The 2025 edition of the Women’s Rugby World Cup kicks off in Sunderland on England’s east coast on Friday. Handed the honor of opposing the hosts are the USA, who will take the field in front of an expected record crowd of more than 40,000. It’s as challenging a fixture as the Eagles could ask for, with the Red Roses unbeaten since coming up just short to New Zealand in the 2022 World Cup Final at Auckland. The Eagles haven’t beaten England since the 1991 Final in Cardiff.
Current World Ranking: 1 (97.76 points)
2025-08-09 – France 6, England 40 (Mont-de-Marsan)
2025-08-02 – England 97, Spain 7 (Leicester)
2025-04-26 – England 43, France 42 (London)
2025-04-19 – England 59, Scotland 7 (Leicester)
2025-04-12 – Ireland 5, England 49 (Cork)
Current World Ranking: 10 (72.05 points)
2025-08-01 – Canada 42, USA 10 (Ottawa)
2025-07-20 – USA 31, Fiji 24 (Washington DC)
2025-05-24 – New Zealand 79, USA 14 (Auckland)
2025-05-17 – Australia 27, USA 19 (Canberra)
2025-05-02 – USA 14, Canada 26 (Kansas City)
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IN | OUT |
| – | none | none |
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IN | OUT |
| 4 | Tahlia Brody | Hallie Taufo’ou |
| 8 | Rachel Johnson | Freda Tafuna |
| 9 | Olivia Ortiz | Cassidy Bargell |
| 14 | Emily Henrich | Cheta Emba |
- the two sides have met on five previous World Cup occasions with the USA winning the first, but the other four going to England including the 1994 Final
- England settled for second place at the last tournament, losing to hosts New Zealand 34-31 in the Final played in November 2022… the USA were knocked out by Canada in the Quarter Finals
- John Mitchell has retained an identical starting lineup to the one that cruised past France two weeks ago… every starter was part of the previous World Cup squad
- Hallie Taufo’ou and Cheta Emba are out of Sione Fukofukoa’s starting side in the opener… while Freda Tafuna and Cassidy Bargell are on the bench after starting against Canada in Ottawa… seven starters will be making their World Cup debuts
- Hope Rogers is the USA’s most-capped player with 55… the 32-year-old prop debuted in 2014 and this will be her fourth World Cup… England reserve center Emily Scarratt is the most experienced player in the entire tournament… the 35-year-old has 118 caps dating back to 2010 and is set to play in her fifth World Cup
John Mitchell (Head Coach)
“We have been building nicely into the tournament and now we’re excited to get our campaign underway. Sunderland have been a great host city thus far and we know it’ll be a record crowd for a Women’s Rugby World Cup opening match which shows the appetite for rugby in this region and for the competition ahead. We want to embrace the occasion whilst understanding we have to remain where our feet are and earn the right to progress through the pool stage.”
Sione Fukofuka (Head Coach)
“England are World Number 1, and we expect them to be physical, accurate and confident for the full 80 minutes. They have a strong set piece and threats across the field, however we are confident we also have a strong set piece platform with threats to attack them with confidence and have the commitment in defence to give us opportunities to create pressure. The team have worked hard to be here and earned their opportunity to represent the United States at the World Cup.”
It’s hard to imagine a scenario where the Red Roses fall to the Eagles, so this match is largely about laying down a marker for the clashes ahead. England will want to be precise and clinical at the set piece, and give their reserves plenty of game time. For the USA it’s about earning respect and not giving away soft penalties. Regardless of the scoreline at the final whistle this will be an experience each player will carry for a lifetime. England are heavy favorites in Sunderland.
ENGLAND
1 Hannah Botterman, 2 Amy Cokayne, 3 Maud Muir, 4 Morwenna Talling, 5 Abbie Ward, 6 Zoe Aldcroft (capt.), 7 Sadia Kabeya, 8 Alex Matthews, 9 Natasha Hunt, 10 Zoe Harrison, 11 Jess Breach, 12 Tatyana Heard, 13 Megan Jones, 14 Abby Dow, 15 Ellie Kildunne
Replacements: 16 Lark Atkin-Davies, 17 Kelsey Clifford, 18 Sarah Bern, 19 Rosie Galligan, 20 Maddie Feaunati, 21 Lucy Packer, 22 Emily Scarratt, 23 Emma Sing
USA
1 Hope Rogers, 2 Kathryn Treder, 3 Keia Mae Sagapolu, 4 Tahlia Brody, 5 Erica Jarrell, 6 Kate Zackary (capt.), 7 Georgie Perris-Redding, 8 Rachel Johnson, 9 Olivia Ortiz, 10 McKenzie Hawkins, 11 Bulou Mataitoga, 12 Alev Kelter, 13 Ilona Maher, 14 Emily Henrich, 15 Lotte Sharp
Replacements: 16 Paige Stathopoulos, 17 Alivia Leatherman, 18 Charli Jacoby, 19 Rachel Ehrecke, 20 Freda Tafuna, 21 Cassidy Bargell, 22 Kristin Bitter, 23 Sariah Ibarra
Date: Friday, August 22
Venue: Stadium of Light, Sunderland
Kickoff: 19:30 local (11:30 Pacific, 14:30 Eastern)
Weather Forecast: cloudy, 61°F (16°C), wind NE 8-12mph (13-19km/h)
Broadcasts: Paramount+ (USA), TSN 1/4 (Canada), RugbyPass TV
Referee: Aimee Barrett-Theron (South Africa)
Assistants: Natarsha Ganley (New Zealand) & Maria Heitor (Portugal)
TMO: Leo Colgan (Ireland)
HEAD-TO-HEAD (21): England 20, USA 1
2024-09-29 – USA 21, England 61 (Vancouver)
2022-09-03 – England 52, USA 14 (Exeter)
2021-11-21 – England 89, USA 0 (Worcester)
2019-06-28 – USA 5, England 38 (Chula Vista)
2018-11-09 – England 57, USA 5 (London)
2017-08-17 – England 47, USA 26 (Dublin)
2016-07-09 – USA 13, England 39 (Salt Lake City)
2015-06-27 – USA 13, England 39 (Calgary)
2013-08-07 – USA 21, England 36 (Greeley)
2011-08-02 – USA 11, England 15 (Oakville)
