned her attention to the 15-a-side code and the World Cup. She joined English club Bristol Bears at the turn of the year to get back in the swing of things. Demand to watch her was so big, the Bears had to move their home games to a bigger stadium while Maher was in town.
In a tough group with England, Australia and Samoa to compete against, the Eagles will need almost everything to go their way to reach the knockout stage.
Captain Kate Zackary, a veteran of two World Cups already, has put a marker down. Their goal is the semifinals. Everyone loves watching a winner. They want to be bold in all aspects of the game.
“Everyone’s watching women’s rugby now. You can’t look anywhere without finding it, can you?” Zackary told ESPN.
“And so for us, it’s not just being here and being competitive. Our eyes are set on making a semifinal to make that happen. There’s a lot of grit that must be done. Everyone’s putting in the work because we’re all aligned on that goal of, we want to make a semifinal, but it’s going to take a lot of work to topple, at some point, a top four team.”
Zackery is also embracing Maher’s vision of more players pushing the game and being boisterous about women’s sport.
“I want to make sure that I’m a household name as well, which is a huge statement,” Zackery explains. “So, I say it out loud means my teammates know exactly where I want to be, how they can help me, and vice versa.”
Re-discovering American dominance
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Ilona Maher: You can’t slip up against England
USA’s Ilona Maher looks ahead to the opening game of the 2025 Women’s Rugby World Cup vs. England.
The U.S. were the powerhouse of women’s rugby in the 90s. They won the inaugural World Cup in 1991 and made the final at the next two tournaments. But in the past two decades, other nations have not only caught up but surpassed them.
England, Canada, New Zealand and France are considered the contenders. The Eagles have an upset against one of those sides in their sights.
As fly-half and main playmaker, McKenzie Hawkins has a big responsibility on her shoulders. For there to be the success the side crave, she will need to be on her game.
Coach Sione Fukofuka has backed Hawkings in the No. 10 jersey since he took over after the 2021 World Cup. The 28-year-old is ready to repay that faith.
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“Yeah, it’s a big responsibility. I feel very lucky to be in that spot,” Hawkins tells ESPN.
“I also know that it can be gone like that. So, I think that for me, I try to stay really present and I know that with this job there comes a lot of responsibility and I try to walk in those shoes the best that I can every single day.
“It fits into the rugby culture of leaving the jersey better than you found it,” she adds.
“And so I think for us that jersey becomes a little bit thicker and in responsibility of let’s set the standard for where we are now and inspire those who can come fill the jersey and make it so much better than we are right now.”
