Breast Cancer Now teams up with Premiership Women’s Rugby to tackle breast cancer

Leading research and support charity Breast Cancer Now has teamed up with Premiership Women’s Rugby to kick off an exciting new charity partnership – a first for PWR - for the 2025/26 season.

With over 400 elite players from across the globe, a devoted team of England’s elite female rugby professionals and an ever-growing fanbase, PWR is perfectly placed to share Breast Cancer Now’s vital TLC: Touch, Look, Check messaging about breast checking and the signs and symptoms of breast cancer far and wide on and off the pitch, among its players and supporters.

Through the partnership, Breast Cancer Now will lead and engage the crowd with half-time TLC activations, encouraging everyone to ‘get to know their normal’.

Every 10 minutes a woman is told ‘you have breast cancer’ and one man is diagnosed each day in the UK* - if nothing changes by 2040, a woman will be diagnosed every 8 minutes. Around two thirds of breast cancers in England are found when a woman detects an unusual breast change and gets this checked by a GP**. Yet fewer than half (44%) of women surveyed (YouGov, July 2025) check their breasts regularly and over one in 10 (11%) have never checked their breasts at all***.

Claire Rowney, chief executive at Breast Cancer Now commented:

“As we gear up for the Women’s Rugby World Cup, we’re proud to be Premiership Women’s Rugby first charity partner over the upcoming rugby season. Joining forces to tackle breast cancer, we’re calling on PWR players and supporters to know the signs and symptoms of breast cancer and to ‘get to know their normal’ with the help of our TLC: Touch, Look, Check campaign.

“In the UK, a woman is diagnosed with breast cancer every 10 minutes and a man every day - and if nothing changes by 2040, a woman will be diagnosed every 8 minutes.

“We know early detection can save lives from breast cancer, and so raising awareness of the importance of regular breast checking and knowing the signs and symptoms of the disease is a vital step to breast cancer being diagnosed early, when treatment is most likely to be successful.

“Our fantastic new partnership will not only share vital Touch, Look, Check messages among PWR players and their 5 million devoted fans, helping ensure breast cancer is detected sooner, it’ll also remind anyone affected by this devastating disease that we’re here, and raise vital funds for our lifesaving research and life-changing support. We're here to make sure that by 2050 everyone diagnosed with breast cancer lives, and is supported to live well, and this partnership will help us achieve this.”

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Genevieve Shore, executive chair at Premiership Women’s Rugby commented:

"We are incredibly proud to welcome Breast Cancer Now as the official charity partner of Premiership Women's Rugby.

"Hearing the statistic that a woman is diagnosed with breast cancer every 10 minutes is a stark reminder of the need to continue supporting charities like Breast Cancer Now. Together with our athletes, fans and clubs we will tackle breast cancer by raising the all-important funds they need to continue the amazing work they do.”

"The second half of 2025 is going to be transformative for rugby in this country, with the biggest Women's Rugby World Cup in history just around the corner. We will be using this momentum to share the important message that breast cancer can be detected sooner and lives can potentially be saved."

The partnership will launch on Friday 22 August with a watch party in London, for the first match of the Women’s Rugby World Cup between England and the USA, and attendees will be invited to donate to Breast Cancer Now.

Wide-ranging activations will take place throughout the season to engage people with potentially lifesaving breast health messaging and raise vital funds for the charity’s work. This will include fans being invited to donate to Breast Cancer Now when buying PWR tickets, engaging social content from PWR and Breast Cancer Now and prominence for the partnership at matches where fans will be invited to donate.

Activations will culminate over a weekend in May 2026 when all 9 PWR rugby clubs will join to shine a spotlight on the partnership to raise further awareness and funds for Breast Cancer Now.

It’s time to give your breasts some TLC – breastcancernow.org/checking