Red Roses stars in line for £100K to retain World Cup

The Red Roses' top stars stand to earn £100,000 with England in 2029 should they successfully defend their Women's Rugby World Cup title in Australia as part of a new four-year pay agreement with the Rugby Football Union.

Overall, it is understood the players have negotiated a 25% increase on their previous terms that will expire at the end of June.

In addition to lifting the World Cup in front of a sellout 81,885 crowd in September, England have won eight successive Six Nations titles and are on a run of 38 successive Test victories.

While the new deal is a substantial raise, they still earn less than their footballing and cricketing counterparts.

Deals for England's women's cricketers reportedly vary between £90,000 and £130,000 a year,, external while the Lionesses reached an agreement on bonuses with the Football Association in 2023 after a public dispute., external

England's players picked up a bonus of £20,000 each for winning the Women's Rugby World Cup in September, with their top stars on a basic of about £50,000 a year at the time.

The RFU, which has ploughed £24m into the top-tier Premiership Women's Rugby (PWR) over the past decade, has committed to a formal review of the new contracts after two years to ensure figures rise "if commercial performance of the women's game materially exceeds expectations".

The new deals will be sorted into three different bands, with the most senior and pivotal players earning most. The length of contracts will also vary, with some offered a single year and others centrally contracted for up to three.

There is a guaranteed minimum of 32 contracted Red Roses, with the announcement of which players have secured a deal to be made in the next fortnight.

There will continue to be transitional contracts for emerging prospects.

"As Red Roses our goal is always to be the number one team in the world on the field and off it," said captain Meg Jones.

"The investment into our programme and our pathways is critical to that and so this is an important moment for the group and for the game in England.

"The progress we've seen in recent seasons has been incredible, and this takes things another step forward. It gives players greater security, more opportunity and recognition for what it means to represent England.

"Just as importantly, it's about the future - continuing to invest in a strong pipeline of players, and making sure the next generation has an even stronger platform to come through and succeed."

The agreement is the first Red Roses deal to be struck by international players' body Team England Rugby, with previous negotiations being carried out by the Rugby Players Association, a wider union.