Introduction

Rugby holds a unique place in British sporting culture, but like many traditional sports, it recognises the need and importance of remaining relevant and engaging for younger, digital-first audiences to protect the future of the sport. Since September 2023, Ten Toes has worked closely with England Rugby to evolve its social presence — spanning both England Rugby channels and Red Roses channels. From the 2023 Rugby World Cup through to the 2025 Women’s Rugby World Cup and multiple Six Nations tournaments, our role has been to provide strategic guidance, content inspiration, channel management, and insight-led reporting that brings rugby to life for fans – both present and future.

The Challenge

England Rugby recognised the need to modernise and reshape their social storytelling to ensure they were reaching younger, more diverse audiences while inspiring more people to play and support the game.

The task was twofold:

• Reimagine England Rugby’s digital channels to connect with new fans while staying authentic to core supporters.
• Amplify the Red Roses’ story at a landmark moment for the women’s game, ensuring the team’s journey could inspire and engage on the biggest stage.

Both required a fresh approach to strategy, content and execution - with agility and authenticity at the heart.

Our Approach

To underpin long-term success, we developed a Content & Channel Playbook for England Rugby - a framework laddering up to their overall objectives as an organisation. The playbook defined audience profiles, platform strategies, and tone of voice, while identifying how to maximise engagement across owned, operated and third party channels.

This strategic backbone was complemented by regular content ideation sessions, designed to inspire and equip England Rugby’s internal team with fresh, out-the-box ideas, all while aligning output with audience insights. By embedding ourselves as an extension of their content operation, we have provided day-to-day management and reporting while also setting a forward-facing vision for growth.

Execution

England Rugby

Our partnership began during the 2023 Rugby World Cup, where we integrated seamlessly into the England Rugby content team. From there, we have helped evolve their content mix and strengthen their connection with the modern rugby fan – ensuring we are engaging throughout the year, not just across peak moments. We have managed channel output and planning, engaged directly with the community, and provided agile coverage of live moments — none more significant than the 2025 Guinness Men’s Six Nations, where our collaborative approach with the in-camp team drove record-breaking engagement.

Red Roses

We took the lead on the Red Roses’ channels in the build-up to the 2025 Women’s Rugby World Cup - a generational moment for women’s rugby in England. Our work focused on telling the players’ stories in authentic and inspiring ways, creating content that not only rallied existing supporters but also reached new audiences who may be engaging with women’s rugby for the first time. By combining strategic guidance with a deep understanding of the evolving women’s rugby fanbase, we ensured the Red Roses’ journey was amplified at every stage – all the way through to that incredible moment at Allianz Stadium as they became world champions for the third time. Now it’s all about maintaining the momentum, educating and welcoming new fans while elevating output for our core audience.

Always-On & Insight-Led

Whether covering live matches, producing evergreen content, or advising on campaign direction, our approach has been rooted in actionable insights. We’ve used performance data to continually refine output, ensuring every piece of content contributes to long-term growth. Our hybrid role - part strategic partner, part embedded content team - has allowed England Rugby to move faster, think smarter and deliver work that resonates.

Results

Together we have achieved some incredible results:

England Rugby (2024-25 season)

• 46 million engagements
• 1.14 billion impressions
• 735 million video views
• Named Best Social Channel at the 2025 SportsPro Media Awards

Red Roses (March 2025 to November 2025)

• 141,000 new followers, expanding their fanbase significantly
• 7 million engagements, showcasing the appetite for women’s rugby stories
• 112 million video views, driven by responsive coverage of the Women’s Rugby World Cup

Together, these numbers reflect more than growth - they show how a refreshed digital strategy and always-on content operation can bring a traditional sport closer to a new generation of fans.