"History Makers" - Predicting England's 2025 Women's Rugby World Cup campaign

England are without a shadow of a doubt amongst the favourites for the tournament, with defending champions New Zealand out to retain their crown for an unprecedented third-straight Women's Rugby World Cup. England last won the competition back in 2014, with the Black Ferns going on to then beat the Red Roses in the proceeding finals of 2017 and 2022.

New Zealand boast six Women's Rugby World Cup titles overall, whilst England are in the hunt to bring the trophy home for a third time in their respective history. England have sat firmly at the top of the World Rugby Rankings since November 2020, however, the Red Roses collapsed in dramatic style in the 2021 Women’s Rugby World Cup Final (played in 2022 due to the Covid Pandemic). The Black Ferns snatched a 34-31 victory in the dying moments in Auckland’s Eden Park, as England were defeated in heart-breaking fashion upon New Zealand soil.

Since then, England have had a clear goal: win the 2025 Women’s Rugby World Cup and solidify their legacy as the best side on the planet. The Red Roses have since beaten everyone in their wake with 26 consecutive test match wins, as they collected the Women’s Six Nations and WXV1 titles in 2023, 2024 and 2025. This tidal wave of momentum will now surge across their home-hosted Women’s Rugby World Cup, in the hopes of winning the long-overdue trophy in Twickenham on September 27th.

England handed Spain a crushing 97-7 defeat to commence their pre-tournament warm-up matches, with one final stop over in France confirmed for this Saturday, for a clash with Les Bleus. As the countdown rolls on toward the 2025 Women's Rugby World Cup, here's our predictions as to how we think the Red Roses will fare upon their home-hosted tournament.

England commence their campaign against the United States, with a capacity crowd expected on hand in Sunderland's Stadium of Light. Whilst England are carrying plenty of winning momentum into this clash on the Tyne, the USA Eagles are on the mend from hitting a real low throughout their recent Test form.

The USA lost their three fixtures in WXV1 2024 last November, and have since endured a disappointing stint to finish bottom of the pile in the latest Pacific Four Series, with defeats to Canada, Australia and New Zealand. The last meeting between England and the United States was a 61-21 win for the Red Roses in WXV1 out in Vancouver, Canada this past Autumn.

The USA won their first match in eight Tests earlier this Summer, with a much needed win over Samoa in the lead up to the World Cup. However, even with the superstar of social media Ilona Maher, the USA have their backs to the wall for this opening match, with a heavy England win expected in the North East.

After a confident win over the United States, we expect England to be chomping at the bit for the following weekend's clash in Pool A. The second match on the Red Roses' World Cup agenda is against Samoa, and the Pacific Islanders are certainly the underdogs ahead of this meeting in Northampton. Samoa sit at 15th in World Rugby's Official Women's Rankings, and are expected to be the lowest ranked side England will come up against at the tournament.

Samoa's recent form throughout June, saw them finish second out of three in the 2025 Oceania Rugby Women's Championship. A 64-14 bonus point win over Tonga was a strong start for Samoa, before Fiji flexed their muscles to win the title in a closer clash which ended 24-20. Samoa picked up two wins and a draw in WXV3 this past Autumn, as they battled the Netherlands to an 8-8 tie, before securing victories against Fiji and Madagascar.

John Mitchell would likely rotate his Red Roses side for the match with Samoa, with a straight-forward victory expected against the lower-level opposition. This fixture could bring about one of the heavier score-lines of the entire tournament, with England expected to win confidently in Franklin's Gardens.

Now comes England's strongest challenge of the pool stages. In a match that would likely decide who takes the top spot of Pool A and who progresses as the runner-up, the Red Roses take on the Wallaroos, with the September sun shining down on England's South Coast. Australia are expected to also be two wins from two at this stage, with it all to play for in this clash in Brighton.

After a Pacific Four Series that saw Australia pick up a win over the USA, amidst defeats to the Black Ferns and Canada, the Wallaroos then took on New Zealand for another exhibition test. The Black Ferns once again retained the Laurie O'Reilly Cup for another year, with Australia then hosting Wales in a two-match Summer series in preparation for the World Cup. A 21-12 defeat and a 36-5 win optimisied this mixed bag of recent form, yet Australia will still provide a stern test for England to close out the pool stage.

