Victoria’s Sophie de Goede has already been nominated for World Rugby Player of the Year, and now she’s captaining Canada into the Rugby World Cup final, the biggest game in the program’s history.
The 25-year-old sat down with the BBC this week ahead of Saturday’s showdown, smiling through the spotlight ahead of what could be a career-defining moment.
“To do it in what has been the biggest Women’s World Cup ever is incredible,” de Goede said.
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Rugby Canada’s program director Gareth Rees says praise of de Goede is coming from everywhere, including the upper echelons of rugby.
“I was with Dan Carter, he’s one of the greatest fly halfs to ever play the game, the legendary New Zealand All Black, and all he could do was talk about Sophie,” Rees told CHEK.
This Saturday, Canada faces England in a rematch of the 2014 World Cup final, a game Canada lost. This time, the crowd will be louder and larger, with more than 82,000 fans expected at the U.K.’s Twickenham Stadium.
Among Canada’s fans in the stands will be Sophie’s parents, Hans and Stephanie — also Canadian rugby royalty. Hans captained Canada at the 1987 men’s World Cup, while Stephanie was the first captain of Canada’s women’s team.
“What’s it like to watch her play? It’s a bit nerve-wracking,” Stephanie admitted. “I’m nervous 72 hours or more before the game.”
As to the pride he’s feeling watching his daughter, Hans says “I can’t find the words.”
‘Not an apology sport’
But Sophie hasn’t just inherited good genes — she’s built her own path.
The former Canadian captain, now Rugby Canada program director, Rees, remembers young De Goede riding a bike to Windsor Park with a ball under her arm as a kid.
The Castaway Wanderers coach and former Canadian national, Ed Knaggs says the signs were there early: the skill, the smarts, and sheer drive.
And then there’s her physicality. Asked by CHEK News in 2023 if she ever apologizes after running over opponents, de Goede laughed, “It’s not really an apology sport.”
And there’s no apologizing for the position Canada occupies now. De Goede says this team has earned every inch of ground gained to reach the final.
“This is where we have earned our spot to be, and I think we feel really confident and excited going into the weekend,” said De Goede.
Even Rees, who has seen everything in Canadian rugby, calls it the biggest game ever played by a Canadian team. He’ll be in the royal box with a mystery guest he says he can’t name — though he hinted it’s someone very, very significant.
“There’s someone special coming to support our women’s team. It’s the first time ever this office has done that, so I’ll let you read between the lines.”
A prime example of how far the women’s game has come.
Kickoff goes Saturday at 8 a.m. PT.
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