In a doubleheader that might see superstar Ilona Maher play for the US Eagles women against Fiji, World Rugby and USA Rugby will formally confirm on Tuesday that Steve Borthwick’s England team will play in Washington, DC, in July.
The World Rugby chair Brett Robinson stated that the 12-game US men’s and women’s summer schedule “reflects our ambition to … enhance performance, attract new audiences, and fuel rugby’s growth.” He added that the US is a rapidly growing rugby market with strong commercial and hosting interest ahead of the 2031 and 2033 Rugby World Cups.
Audi Field, the Major League Soccer home field of DC United, will host the Washington doubleheader on July 19. On an evening beside the Anacostia River that was typically marshy, the US men played there last summer and lost 42-7 to Scotland.
With a 10-try, 68-14 victory over Wales last Saturday in the far less humid city of Cardiff, England concluded the Six Nations, losing the championship to France but giving the national game fresh hope.
Following Test matches against Argentina in Buenos Aires (5 July) and San Juan (12 July), England will play a non-cap match against a France XV at Twickenham on June 21. The summer tour will conclude with a game in Washington versus Scott Lawrence’s rising US Eagles, who are now rated 15th in the world.
Borthwick may still deploy exciting players like Henry Pollock, a 20-year-old back-rower from Northampton who scored twice on his debut in Wales, even if they will not have any of the best players chosen for the British and Irish Lions in Australia.
According to sources contacted by the Guardian, there is a strong desire for Maher to play for the Eagles against Fiji, but these expectations are realistic.
Maher, who is one of the most popular athletes in the world and spreads a message of positivity and empowerment on social media, finished second on ABC’s Dancing with the Stars reality show after winning bronze at the Olympic sevens in Paris last summer.
Maher recently finished a great tenure with Bristol Bears, drawing record crowds for the English women’s game and creating valuable buzz and coverage. She is currently vying for a spot on the US team for the 15-a-side World Cup in England in August and September.
USA Rugby CEO Bill Goren expressed his excitement about the Audi Field event, saying he was “excited to bring the men’s and women’s Eagles to fans coast-to-coast, in the largest slate of home matches since 2019.”
The women’s Eagles will play Japan at UCLA in California on April 26 in another doubleheader, this time against the San Diego Legion and RFCLA of Major League Rugby, the professional men’s league, marking the start of that summer campaign. The women will play Canada in Kansas City on May 2.
Two matches against lower-ranked opponents—the Netherlands on July 5 and Spain a week later—will be played in Charlotte, North Carolina, as the men’s Eagles prepare for England.
The United States will play Japan and Canada in pool play in the Pacific Nations Cup in August and September. The US, Canada, Samoa, and Tonga will compete for the three finals slots available without additional play-offs, as Japan and Fiji have already qualified for the 2027 World Cup in Australia.
