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Tom Hamilton, Senior Writer
BRISTOL, England — Ilona Maher’s mission to grow rugby is far from done, and while she admits she loves being a “superstar” of the game, the United States star said the sport desperately needs to showcase more athletes to help take rugby union to new fans and audiences.
Maher, 28, helped guide the U.S. to bronze in the sevens at the Paris Olympics in 2024, and has since featured on the cover of Sports Illustrated Swimsuit, and finished second in “Dancing with the Stars.” She is the most followed rugby union player on social media, with a combined following of 8.1 million across her different platforms.
On Sunday she made her debut for the Bristol Bears women’s side in Premiership Women’s Rugby (PWR). She played the last 20 minutes of their 40-17 defeat to Gloucester-Hartpury at Ashton Gate having signed a three-month contract with the English side to help aid her hopes of making the 2025 Rugby World Cup in the 15-a-side format of the sport.
When Bristol announced her signing in December, the interest in tickets for her potential debut skyrocketed. The demand forced the Bears to shift the match from their usual Shaftesbury Park home — a ground with a capacity of 2,000 of which 250 is seated — to Ashton Gate, a 27,000-seater stadium in Bristol.
Maher’s debut came in front of 9,240 on Sunday — by far the most fans ever to attend a Bristol Bears women’s home match. After full time, Maher spent 90 minutes or so signing autographs and taking photographs with fans. The star power was inescapable. Maher said she is loving the spotlight, but added the sport needs more high profile figures to grow rugby union.
When asked if she feels pressure with this spotlight, Maher said: “I don’t ever feel it, but I could see where it could come from. And I guess I do in a way because right now it seems to be, oh, it’s just Ilona Maher like, oh, ‘we gotta get her in this and this and this.’
“And that’s where I also would love to bring these teammates up. I’m always trying to get my teammates for the USA sevens, always trying to get them to come up and even during the Olympics so many of them put media out there and grew their following.
“I’ve seen the power in it and I’ve seen the power of people connecting with the individual and then going to a sport. You know, people connect with [basketball star] Caitlin Clark and go see a game, and that brings more fans in. So if we can have more people connect with Holly Aitchison, Jazz Joyce, Evie Gallagher, that brings them in, that brings fans in.
“So that’s my goal. I love being a superstar, people call me the superstar of rugby, but that’s not enough for the sport. We can’t just have one superstar. We need to have more, we need to have people connecting with so many different players and that is what will grow our game.”
Maher’s mantra is “beast, beauty, brains” and much of her advocacy is around body positivity and growing participation in women’s sports. “I am proud. I think that it’s cool to be the face of a sport that isn’t thought of as a women’s sport,” Maher said.
“It’s a men’s sport, so to be a face of it and also the impact I’m having, I think it is felt across both men’s and women’s. And I’ve had some of the best men’s players in the world say ‘keep doing what you’re doing’ because I think everyone sees value in it and if one rises, we all rise.
“So I’m really proud of what I’ve done and the impact I’ve had on social media, not just in a rugby sense and a body positivity sense [but] the way people are treating themselves. So I’m proud. I think my family is 10 times prouder. I love what I’m doing.”