British Premiership Women’s Rugby has a new star on the scene. Ilona Maher recently made her debut on British soil for the Bristol Bears. Her main motivation is to gain more practice in Rugby 15s rather than sevens, to partake in the 2025 Women’s Rugby World Cup for the USA. Maher’s presence both on and off the pitch is monumental, making shockwaves in the athletics community and on social media. She is the most followed rugby player ever, making her a household name. She is the star of not just women’s sport, but sport in general.
Who is Ilona Maher?
Maher is an American Rugby Union sevens player, competing for Team USA at the Tokyo and Paris Olympic Games. She recently branched into 15s due to her ambition to play for the USA Eagles in the Women’s Rugby World Cup, hosted by England, later this year.
Following in her father’s footsteps, Maher started to play Rugby at the age of 17 in college. She lead her team to three titles in the National Intercollegiate Rugby Association league and was even awarded the MA Sorensen Award for National Player of the Year in 2017. She competed at the Rugby World Cup Sevens in San Francisco in 2018, helping her earn her place on the squad for the Tokyo 2021 and Paris 2024 Olympic Games. Team USA’s 3rd place medal finish at Paris was the first medal won for the country in Rugby since the men’s team won gold in 1924. This medal was monumental for the team and Maher herself, pushing Women’s rugby into the spotlight.
Presence on and off the pitch
On the pitch, Maher is a powerhouse. Her driving force makes her a valuable player, consistently scoring tries and helping her teammates. Her experience in sevens has made her capable in the role of both centre and wing, ingraining versatility into her play. During the Paris Games, Maher scored tries in all three group matches, helping the team eventually win a bronze medal.
Her landmark move to the UK sees her playing for the Bristol Bears in their 15s team, providing her with good experience for the World Cup later this year. In her first match she came on as a substitute against Gloucester-Hartpury. Although the team were defeated, Maher’s presence on the pitch was monumental. Her first appearance in the starting line-up came in her second match for the team. Her try drove the team to victory against the Exeter Chiefs.
Her move to Bristol saw a rise in attendance at the team’s home fixtures. Her first match drew in a crowd of 9,240 spectators, more than doubling their attendance record of 4,101 in May 2022. It is clear her presence on the team is driving up interest in the sport and making a considerable impact. Maher commented on this increase in attendance, stating that: “It is great having all these record numbers, but what we want is for them to keep coming back for the next game. One and done is not enough”.
Off the pitch, her social media presence has catapulted her into fame allowing her to promote messages of body positivity, whilst dominating the game on the pitch. She first came into the public eye during the Tokyo Olympics, filming TikTok videos in the Olympic Village and giving a real insight into the day-to-day experience of the athletes.
Her popularity soared after the Paris Olympic Games. Forbes reported that Maher’s Instagram following grew from “580,000 to more than 2 million from June 30 to the end of August [this year], a 257% increase.” With over 4 million followers on Instagram and over 3 million on TikTok, it is clear that her content is loved by many and extremely influential.
Her popularity online stems largely from her messages of body positivity. She has been transparent with her experiences of bullying for appearing more ‘masculine’, learning to embrace her athletic physique, and promoting these through the hashtag #beastbeautybrains. The sheer number of hate-comments she faces on a day to day basis is appalling, which is exactly why she calls out the people who make the comments, proving to be a stellar role model to young girls and especially those who want to get into sports. In a viral TikTok she posted, Maher responded to a user who had calculated her BMI and called her overweight: “I am considered overweight. But alas, I’m going to the Olympics, and you’re not.”
Maher’s advocacy for body positivity makes her the perfect candidate to be a brand ambassador. She has partnerships with brands such as L’Oreal, New Era, Secret, and has just been announced as the first ever ambassador for skincare company Paula’s Choice. She has also co-founded Medalist, a new skincare brand.
Her brand celebrates “the power of your game and the glow of your skin. Whether you’re hitting the field, crushing it at the gym, or powering through your personal best, we know that being a female athlete means embracing strength in every aspect of your life- because we’ve been there. This really encapsulates everything that she stands for, building a brand rooted in body positivity and femininity whilst showcasing female sporting talent.
Her message is also seen in her choice to wear makeup on the pitch. In a sport that is typically considered extremely masculine, Maher seeks to celebrate her femininity by expressing herself through wearing lipstick whilst demonstrating her physicality on pitch. Her iconic bright red lip is a marker of her determination to break down the gender-based stereotypes involved with sport and rugby in particular.
In an interview with allure, Maher said: “I wear makeup [on the pitch] to give a big ‘eff you’ to having to sacrifice my femininity. Even while I wear lipstick or have mascara on, I can still tackle hard, run hard, and be a great rugby player. Lipstick is my way of saying how I feel, how I want to be presented.” Maher has faced criticism for this, with some deeming the move to wear makeup on the pitch as ‘not taking the sport seriously’. However, Maher has demonstrated that wearing makeup whilst playing rugby certainly does not detract from her talent on the pitch, and why would it?
Her social media presence has made her a role-model for many girls getting into sports, but for Maher, social media is a second job. She said, “[Men] get to play rugby and they get paid millions of dollars while we make minimum wage and this won’t be a career for us… I have teammates going into the workforce now, whereas these guys are down there and rugby’s it.” Her transparency with this reveals the obstacles women in sport face, showing just how much they need the endorsements and sponsorship deals.
Maher’s rise and growing influence on social media has been something of a marvel to witness. What began as a necessity to build an online brand for herself has now made her one of the most influential athletes of all time. I personally cannot wait to see what she can achieve on the pitch for the Bristol Bears and in the Rugby World Cup, all while maintaining her brand of body positivity and embracing her femininity in a masculine-stereotyped sport.
