Wikipedia

Italy women's national rugby union team

For the men's team, see Italy national rugby union team. For the women's sevens team, see Italy women's national rugby sevens team. For the women's rugby league team, see Italy women's national rugby league team.


The Italy women's national rugby union team are the national women's rugby union team that represents Italy at international level. It has been administered by the Italian Rugby Federation since 1991; previously, since its inception in 1985 up to 1991, it was administered by UISP – Unione Italiana Sport Popolari (Italian Union for People's Sports), an association which promotes amateur sports at every level of the society. The team competes in the Rugby World Cup, the Rugby Europe Women's Championship and the Women's Six Nations Championship.

Italy
NicknameLe Azzurre (The Blues)
UnionFederazione Italiana Rugby
Head coachFabio Roselli
CaptainElisa Giordano
Most capsSara Barattin (111)
Top scorerVeronica Schiavon (383)
Top try scorerManuela Furlan (20)
First colours
Second colours
World Rugby ranking
Current8 (as of 28 October 2024)
Highest6 (2024)
Lowest9 (2024)
First international
 Italy 0–0 France 
(Riccione, Italy; 22 June 1985)
Biggest win
 Germany 0–52 Italy 
(Hamburg, Germany; 7 April 2005)
Biggest defeat
 Italy 0–74 England 
(Parma, Italy; 3 April 2022)
World Cup
Appearances4 (First in 1991)
Best resultRound of 8 2021
Women's
World Rugby Rankings
Top 20 rankings as of 21 April 2025[1]
Rank Change* Team Points
1 Steady  England 97.56
2 Steady  Canada 89.31
3 Steady  New Zealand 88.64
4 Steady  France 85.92
5 Steady  Ireland 79.93
6 Steady  Australia 78.10
7 Steady  Scotland 75.41
8 Steady  Italy 74.67
9 Steady  United States 74.20
10 Steady  Wales 71.36
11 Increase1  South Africa 68.04
12 Decrease1  Japan 66.41
13 Steady  Spain 63.73
14 Steady  Samoa 60.56
15 Steady  Netherlands 60.42
16 Steady  Fiji 59.14
17 Steady  Hong Kong 56.20
18 Steady  Kazakhstan 55.23
19 Steady  Russia 55.10
20 Steady  Sweden 49.31
*Change from the previous week

History

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On 22 June 1985, the Italian women's national team made their international debut against France. The match ended 0–0, they played again a year later in Bardos, with France winning 12–0. Italy scored their first points in their third match against France when the two neighbors met in Rome in 1987, France won 16–4.

In 1988 Italy participated in the first European championship organized in Bourg-en-Bresse in France by the local women's club. In addition to the hosts, the other two participants were Great Britain and the Netherlands. Italy finished last with three losses. The inaugural edition of this championship, while significant for being the first competition for women's national teams, was never recognized as official by FIRA.

Italian Rugby Federation entry

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In 1991 the management of women's rugby was handed over to the Italian Rugby Federation. Their first commitment was the selection of the team for the inaugural edition of the World Cup which was held in April of that same year in Wales. The Azzurre, after having finished last in their pool, were placed in the Plate quarter-finals. They had their first victory in the tournament after defeating Sweden 18–0 in the Plate quarter-final but lost to Canada 6–0 in the Plate semi-final.

The progress of the national team was slow. In their first 15 years of existence, up to the end of 2000, they played in only 33 official matches. In 1995 they came third in the European championship organized at home in Treviso, a result equaled one year later in Madrid, Spain. After a first round elimination with a sixth-place finish at the 1997 European Championship, they finished 12th at the 1998 Women's Rugby World Cup in the Netherlands.

They finished 7th at the 1999 European Championship and 8th in 2001. They won their first Nations Cup title in Veneto in 2002 ahead of the Rugby World Cup, in which Italy finished in twelfth place. Italy won the 2005 European Championship which was held in Hamburg in Germany. In the 2006 Nations Cup Italy successfully defended their title.

