Scotland women will be one of 18 national teams to participate in the landmark WXV Global Series.
Announced by World Rugby, the series hopes to harness strength of women’s rugby, provide guaranteed high quality fixtures and a pathway to Women’s Rugby World Cup 2029.
It will being a new format featuring the top 18 national teams in the world to the table, delivering certainty, increased meaningful competition and driving long-term performance and commercial sustainability in the women’s game.
The top 12 teams – Australia, Canada, England, France, Italy, Ireland, Japan, New Zealand, Scotland, South Africa, USA, Wales – will compete in a home and away, cross-regional touring model within a newly aligned September-October international window.
Significantly, unions will retain domestic commercial rights to their home fixtures, recognising the importance of growing the value of the women’s game in each country, and supporting reinvestment in player pathways and national programmes.
Meanwhile, teams 13-18 in the world – Brazil, Fiji, Hong Kong China, Netherlands, Samoa, Spain – will play their fixtures in a single destination in 2026 and 2028, funded by World Rugby, addressing financial challenges, and supporting development. Rankings to determine positions in the Series were set at the end of WXV 2024 and teams will remain fixed in these through the 2026–28 cycle, as agreed with participating unions.
Additionally, the WXV Global Series is fully aligned with the Women’s Rugby World Cup 2029 qualification pathway, offering clear progression opportunities for teams across both levels and all six of World Rugby’s regions.
The structure of the 2027 season will allow teams to face new opponents, with additional fixtures for unions not involved in the British and Irish Lions Women’s Tour to New Zealand.
The WXV Global Series will capitalise on this growth trajectory and strengthen elite competition, drive participation, and build long-term sustainability for women’s rugby worldwide.
WXV Global Series overview
- 18 national teams across two competitions
- Top 12 teams to play in a home-and-away cross-regional model from 2026–28
- Teams will play between four and six fixtures annually within the new September–October Test window
- Teams 13-18 to compete in a funded, centralised annual tournament hosted at a single destination
- Cross-over fixtures to take place in 2027 around the British and Irish Lions Women’s Tour
- Over 100 international matches to be played across the three-year cycle
- Touring unions retain commercial rights to home fixtures
- Integrated into the Women’s Rugby World Cup 2029 qualification pathway
Scotland have enjoyed WXV competitions in recent years and won the inaugural WXV 2 title in South Africa in 2023 with that squad pictured
From August 7 until September 30, GH Media will be following the Scotland World Cup journey all of the way. We will be at all of the Scotland matches down south and will be bringing you all of the interviews and news from camp as well as taking a wider look at the tournament as a whole and its impact on the women’s game. Thanks to Quirky Chocolate and other supporters for allowing this content to happen and to readers for engaging with it.