Rugby is often viewed as a ‘manly’ sport which celebrates a man’s strength, power and shape which has led to sexist commentary around women’s rugby as these ideas regarding women have been actively discouraged. But in reality, when a woman tries rugby, it does celebrate these ideas, and helps her to understand her strength, power and shape of her body to achieve a goal. As everyone size and body are as equally as important on the pitch, to work as a collective to play and win the match. This is put very well by England player Sarah Bern in her and Jess Breach’s interview with Stylist, she says ‘You can be big, you can be broad, you can be petite and you can still be a gorgeous woman’.
‘You can be big, you can be broad, you can be petite and you can still be a gorgeous woman’.
Furthermore, whilst celebrating a woman’s strength, rugby also allows the celebration of her femineity. For example, Ilona Maher (American rugby player) often talks about how she wears makeup to train and on the field. For example, on the 26th of February 2026, she uploaded a reel on Instagram which in the video captioned ‘why do you wear makeup when you train? Why not/ not like it making me weaker.’ This conveys the message that a woman’s strength and power and femininity co-exist and does not clash. This can also be seen in the Newcastle university women’s rugby teams as they often where blue and red ribbons in their hair, showcasing their strength and power and femineity.
Furthermore, these challenges to the beauty standards translates to off the pitch. As the celebration of these ideas on the pitch allows them to be celebrated of the pitch, allowing women to have agency over how they view themselves and create a healthy relationship with their body. As humans come in all shapes and sizes however as long as we are healthy that is all that matters.