Admission to the Six Nations

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In December 2006, the executive committee of the Six Nations decided to align the composition of all competitions of the tournament with the men's, which included England, Wales, Ireland, Scotland, France and Italy; at the time the only difference with the women's tournament was the presence of Spain, which the committee replaced with Italy starting in 2007.

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    Italy women's national rugby union team in 2013.
  •  
    Italy women's national rugby union team in 2014 during 6 nations tournament.

Records

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Rugby World Cup

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Rugby World Cup
Year Round Position GP W D L PF PA
  1991 Plate semi-final N/A 4 1 0 3 34 31
  1994 Did not participate
  1998 11th place playoff 12th 5 2 0 3 108 81
  2002 11th place playoff 12th 4 1 0 3 45 121
  2006 Did not participate
  2010 Did not qualify
  2014
  2017 9th place playoff 9th 5 2 0 3 75 117
  2021 Quarter-final – 4 2 0 2 58 79
  2025 Qualified
  2029 TBD
  2033
Total 5/9 9th† 22 8 0 14 320 429
  Champion   Runner-up   Third place   Fourth place
* Tied placing † Best placing Home venue

Six Nations

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  Italy
Tournaments 16
Outright Wins 0
Grand Slams 0
Triple Crowns —
Wooden Spoons 3

Rugby Europe Women's Championship

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Competition       Total
European Championship 3 1 3 7

Overall

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See: List of Italy women's national rugby union team matches

(Full internationals only)
Correct as of 11 February 2023

Rugby: Italy internationals 1985-
Opponent First game Played Won Drawn Lost Percentage
  Belgium 2006 1 1 0 0 100.00%
  Canada 1991 2 0 0 2 0.00%
  England 1991 23 0 0 23 0.00%
  France 1985 26 4 0 22 12.50%
  Great Britain 1988 2 0 0 2 0.00%
  Germany 1996 7 7 0 0 100.00%
  Ireland 1997 20 2 0 18 10.00%
  Japan 2002 4 3 1 0 66.67%
  Kazakhstan 2001 2 0 0 2 0.00%
  Netherlands 1988 8 5 0 3 62.50%
  Russia 1998 4 4 0 0 100.00%
  Samoa 2013 1 1 0 0 100.00%
  Scotland 1995 22 15 1 6 68.18%
  South Africa 2018 1 1 0 0 100.00%
  Spain 1991 15 6 0 10 33.33%
  Sweden 1991 8 5 0 3 62.50%
  United States 2012 3 1 0 2 33.33%
  Wales 1999 21 7 1 13 33.33%
Summary 1985 164 57 3 104 34.76%

Players

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Current squad

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Fabio Roselli announced Italy's 34-player squad for the Women's Six Nations Championship on 5 March 2025.[2]

