"England's First Opponents" - 5 Stars to Watch: USA team for 2025 Women's World Cup

On paper, John Mitchell's side are amongst the favourites for the trophy, stacked with depth and driven by unfinished business as New Zealand defend the title. But if there’s one thing World Cups teach us, it’s to never write off the Americans. The Eagles thrive on the underdog tag, champions in 1991 and finalists twice more, the USA arrive in Sunderland dreaming of an upset to shake the tournament to its core.

We’ve picked out five USA stars to watch — and yes, Ilona Maher makes the list (how could she not?), but there are four more names you need to know before kick-off at 19:30 this Friday.

If there’s one player who embodies the relentless spirit of USA Rugby, it’s Kate Zackary. The Wichita-born powerhouse didn’t grow up with a rugby ball in hand, in fact it was quite far from it. Zackary was a decorated soccer star at Benedictine College, earning accolades for her sharp footwork and explosive athleticism. But fate intervened late in her college career, when she stumbled upon rugby. Within a handful of years, that casual encounter had turned into a Test level calling.

By 2015, Zackary was pulling on the stars-and-stripes jersey for the Women’s Eagles Sevens, winning silver at the Pan-American Games. A year later, Zackary stepped into 15s, and quickly became a central figure in the national team setup. The transition from sevens was seamless, the same raw tenacity and leadership that made her a standout on the sevens pitch, translated into bone-crunching carries and ferocious breakdown work in the back row.

What makes Zackary special isn’t just her physicality, although she can blast through the tightest of defences, but her sheer leadership. Appointed captain of USA in 2018, she has guided a generation of Eagles through both triumphs and heartbreaks, from Women's Rugby World Cup campaigns to trans-Atlantic test battles, Zackary is more than leader by title; the back row sets the example, dives into rucks with no regard for her saftey and tackles like her life depends on it. Zackary is always the first to rally up her teammates when backs are against the wall.

Her club career has only sharpened her edge. After making waves with Exeter Chiefs throughout a three-year stint in Devon, Zackary joined Trailfinders Women in 2023 and brought her trademark grit to London. Week in, week out, she matches up against the best in the PWR and thrives on the challenge, sharpening her game in one of the world’s most competitive leagues.

Now 36-years-old, Zackary arrives at the 2025 Rugby World Cup in England as the heartbeat of the Eagles pack. With over 45 test caps, multiple World Cup appearances, and an unshakeable reputation as a warrior-leader, she remains the one player USA cannot do without. Expect her to set the standard, marshal the troops, and, as she has for a decade, give every last ounce for the jersey. A captain, a talisman, a trailblazer, Kate Zackary is ready for one more defining chapter before hanging up the boots.

Few athletes in world rugby command the spotlight quite like Ilona Maher. A thunderous ball-carrier on the pitch and a cultural icon off it, Maher has become one of the most recognisable figures in all of sport, never mind rugby. Maher's rugby story began at 17, when she swapped softball for the unknown world of union. Within a few years, Maher was rewriting the script for what an American rugby star could look like.

At Quinnipiac University, she became a collegiate juggernaut. Three national titles, All-American honours, and the prestigious MA Sorensen Award in 2017 cemented her as the best women’s player in the college game. Her blend of speed, size, and sheer competitiveness marked her out as a generational talent. By 2018, she was donning the USA jersey in sevens, scoring tries in Paris, and earning selection for the Rugby World Cup Sevens on home soil in San Francisco.

Maher is now a two-time Olympian, having represented Team USA at Tokyo 2020 before powering her way to a historic bronze medal in Paris 2024. That tournament showed the world her devastating carrying game with tries in every pool match, line breaks against the best defences in the sport, and a fearless edge that lit up the Stade de France.

But what makes Maher a true star is her reach beyond rugby. With millions of social media followers, a Sports Illustrated swimsuit cover, a Forbes 30 Under 30 nod, and a dazzling run to the final of Dancing With The Stars, she has taken rugby into living rooms across America like never before. She has become the sport’s most visible advocate for body positivity, inclusivity, and female athleticism, shattering stereotypes with every post and every carry.

In late 2024, Maher signed with Bristol Bears and made an immediate impact in the Premiership Women’s Rugby. Demand for tickets to her debut was so intense, the club had to move the game from Shaftesbury Park to Ashton Gate, to set a PWR attendance record of 9,240. Now, heading into the 2025 Rugby World Cup in England, Maher arrives as both an on-field wrecking ball and off-field pioneer.

Every front row needs a stalwart, and for the USA, that is Charli Jacoby. The 35-year-old prop has lived a rugby journey as unconventional as it is inspiring. From competitive cheerleader to World Cup anchor, Jacoby’s story is proof that resilience and grit can shape world-class players in unexpected ways.

It all began at Kent State University, where Jacoby was spotted mid-cheer practice by rugby players who saw her raw strength and suggested she’d thrive in the scrum. They weren’t wrong. Within weeks she was hooked, swapping pom-poms for breakdowns, and set off on a path that would eventually lead to Eagles honours. By 2019, she had earned her first cap against England in the Super Series, it was a baptism of fire against one of the most feared packs in women’s rugby.

