Following the successful UEFA Women’s Euro 2025 tournament in Switzerland, another major sporting event is coming up – the Women’s Rugby World Cup 2025, hosted in England. Here’s how to watch it from Germany.
The Women’s Rugby World Cup is set to kick off on August 22nd, lasting for just over a month.
England is hosting the tournament for the second time since 2010, and it’s the fourth time the Women’s World Cup has been held in the UK.
Unfortunately, Germany doesn’t have a team in the tournament, but it’s still set to be a fantastic event. And, luckily, you can catch the action from Deutschland.
The tournament begins with England against the USA at the Stadium of Light, Sunderland, at 8.30pm (CET).
Meanwhile, reigning champions New Zealand begin the defence of their title against Spain in York on Sunday at 6.30pm.
The final, at the Allianz Stadium (also known as Twickenham) in London on September 27th, is already an 82,000-seat sell-out, meaning it will be the best-attended women’s rugby union match in history.
Meanwhile, more than 40,000 tickets have been sold for the opening match on Friday, with World Rugby expecting that figure to be closer to 50,000 before the match gets under way.
If you’re not one of those lucky enough to hold one or more of the 375,000 or so tickets that have been sold for matches at the tournament, and would like to watch the action from Germany, here’s what you need to know.
READ ALSO: Germany to bid to host women’s Euro 2029
Can I watch the games in Germany?
Yes. Although the matches are not being shown on free-to-air TV channels like ZDF and ARD (as far as we can see), there is a way to livestream everything.
All 32 matches of the tournament can be watched live and for free on the German streaming service Joyn.
Furthermore, the two semi-finals and the final will also be available to watch via livestream on ran.de.
If you have a VPN, you can also access coverage via the BBC in the UK.
For a full rundown of all the dates and times of fixtures, check out the Women’s Rugby World Cup site. It also handily shares the times in your location (so you don’t need to adapt them if you’re in Germany).
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Who are the favourites?
England (Red Roses): England enters the tournament as the top-seeded host with 55 wins from its last 56 test matches, losing only to New Zealand in the 2022 World Cup final. Coach John Mitchell is relying on a mix of experience and talent with Emily Scarratt, captain Zoe Aldcroft, Marlie Packer, and Alex Matthews.
New Zealand (Black Ferns): New Zealand is the most successful team in history with six World Cup titles from nine tournaments. According to the bookmakers’ assessment, they are just behind England as favourites. The Black Ferns are strengthened by the return of Portia Woodman-Wickliffe, the most successful try scorer in their history.
France (Les Bleues): France’s Les Bleues have been among the world’s elite for years and impress with a combination of physical strength and creative play. With a well-rehearsed squad and high individual quality, they are aiming to win their first World Cup title in England and could pose a threat to the top favourites
Where exactly are the matches being played?
The event will be played in a total of eight stadiums:
Twickenham Stadium; London (capacity: 82,000)
Stadium of Light; Sunderland (capacity: 49,000)
Farmer Stadium; Brighton and Hove (capacity: 31,876)
Ashton Gate Stadium; Bristol (capacity: 26,462)
Sandy Park; Exeter (capacity: 15,600)
Franklin’s Gardens; Northampton (capacity: 15,249)
Salford Community Stadium; Manchester (capacity: 12,000)
York Community Stadium; York (capacity: 8,500)
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What are the groups?
Group A:
Australia
England
Samoa
USA
Group B:
Fiji
Canada
Scotland
Wales
Group C:
Ireland
Japan
New Zealand
Spain
Group D:
Brazil
France
Italy
South Africa
How are points awarded in the group stage?
Points are awarded in the group stage according to the following rules:
4 points for a win
2 points for a draw
0 points for a loss (before possible bonus points)
1 bonus point for four or more tries, regardless of the final score
1 bonus point for a loss by seven or fewer points
With reporting by James Harrington
