Canada to host the world’s top women’s rugby teams at WXV 1 2024

The second annual edition of WXV 1, an elite international competition designed to accelerate the growth of women’s rugby around the world, will be hosted in Canada in 2024. 

WXV 1 matches will be played in British Columbia across three consecutive weekends in September and October, with select games being held in Vancouver at BC Place Stadium, marking the first time Vancouver’s world-class venue has hosted an international women’s rugby fixture. The competition will feature the top three teams from the 2024 Pacific Four Series and the top three teams from the 2024 Guinness Women’s Six Nations.

Canada’s Women’s Rugby Team, who are currently ranked fourth in the world, finished second in the inaugural competition hosted by New Zealand in 2023, highlighted by wins over France and Wales.  

Hosting WXV 1 in Canada comes after a monumental moment in Canadian rugby history during the 2023 Pacific Four Series, when Ottawa’s TD Place welcomed a record-setting crowd of 10,092 to watch Canada play the Black Ferns. 

“This edition of WXV is an especially important one as it leads into a Rugby World Cup year in 2025,” said Nathan Bombrys, Rugby Canada CEO. “We are honoured and excited to be welcoming the best teams in the world this fall to North America’s rugby city for this pinnacle event, and believe that hosting this tournament on home soil will contribute to the growth of rugby across the country.” 

“We are delighted to be working with Rugby Canada, the South African Rugby Union [for WXV 2] and Dubai [for WXV 3] to host WXV later this year,” said Sally Horrox, World Rugby Chief of Women’s Rugby. “The tournament plays a fundamental role in helping us to grow women’s rugby and provides more opportunities for players, showcases the game to more fans and inspires more girls to play. Our hosts all share our ambition to take the tournament to the next level and further strength the development of the women’s game.” 

The WXV 1 match schedule, venues, ticketing and broadcast information will be announced shortly. More information, including all the latest WXV news, can be found here. 

WXV 1  
British Columbia, Canada 

Round 1  
September 27-29 

Round 2 
October 4-6 

Round 3 
October 11-13