Former England star Emily Scarratt has urged young girls to “take a friend and go have some fun” as women’s rugby continues to grow.
The 2026 Six Nations has seen yet further records broken, as the sport continues its devastating surge in popularity following the incredibly successful 2025 World Cup.
During England’s opening Six Nations match against Ireland, an attendance of 77,120 was recorded, making it the highest ever figure for the championship. Elsewhere, both Scotland and Ireland claimed record home attendances, with 30,498 and 9,206, respectively.
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How the game has grown
We spoke to the 11-time Six Nations winner on Thursday, who was busy helping to prepare England for their third round fixture against Wales at Ashton Gate.
Now part of the England coaching set-up, she was once a promising teenager carving out her name within the England ranks.
“When I got my first cap back in 2008, there was a handful of people watching,” she recalled, focusing on the immense growth that the game has seen.
“There wasn’t much media interest; it certainly wasn’t shown on TV, and now fast forward to the numbers that we now get at stadiums.
“We sold out at Ashton Gate. We had 77,000 at Allianz Stadium a couple of weekends ago, and even the Murrayfield game away from home last week broke records. So from that side of it, it’s incredibly obvious in terms of the numbers that you now get supporting it.
“Commercially as well, we have a lot more support. All the girls are full-time professionals, so that makes a big difference. The ability to engage with sponsors and the opportunities for players outside of playing the game are now massive.”
Players like Scarratt were the ones to put women’s rugby on the map, and future players will benefit hugely from that. But, because of all that she achieved on the field, even in retirement, she’s able to continue growing the game.
“I’ve been involved with IHG on a campaign with Joe Marler, engaging with more sponsors and being able to show the other side of yourselves as not just rugby players.”
Personalities within rugby
Scarratt is working alongside IHG Hotels & Resorts, who have launched ‘Fancierge’, a concierge-style initiative offering complimentary experiences in host cities throughout the tournament. She’s been involved in many of their adverts alongside Joe Marler, showcasing some of their many features.
“I wouldn’t necessarily say my acting skills are that great,” she laughed off, admitting, “The fancierge service that IHG have offered during the Six Nations is very cool, and we got to do a bit of a spoof of some of them, it genuinely was really fun.
“We did quite a few different activities. I never thought I’d be lying in a spa in a robe with Joe Marler getting a face massage, but it was really fun, and he’s such a great guy to work with. Activations like that are fun when you’re able to show your personality as well.”
For many years, rugby was seen as unwilling to bend to modern society, while attitudes and expectations around it altered. The women’s game, however, and many of the ‘new age’ players, are starting to reinvent how the game is perceived.
Speaking about the growth of social media and individual personalities within the game, Scarratt explained why rugby is growing at the rate it is.
“We know rugby is a big sport in our world, but in the grand scheme of things, it’s still not a particularly big sport,” she said. “So if we can showcase the different personalities, engage with people, relate to people via various people’s backgrounds and experiences, then it’s massive.
“So many people say now that people follow people. It’s not necessary to be interested in rugby; they just need to find a connection with somebody and then follow what they do.
“Having people like Ellie [Kildunne], Ilona [Maher], all of the big names that can connect with people – not just because of rugby – in the social media world and whatnot, is hugely important just to continue to bring eyeballs to our game.”
“I don’t know this side of it at all”
The 36-year-old is now working with Kildunne in the England camp, but in a different environment to what she’s used to. Instead of running onto the pitch with her or any of the other players that she has known for many years, Scarratt has now stepped over the line into coaching.
“It is a weird one because obviously I know the environment so well, but I don’t know this side of it at all,” she said, comparing her time as a player to her new role in the coaching set-up.
“There’s a whole new way of working and a whole new schedule that you follow as a staff and a coaching member, which you’ve got to get your head around pretty quickly.
“Many of the girls are really good friends of mine. I’ve played with them for a long time.”
While she’s getting used to the transition from player to full-time coach, it’s certainly not her first time imparting her years of wisdom on those around her.
“I have coached for quite a few years alongside playing, certainly at the back end of my career,” she explained.
“Being at Loughborough, I was doing bits there. I did stuff with one of the BUCS men’s teams at Loughborough, and then I’ve been involved with Loughborough Lightning.
“I still don’t know whether I wanna be a coach for life, but it’s certainly something that interests me. I love the game, and I definitely wanna stick around, and coaching is quite a nice transition.
“I’ve been involved in a team for such a long time, and to totally remove myself from that would be quite a difficult transition, I think.”
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Importance of enjoyment
Attitudes have certainly changed within the game in recent years. The women’s game, in particular, appears to be leading in acknowledging that players need to be able to express themselves, proving that enjoyment is the leading factor for participation.
“It is huge,” said Scarratt, reflecting on the camaraderie and enjoyment that the game exudes.
“It’s the reason I played the game for as long as I did. If I didn’t enjoy what I was doing, it would have been a really tough slog.
“We’re lucky in our game, the way that it’s set up in terms of the team element, you have some incredibly unique, funny, kind people that you come across, which just genuinely makes it so much fun.
“We’re a professional environment where the girls are representing their country, so in theory it’s very serious, but at the same time you have to enjoy what you do, and you have to make the days enjoyable.
“Whether it’s doing daft things or giving people time to themselves or whether there’s like a fun game at the beginning of training or anything like that, it has to be enjoyable because that’s how you get the best out of people.”
Message to young fans
Girls and ladies teams are popping up all around the world at a rate not seen before. So what message would she have to young fans who are considering playing rugby?
“Just go for it,” she responded simply.
“I used to do some stuff in schools, and you’d offer taster sessions to young girls because often they just don’t ever play it unless they’ve got an influential figure in their family or they are lucky enough to maybe have a PE teacher at school that plays it, so.
“All of the girls, as soon as they did it, loved it. There weren’t many who didn’t enjoy what they were doing.
“They were asking to tackle and get in the mud, and all the stuff that you assume perhaps would be the things that they wouldn’t want to do.
“The biggest thing is to have a go, get down to your local club. I’d love to see it being offered in schools more regularly. And also, let’s not forget, it doesn’t always have to be the contact version of the game. You can play tag, you can play touch, you can play the variations of the game and still find enjoyment in it.
“Take a friend, and go have some fun, is my advice.”
IHG Hotels & Resorts, the official hotel partner of the Guinness Women’s Six Nations, has appointed Emily Scarratt as its official “Fancierge” where she finds and tests the most authentic experiences that transform every Guinness Six Nations trip into a weekend of new pre-match rituals. Fans can sign up for these complimentary experiences in different host cities at ihgfancierge.com