The summit emphasizes the importance of supporting women and girls to access rugby across Africa.
CAPE TOWN, South Africa – The inaugural Impact Beyond 2025 Summit, organized by World Rugby (www.worldrugby.com), the international governing body of rugby, concludes today, Saturday, October 5 in Stellenbosch, South Africa. Over the three-day conference, delegates of Rugby Africa,(https://www.rugbyafrique.com), the governing body of rugby across Africa, championed the advancement of women’s rugby at every level.
As global interest in women’s sports continues to surge, the summit highlighted the urgent need to drive gender equity and provide strategic tools to advance women’s rugby. World Rugby and Rugby Africa facilitated workshops to enhance domestic competitions, introduce financial resources, promote inclusivity, and establish partnerships with commercial entities.
The summit emphasizes the importance of providing greater support for women and girls across Africa to have access to rugby. By doing so, it creates new role models, boosts self-confidence, fosters empowerment, and cultivates a strong sense of belonging within the community. Through these conferences, key decision-makers within Rugby Africa develop key skills to assist female athletes and management to overcome systematic barriers and thrive within the rugby community.
Delegates participating in the Summit represent six unions across Africa such as South Africa, Kenya, Madagascar, Uganda, Zimbabwe, and Tunisia. Each union has nominated two female delegates as Impact Champions, who will receive mentorships and coaching, along with an exclusive opportunity to attend the 2025 Women’s Rugby World Cup in England.
As the Impact Beyond 2025 Summit draws to a close on day three, delegates were invited to view the WXV2 Tournament in South Africa, World Rugby’s new international competition designed to provide a competitive pathway for the top 16 nations in women’s rugby. Attendees will watch the matches between Japan and Scotland, followed by South Africa and Australia.
As the 2025 Rugby Women’s World Cup in England approaches, the Impact Beyond 2025 summit serves as a key component of World Rugby’s global impact plan to create a platform for inclusivity, positioning Africa as the first host in a series of six regional summits. In partnership with UK Sport (https://www.uksport.gov.uk), the UK’s trusted high-performance experts, and supported by Rugby Africa, the summit began on Thursday, October 3, and concludes on Saturday, October 5 at the Stellenbosch Academy of Sport, South Africa.
Keynote speakers included Sally Horrox, Chief of Women’s Rugby, Maha Zaoui, Rugby Africa Women’s Rugby Manager, Paula Lanco, Rugby Africa EXCO Member and World Rugby Council Member, Nicky Ponsford, World Rugby’s Director of High Performance, Coralie Van Den Berg, World Rugby Regional Partnership Manager for Africa and Mike Chu, World Rugby High Performance Elite Education Manager.
“It has been a real privilege to be here at this Impact Beyond Summit in Stellenbosch and to hear about the incredible work being done for women and women’s rugby in Africa. There has been so much fantastic energy and enthusiasm in the room with a focus on growing women’s rugby and creating more gender equity across our sport. I’m excited to see how everyone builds on these discussions back in their Unions, on the road to Women’s Rugby World Cup 2025,” stated by Chief of Women’s Rugby, Sally Horrox.
Media contact:
Nicole Vervelde
Communications Advisor
nicole.vervelde@rugbyafrique.com
About Rugby Africa:
Rugby Africa (www.RugbyAfrique.com) is the governing body of rugby in Africa and one of the regional associations under World Rugby. It unites all African countries that play rugby union, rugby sevens, and women’s rugby. Rugby Africa organizes competitions, including the qualifying tournaments for the Rugby World Cup and the Africa Sevens, a qualifying competition for the Olympic Games. With 39 member unions, Rugby Africa is dedicated to promoting and developing rugby across the continent. World Rugby highlighted Ghana, Nigeria, and Zambia as three of the six emerging nations experiencing strong growth in rugby.
