New research commissioned by BBC Sport and carried out by YouGov reveals that 24 million people in the UK now identify as women’s sport fans – up from 18 million in 2021, a 33% increase in just five years.
Women’s rugby union has seen an even bigger uplift in support following the women’s Rugby World Cup, with fan numbers climbing from 7.94m for pre-claimed fandom amongst those interested in women’s rugby, to 13.21m post-claimed fandom after the World Cup last summer, a 66% increase.
The research demonstrates a growing appetite for the women’s game as BBC Sport prepares to bring audiences comprehensive free to air coverage of this year’s Women’s Six Nations across TV, radio and online from 11 April, starting from 1.30pm on BBC One and BBC iPlayer.
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BBC TV and BBC iPlayer will show every single game from the tournament, supported by insightful punditry and storytelling from some of the most trusted voices in the game. New for 2026, England’s World Cup winning captain Zoe Stratford will join the BBC punditry team for the Women’s Six Nations bringing a wealth of experience and expertise.
The BBC Sport website and app will deliver live text coverage for every game, complete with clips, pundit reaction and analysis. Over on BBC Sport’s social media channels, there will be clips of standout moments from the matches and exclusive interviews with some of the competition’s star players.
Alex Kay-Jelski, Director of BBC Sport said: “Seeing a 66% increase amongst those now calling themselves fans of women’s rugby is extraordinary and shows just how quickly the women’s game is capturing the public imagination. Last year’s summer of women’s sport on the BBC proved what’s possible when the biggest moments are given the platform they deserve, with record audiences tuning in to watch history unfold.
However, the most important thing is to support women’s sport all year round. The Women’s Six Nations is one of the great tournaments in the sporting calendar and we’re proud to bring every match free-to-air so audiences can follow every try, tackle and triumph across our digital platforms, social channels, TV and radio.”
Ugo Monye, Sonja McLaughlan and Sarra Elgan will lead the TV coverage and will be joined by World Cup winning captain Stratford and fellow England World Cup Winners Katy Daley-McLean and Maggie Alphonsi. Completing the punditry team will be renowned rugby players Siwan Lillicrap (Wales), Jade Konkel (Scotland), Anna Caplice (Ireland) and Brian Moore.
Sara Orchard will be on commentary duties for all England games. Claire Thomas will commentate for Wales v Scotland and Iona Ballantyne and Jenny Drummond will be on hand to commentate for the Scotland and Wales clashes.
BBC Radio 5 Live, BBC Radio 5 Live Sports Extra and BBC Sounds will have regular editions of the Rugby Union Weekly podcast throughout the Women’s Six Nations for listeners to enjoy. BBC Wales will air Sarra Elgan’s Women’s Six Nations 2026 Preview on 10 April and Scrum V The Warm Up will be available on Thursdays throughout the tournament to look ahead at upcoming fixtures and reflect back on the key moments so far. Rugby fans can also tune into the Scrum V podcast throughout.
