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 five years. Women's rugby union has seen a major uplift following the Women's Rugby World Cup, with fan numbers climbing from 7.94 million to 13.21 million, a 66% increase.
BBC Sport will provide comprehensive free-to-air coverage of the Women's Six Nations across TV, radio and online from 11 April. Every game will be shown on BBC TV and BBC iPlayer, with live text coverage, clips and analysis on the BBC Sport website and app, and exclusive interviews on social media channels.
The punditry team includes England World Cup-winning captain Zoe Stratford, alongside Katy Daley-McLean, Maggie Alphonsi, Siwan Lillicrap (Wales), Jade Konkel (Scotland), Anna Caplice (Ireland) and Brian Moore. Commentators include Sara Orchard (England games), Claire Thomas (Wales v Scotland), and Iona Ballantyne and Jenny Drummond for other fixtures.
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.' He added that the BBC is proud to bring every match free-to-air so audiences can follow the action.
Ugo Monye, Sonja McLaughlan and Sarra Elgan will lead the TV coverage. BBC Radio 5 Live and BBC Sounds will feature regular editions of the Rugby Union Weekly podcast. BBC Wales will air a preview show on 10 April and Scrum V The Warm Up throughout the tournament.
