Just a few months ago, Jenna had never watched a rugby match. Now, the confetti has settled, the Women’s Rugby World Cup has concluded, and she’s returned home from her trip to London. Her journey from casual observer to die-hard fan began, as so many great stories do, with the Olympics.
As an avid fan of the Summer Olympics, Jenna was drawn in by the coverage of various sports, particularly beach and indoor volleyball. Her social media algorithms took note, and soon, her feed was filled with Olympic content. That’s where she discovered Ilona Maher.
“She was funny, endearing, and genuine,” Jenna recalls, “and a total badass at her sport to boot. I would always stop scrolling for Ilona updates.”
Jenna wanted to follow Ilona beyond the Olympics, but the access was a problem. She’d kept up with Ilona’s journey with the Bristol Bears through social media, but the time difference and lack of easy-to-find broadcasts made it difficult to watch live. The first game she truly watched in earnest was the USA vs. Canada RWC warmup.
She was hooked, but also utterly confused.
“I expected I’d be able to figure it out,” she says, “but I didn’t understand much except for the fact that these athletes are super tough and that I don’t know anything.”
Everything she knew from her American football knowledge was simply not helpful. The kicking, the lack of a traditional goal line, the constant motion of play, all of it led to more questions than answers. Even when she’d watch live, she’d find herself asking, “What the heck happened?” as penalties were called or not called.
The true turning point came in that first World Cup match. “Erica Jarrell-Searcy’s try was a tipping point,” Jenna explains. “That was the one where I yelled, ‘I UNDERSTAND THIS IS GOOD!‘” She watched in amazement as a close-up Instagram video captured Jarrell-Searcy’s face, a look of pure, unbridled intensity as she slipped a tackle and was off to the races.
@millajab I still don’t understand much, but I’m doing my lil best. #worldrugbycup #rugby #englandvsusa #ilonamaher #womensrugby
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The momentum continued when Jenna, despite a busy weekend and a looming Roller Derby Championship, accepted an invitation to a watch party in Austin with the Austin Valkyries at 1972 Pub. “I probably wouldn’t have gone without the invite,” she admits. Once there, the energy of the crowd and the passion of the community were infectious. She started developing her own rugby vocabulary, calling rucks “friendship tunnels” and exclaiming “I think this is good, I know this is good!” when something exciting happened.
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This new fan experience was accelerated by the power of social media. Jenna began to learn the “laws” of the game, not just by watching but by asking questions in her videos and comments. To her surprise, not only were other fans providing explanations, but so were current and former players, including a rugby legend whose comments she initially just “hearted and moved on” because she was too new to the space to recognize her. The community felt “very welcoming and invested” in her finding the sport.
The culmination of this whirlwind came when Jenna, a self-described frugal person, saw plane tickets to the UK for $800, a significant drop from an earlier search. “I feel like a lot of good things have happened when I’m strategically impulsive,” she says. After a quick consult with friends and a check of her schedule, she made the leap. She sees it as “doing something for the plot,” a memory worth keeping in a life that can sometimes feel like every week runs together.
@millajab It’s happening! Off to the Rugby World Cup. #rugby #rugbyworldcup #womensrugby #rwc2025 @USA Rugby
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Now, with the final whistle blown and the tournament concluded, Jenna has returned home. She saw her newly adopted team play on the world’s biggest stage in a match that couldn’t have been more dramatic: the USA’s final pool match against Samoa. It was a fitting climax to her two-week journey, as the Eagles put on a commanding performance, but it wasn’t quite enough to secure a spot in the quarterfinals. But for Jenna, the end of that match was just the beginning. She continued to watch the rest of the World Cup matches, from the exhilarating quarterfinals to the final, and is still actively asking questions and learning about the game.
This story is a testament to the power of a major event like the Rugby World Cup to draw in new fans. It’s a narrative of personal transformation and a powerful reminder that sometimes, all it takes is a spark to ignite a lifelong love affair. The challenge now is to nurture these newly minted fans. The work of a World Cup isn’t just to sell tickets and broadcast rights; its true value lies in the seeds it plants. We have a brief window to guide these new fans from the global stage to the local pitch.
For fans like Jenna, this means a clear path from the global spectacle to the everyday game. The key is accessibility. While the Women’s Rugby World Cup was broadcast on a mainstream streaming service (Paramount+ & CBS Sports in the USA), most other international and domestic leagues are not as easy to find. This creates a significant barrier for a new fan who wants to follow their favorite players beyond the tournament.
To keep them engaged, we need to make it easy for them to find their next game and their new community. This means building a bridge from the global to the local, domestic, and collegiate competitions. After the thrill of the World Cup, fans can dive into the world of Women’s Elite Rugby (WER) in the US, or follow the high-speed action of the HSBC SVNS Series. They can also get a taste of international play through the Guinness Women’s Six Nations, the Pacific Four Series (PAC4), and the annual premier competition, WXV. Looking ahead, the sport’s calendar is packed with major events, including the Rugby Sevens at the 2028 and 2032 Olympics and the next 15s Rugby World Cups, which will be hosted in Australia in 2027 (men’s) & 2029 (women’s) and the USA in 2031 (men’s) & 2033 (women’s). For a complete guide on what to watch and when, check out our guide, “What’s Next? Your Guide to the Women’s Rugby World (2025 and Beyond)”.
Jenna’s journey proves that the passion for the sport is out there, just waiting for the right moment and the right platform to find it.
