USA women’s rugby loses to Canada, wins new fans in record-breaking KC match
CPKC Stadium has become a women’s sports sanctuary in the spring as the home of the Kansas City Current professional soccer team.
But with the Current playing in Seattle on Friday, USA women’s rugby, the ninth-ranked team in the world by World Rugby, was the hottest ticket in town as it took over the first stadium built for women’s pro soccer.
The record-breaking stadium saw record-breaking attendance as an announced 10,518 fans atttended, setting a new mark for a USA women’s rugby match. Team USA faced Canada in the opening round of the Pacific Four Series, an international tournament.
The Eagles lost to Canada, the second-ranked team in the world, 26-14. It was a physical battle that attracted a wide range of spectators.
There were Current fans, casual fans who knew nothing about the game (except, for some, international sensation Ilona Maher), as well as hardcore rugby fans who showcased their favorite teams.
Maher gained some acclaim during the 2024 Paris Olympics thanks to her social media presence, which showed off a lively personality and pushed her body positivity message to the masses.
Maher also helped Team USA win bronze in rugby 7s, a shorter, faster version of the game in which she has more national-team experience than the 15-player version of rugby union. The match in Kansas City was just her third appearance with the 15s squad.
Local teams, like the Kansas City Blues and Northland Rugby, were in attendance, and so were other teams from Wichita and Springfield. Even Sporting Kansas City players Stephen Afrifa and Zorhan Bassong were there — they showed up to support their native Canada.
The raucous crowd filled the atmosphere with USA chants and loud cheers whenever Maher touched the ball, or was shown on the video board.
“To see the crowd be over 10,500 like that was absolutely fantastic in this women’s purposely built stadium, and to debut rugby here in that stadium as well,” USA captain Kate Zackary said after the game.
Zackary, a Wichita native, graduated from high school in Salina and played rugby at Benedictine College in Atchison. She received a rousing ovation when her name was announced at the stadium.
“What I hope is that ... everyone I talked to after the game who they didn’t know what rugby was, has fallen in love with it,” she said.
Canadian players struggled at times to hear each other on the pitch, which motivated them to play harder and silence the largely pro-USA crowd.
“We used to play sometimes in Europe,” Canadian player Sarah-Maude Lachance said, “and having more (of a) crowd — bigger attendance and stuff. But being here in North America and having 10,000 people coming to watch us women’s sports was so amazing.”
Lachance scored the game-clinching try for Canada in the 77th minute.
“They were cheering for USA ... It’s normal, but it was just so fun hearing everybody,” Lachance said. “You want to scream, ‘Then I’m gonna show you that we’re still here and we’re gonna fight.’”
Laying the foundation for the future
Team USA never took the lead Friday. Canada dominated possession and scored two tries, worth five points, from Justine Pelletier and Laetitia Royer.
The Canadian side also got two conversions, worth two points each, to take a 14-0 lead in the 35th minute.
Zackary put the Eagles on the board with an answer in the 37th minute, near the end of the 40-minute first half. A tackle and dispossession by Tahlia Brody began a USA attack in Canadian territory.
As Zackary dove behind the goal line, she threw the ball into the stands in excitement.
“Got a little bit too juiced up that I threw the ball in the crowd, but it was super special to do it here at home,” Zackary said with a smile and a bloody cut above her right eye.
USA tied the match in the second half when Alev Kelter intercepted a pass and ran almost the full distance of the field to score a try. McKenzie Hawkins scored both conversions for USA.
American player Charli Jacoby received a yellow card in the 67th minute for a high tackle. A 10-minute period in which Team USA played without 15 players on the pitch followed. This advantage helped Canada score two tries, in the 70th and 76th minutes, sealing the win for the team from the north.
The Pacific Four Series is a tournament in which the U.S., Canada, New Zealand and Australia compete for a title by playing each other once over three weeks. Canada is the defending champion and has won it twice since its inception in 2021.
The competition will help the teams prepare for the Women’s Rugby World Cup, set for August in England.
While the Eagles compete for wins on the field, they’re also winning some new fans and setting new records — including Hope Rogers becoming the most-capped player in USA women’s rugby history, with 52 appearances. Team USA is also out to prove that America has a market for women’s rugby.
Kansas City has already been selected as a host city for the 2033 Women’s Rugby World Cup and 2031 Men’s Rugby World Cup, so there’s more matches in store for KC eventually.
Those who love the sport are hopeful that games like Friday’s in Kansas City will foster even more support.
“You don’t have to be a rugby player to come watch it. And for our sport to grow, we need fans in the stands,” said Maher, the Team USA star. “I’m so proud that I’ve been kind of the catalyst of it. And I hope that they get to see so many more of that.”