However, we will once again back England to get the job done. It will be a far closer contest that the Red Roses' two previous pool stage matches, yet it is hard to bet against John Mitchell's side at this point. England would likely have already qualified for the knock-out stages ahead of kick-off, which could well cause a lapse in concentration. However, after a slow start and an early Australian score, we expect England to rally back with a solid second-half showing and take poll position into the Quarter Finals.

Moving onto the knock-out stages now, with our prediction being that England will face Scotland in the quarter-final of the Women's Rugby World Cup. Scotland would reach this stage after finishing second in Pool B, with Canada being our pick to take the top spot from that particular group. We can see Scotland succumbing to a defeat to the Maple Leaves, whilst picking up wins over Fiji and then against Wales, in a repeat of the tightly contested Women's Six Nations encounter from earlier this year.

Bryan Easson's side come into the tournament ranked at eighth in the world, having finished fifth in their latest Women's Six Nations campaign. The underwhelming finish was made a little bit sweeter, as Scotland defeated both Wales and Ireland to claim the bragging rights across their Celtic rivals. Once more, England are the favourites, as Scotland have not defeated their opponents from South of the border since 1998, in what is the one and only victory that Scotland women hold over England.

That record is unlikely to change in Bristol. Despite Scotland’s marked improvements in recent seasons, the gulf in class, squad depth, and experience remains significant between these two sides. England’s dominant pack led by Zoe Aldcroft and an expansive backline, spearheaded by Holly Aitchison, Ellie Kildunne and the ever-clinical Abby Dow, should see them break down Scotland’s resistance. Expect a spirited Scottish performance, but the Red Roses’ intensity and precision will prove too much.

England’s likely semi-final showdown is against old rivals France, as Les Bleus are the team that has historically pushed the Red Roses closest in the Women’s Six Nations and WXV competitions. France, bolstered by a new generation of dynamic players and led by the enigmatic Manaé Feleu, have added more consistency to their traditionally passionate but sometimes erratic performances.

We predict France to reach this stage through the following circumstances; they pick up group stage wins over Italy, South Africa and Brazil to reach the summit of Pool B and enjoy a favourable quarter-final draw. We believe France have the talent in the tank to surpass Pool A runners-up Australia, even if Jo Yapp's side push Les Bleus to their very limit the quarter-final.

We expect the match between England and France to be another tense, attritional and high-scoring 'classique', much like their recent Women's Six Nations deciders which ended 38-33 in 2023 and 43-42 in 2025. France’s defensive line speed and aggressive counter-rucking could stifle England’s attacking rhythm, at least in the early stages, however, John Mitchell’s side have become adept at problem-solving under pressure.

A preview of this match is in store for this Saturday, as England and France have a pre-World Cup tune up against one-another at the Stade André et Guy Boniface. However, all the stakes will be on the line should the sides meet in the semi-final, and playing in front of another packed Ashton Gate crowd will only add fuel to the Red Roses’ fire. We expect them to punch their ticket to the final with a hard-earned win.

The final that many predicted – and arguably the one that the sport deserves – a repeat of the last two Rugby World Cup finals, as England take on New Zealand with the title on the line. The Black Ferns have retooled under a new coaching regime following Wayne Smith's departure in 2022, and while they haven't been as invincible in recent seasons, they still have big-game players like Ruahei Demant and Stacey Waaka, and living legends Portia Woodman-Wickliffe and Kelly Braizer who can still turn a match on its head.

For England, this is more than just a final. It’s a shot at redemption some eight years in the making. After the heartbreak of 2017 in Belfast, 2022 in Auckland, and a decade-long wait since their last title, the Red Roses will be determined to make home advantage count. In what promises to be a titanic encounter, England’s ferocious forward pack – the best in the world – will need to dominate to stop New Zealand’s dangerous counter-attacking game, with the star-studded Black Fern flyers out to carve around the outside at a blistering pace.

Expect tactical kicking, tight margins, and high drama, but this time, it ends differently. Twickenham Stadium erupts as England finally end their World Cup drought, lifting the trophy in front of a roaring home crowd and cementing their place as the greatest women’s rugby team of the modern era.

The 2025 Women’s Rugby World Cup feels like destiny for the Red Roses. After years of near-misses and the pain of recent finals, they enter this tournament as a battle-hardened and deeply cohesive unit. Led by a world-class coaching team and supported by a nation ready to rally behind them, England have all the ingredients needed to claim the crown on home soil. From the opening clash in Sunderland to the grand finale at Twickenham, this campaign has all the makings of a historic sporting story – one in which the Red Roses finally bloom brightest.