Jacoby cut her teeth in the American domestic scene, captaining Chicago North Shore and earning selections to the WPL All-Stars and Dream Team in back-to-back seasons. Her powerful scrummaging and uncompromising work ethic caught international eyes, leading to stints abroad with Loughborough Lightning and later the Exeter Chiefs in the Premier 15s. In 2024, she broke new ground as the first American to play in Australia’s Super Rugby Women’s competition with the Queensland Reds, in trailblazing move for USA rugby.

As a coach for the Illinois Collegiate All-Stars and a third-grade teacher back home, Jacoby brings the same stoic patience and determination to the classroom as she does to the pitch. Her teammates describe her as the heartbeat of the squad, a player who leads with actions as much as words, whether it’s grinding through set-piece battles or mentoring the next generation of Eagles.

Now set for her second Rugby World Cup, Jacoby embodies everything that makes the USA dangerous. The front rower is tough, battle-hardened, and ready to pack down against the Red Roses this Friday. b Jacoby is also proof that rugby’s pathways are wide open, that a cheerleader with courage and conviction can transform into a world-class prop. When the scrum engages against England in Sunderland expect Jacoby to be right in the thick of it, driving the Eagles forward one shove at a time.

Few athletes in world rugby boast a résumé as as fascinating as Leyla Alev Kelter. At 34, the Eagles centre is a living embodiment of American sporting grit; a three-time Olympian, dual-sport star, and a player whose sheer determination has carried her from the ice rinks of Alaska to the grandest rugby stages.

Raised in Eagle River, Alaska, Kelter cut her teeth not in rugby, but as a trailblazer in ice hockey and soccer. She captained the USA U18 Ice hockey team to World Championship gold, pulled on the national soccer jersey, and came within a hair of making the Winter Olympics before fate nudged her towards rugby. By 2014, she was at the Olympic Training Centre in Chula Vista, and just months later, she was making her Sevens Series debut in Guangzhou.

What followed was a career defined by versatility and excellence. In Sevens, Kelter has been the Eagles’ talisman, their highest points scorer and one of only two players in history to represent the USA in three Olympics (Rio, Tokyo, Paris). A Pan Am Games silver, an Olympic bronze, and a Finals MVP award in Premier Rugby Sevens cement her status as a generational talent.

In XVs, Kelter has been just as vital. Debuting against France in 2016, the centre driove the USA to a World Cup semi-final in 2017, and Kelter now prepares for yet another tilt at glory in 2025. But Kelter’s career has also carried its share of fire and controversy. In May 2025, she made headlines for the wrong reasons after a red card against Australia was branded as “thuggery” by critics. Yet even that flashpoint speaks to her uncompromising intensity, as Kelter never drifts through games, she throws herself in with full conviction.

Beyond the pitch, her story is no less compelling: the Alaskan hopeful who moved homes endlessly with her military family, the twin who shared every sporting battle and the trendsetter who became the first woman to play boys’ varsity ice hockey in her state. Most recently, the athlete who found love at the Paris Olympics, and celebrated an engagement to fellow rugby player Kathryn Treder. For the USA, Kelter remains the workhorse, an athlete of rare pedigree, relentless drive, and a flair for the spectacular. Expect fireworks this Friday against England.

At just 26 years old, Emerson Allen is about to live the dream that every American rugby player dares to chase, as she pulls on the Eagles jersey at a Women’s Rugby World Cup. From Golden Valley, Minnesota, to the bright lights of the global stage, Allen’s story is one of relentless work ethic and an unshakable belief in her own potential.

Like so many USA internationals, Allen wasn’t born into rugby, as the lock found it almost by chance. A multi-sport athlete, she stumbled into the game at a college fair while at Eckerd College. What started as a curiosity quickly turned into obsession. Within months, Allen was dominating scrums and lineouts, with her areal athleticism making her an instant standout. The decision to transfer to Life University (Georgia) in 2019 was the turning point, there, Allen honed her craft in the engine room and earned Collegiate All-American honours, to catch the eye of USA Rugby’s High Performance coaches.

Allen’s rise through the pathway has been steady and determined. From the USA U23s in 2021 and 2022 to Falcon (USA 2nd Team) tours of Brazil, Allen earned every call-up the hard way. Her reward came in August 2024, when she finally made her senior international debut against Japan. Two caps later, she’s heading into a Rugby World Cup with her nation’s hopes on her shoulders, and the lineout firmly under her command.

What makes Allen so exciting is not just her raw athleticism, but her composure and work rate. At 6’2” she’s a towering presence in the air, but it’s her engine around the park that has Leicester Tigers convinced they’ve signed one of rugby’s rising stars for the post-World Cup era. Off the field, she’s refreshingly grounded. Whether crocheting to unwind, hiking the Minnesota trails, or working as a personal trainer, Allen is proof that elite athletes can remain deeply connected to real life. But make no mistake: when the whistle blows in England, she’s all business.

A first World Cup, a fresh professional chapter with Leicester, and the chance to cement her place in USA rugby history, Emerson Allen’s journey is only just beginning.