Sport-Women's sport thrives in 2025 with unprecedented growth, famous victories

MANCHESTER, England, Dec 19 : A ‌deafening roar at Twickenham capped a 2025 Women's Rugby World Cup that smashed attendance records, while India's first Women's Cricket World Cup triumph sparked nationwide celebrations.

A'Ja Wilson delivered a jaw-dropping WNBA season to redefine what dominance looks like and Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone raced to a jaw-dropping world title at a new distance in the 400 metres.

While the year was full of lasting images of women in sport that reshaped their visibility, it was also marked by new franchises, bigger television audiences and greater advertising impact, sending women's sport into 2026 on a wave of momentum.

England hosted and won a Rugby World Cup that shattered records and redefined the sport’s potential.

The more than 440,000 tickets sold was triple the number at the 2021 edition and the crescendo was at Twickenham where 81,885 fans - the biggest crowd to watch a women's rugby match - witnessed England's Red Roses triumph 33–13 over Canada.

Sally Horrox, World Rugby’s ‌Chief of Women’s Rugby described the spectacle as "something girls' dreams are made of."

More than half the tournament spectators were female and a ‌huge 50 per cent attended their first-ever women's rugby match.

The event generated a peak TV audience of 5.8 million in the UK. While the U.S. did not get of the pool stage, the spotlight saw American Ilona Maher further cement herself as the world's most followed rugby player - male or female - with over nine million followers across Instagram and TikTok.

WNBA SOARS AGAIN

The WNBA soared once more, bolstered by expansion to 13 teams and the electrifying play of MVP Wilson leading the Las Vegas Aces to their third title in four seasons.

The season was marked by record-breaking