Player Position Date of birth (age) Caps Club/province
Laura Gurioli Hooker (1995-02-02)2 February 1995 (aged 30) 13   Villorba
Desiree Spinelli Hooker uncapped   Benetton
Vittoria Vecchini Hooker (2002-01-13)13 January 2002 (aged 23) 31   Valsugana
Gaia Maris Prop (2001-12-05)5 December 2001 (aged 23) 32   Valsugana
Alessia Pilani Prop (1999-03-06)6 March 1999 (aged 26) 7   Colorno
Sara Seye Prop (2000-08-26)26 August 2000 (aged 24) 27   Trailfinders
Emanuela Stecca Prop (1997-02-24)24 February 1997 (aged 28) 13   Villorba
Silvia Turani Prop (1995-07-06)6 July 1995 (aged 29) 37   Harlequins
Vittoria Zanette Prop (2004-11-29)29 November 2004 (aged 20) 1   LOU Rugby
Giordana Duca Second row (1992-09-18)18 September 1992 (aged 32) 52   Valsugana
Valeria Fedrighi Second row (1992-09-05)5 September 1992 (aged 32) 58   Colorno
Alessandra Frangipani Second row (2003-07-12)12 July 2003 (aged 21) 11   Villorba
Isabella Locatelli Second row (1994-10-23)23 October 1994 (aged 30) 51   Colorno
Sara Tounesi Second row (1995-07-19)19 July 1995 (aged 29) 43   Montpellier
Ilaria Arrighetti Back row (1993-03-02)2 March 1993 (aged 32) 62   Stade Rennais
Giada Franco Back row (1996-07-11)11 July 1996 (aged 28) 32   Colorno
Elisa Giordano Back row (1990-11-01)1 November 1990 (aged 34) 69   Valsugana
Alissa Ranuccini Back row (2000-06-28)28 June 2000 (aged 24) 10   Colorno
Francesca Sgorbini Back row (2001-01-07)7 January 2001 (aged 24) 28   ASM Romagnat
Beatrice Veronese Back row (1996-03-11)11 March 1996 (aged 29) 22   Valsugana
Alia Bitonci Scrum-half (2006-03-27)27 March 2006 (aged 18) uncapped   Valsugana
Sofia Stefan Scrum-half (1992-05-12)12 May 1992 (aged 32) 91   Sale Sharks
Veronica Madia Fly-half (1995-01-16)16 January 1995 (aged 30) 52   Colorno
Emma Stevanin Fly-half (2002-04-11)11 April 2002 (aged 22) 19   Valsugana
Natascia Aggio Centre uncapped   Valsugana
Giada Corradini Centre (2002-04-17)17 April 2002 (aged 22) uncapped   Colorno
Sara Mannini Centre (2005-08-28)28 August 2005 (aged 19) 4   Colorno
Beatrice Rigoni Centre (1995-08-01)1 August 1995 (aged 29) 79   Sale Sharks
Michela Sillari Centre (1993-02-23)23 February 1993 (aged 32) 87   Valsugana
Beatrice Capomaggi Utility back (1997-04-29)29 April 1997 (aged 27) 19   Villorba
Alyssa D'Incà Utility back (2002-03-23)23 March 2002 (aged 22) 26   Villorba
Francesca Granzotto Utility back (2002-03-22)22 March 2002 (aged 23) 16   Capitolina
Aura Muzzo Utility back (1997-04-12)12 April 1997 (aged 27) 49   Villorba
Vittoria Ostuni Minuzzi Utility back (2001-12-06)6 December 2001 (aged 23) 37   Valsugana

Previous squads

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Award winners

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World Rugby Awards

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The following Italy players have been recognised at the World Rugby Awards since 2001:[3]

World Rugby Women's 15s Dream Team of the Year
Year Forwards Backs Total
No. Players No. Players
2021 — 12. Beatrice Rigoni 1
World Rugby Women's 15s Try of the Year
Year Date Nominee Match Tournament Winner
2021 13 September Sara Barattin vs. Scotland World Cup Qualifying —
2023 15 April Sofia Stefan vs. Ireland Six Nations Sofia Stefan
2024 20 April Alyssa D'Incà vs. Scotland Six Nations —

Six Nations Awards

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The following Italy players have been recognised in the Women's Six Nations Awards since 2020:[4][5][6]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "Women's World Rankings". World Rugby. Retrieved 21 April 2025.
  2. ^ "Italia femminile: un bel mix di esperienza e giovani talenti. L'analisi delle convocate per il Sei Nazioni 2025". Federazione Italiana Rugby (in Italian). 19 March 2025. Retrieved 25 March 2025.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  3. ^ "Awards Roll of Honour - World Rugby". www.world.rugby. Retrieved 16 March 2024.
  4. ^ "Women's Six Nations Player of the Championship". Six Nations Rugby. Retrieved 18 February 2024.
  5. ^ "2022 TikTok Women's Six Nations Team of the Championship revealed". Six Nations Rugby. 14 May 2022. Retrieved 18 April 2024.
  6. ^ "Revealed: The Fans' 2024 Team of the Championship". Six Nations Rugby. 16 May 2024. Retrieved 18 May 2024.
  7. ^ "D'Incà touches down for Try of the Championship". sixnationsrugby.com. Women's Six Nations. 14 May 2024. Retrieved 17 May 2024.
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