Women’s Elite Rugby announces launch of first U.S. professional women’s rugby league

The GIST: Women’s Elite Rugby (WER) announced plans Wednesday to launch its inaugural season in 2025. WER will be the first pro women’s rugby league in the U.S., replacing the existing semi-pro Women’s Premier League (WPL). It’s not a moment — it’s a movement.

The details: Although franchise locations are TBD, the league is planning for six to eight teams with about 30 players per roster. WER is being funded by private investment and is at the pre-seed funding stage. In addition to paying players and expanding across the country, the WER also plans to facilitate a full-time front office staff.

The North American landscape: Since 2009, the U.S. has been home to the WPL, a semi-pro women’s rugby league that doesn’t pay its players. The sport isn’t new in the U.S. — in fact, it was once an Olympic powerhouse. But the interruption of its pipeline in the 20th century, combined with a lack of youth programs, stifled the game’s growth.

• On the men’s pro side, Major League Rugby kicked off in 2018 with 7 teams and a Fox Sports broadcasting deal. But historically, Americans have dropped the ball on men’s rugby, with 659K Americans tuning in for the 2019 men’s World Cup final, a mere fraction of the 44.9M global viewers.

The international landscape: The English sport has long been popular abroad, especially in Ireland, Australia, and New Zealand. Women’s leagues are ramping up development in these areas through expanded media rights and increased investment. World Rugby, for example, is marketing 2025 World Cup media rights with an aim to maximize global reach by selling to free-to-air channels.

• The 2023 Women’s Six Nations saw huge wins across the board — attendance for the Guinness-sponsored tournament’s championship was 58.5K, making it the most-attended women’s rugby match ever.

• Rugby is also gaining traction on a global grassroots level. In 2023, the number of active registered women players jumped 33.9% to 320K, with a 53.2% jump in women and girls exposed to the game.

Lingering questions: Will a women’s pro rugby league succeed in the U.S.? The powers that be seem to think so — the U.S. will host the men’s 2031 Rugby World Cup and the women’s in 2033. Whether or not WER can capitalize on Olympics and grassroots love remains to be seen, but it wouldn’t hurt if NBC Sports extended its existing rugby coverage to the league. Getting in on the ground floor.