Team USA rugby star Ilona Maher makes Bristol Bears debut in front of record home crowd


BRISTOL, England – American rugby star Ilona Maher made her debut for the Bristol Bears women’s team in front of a record crowd of 9,240 fans on Sunday.

But Maher, “the most followed rugby player on the planet”, could not prevent Bristol from losing 40-17 to defending champions Gloucester-Hartpury in a Women’s Rugby Premiership match.

He came on as a 61st minute substitute at Ashton Gate with Bristol trailing 28-10. Maher made his presence felt in a couple of rucks and looked for work from the wing, but was able to make little impact on the bigger picture in his 20 minutes on the field.

The previous record attendance for a Bristol women’s home match was 4,101 against Harlequins in May 2022. Such was the anticipation around Maher’s debut that Bristol moved the match from a smaller venue to Ashton Gate to meet demand of seats.

Bristol Bears’ Ilona Maher takes on Gloucester-Hartpury’s Rachel Lund on Sunday.Bob Bradford – CameraSport / CameraSport via Getty Images

Maher, 28, who helped lead the United States to the bronze medal in rugby sevens at the Paris Games, signed a three-month contract with Bristol in southwest England. He had begun training with Bristol in December when the team announced the signing before returning to the United States for the holidays.

Maher has over 8 million combined followers on Instagram and TikTok. He was a finalist on the television show “Dancing With The Stars.”

The Vermont native returns to 15-a-side soccer in hopes of boosting her chances of making the U.S. team for the 2025 Rugby World Cup in England. He can play on the wing or in the center.

Bristol also said the attendance was a record for an independent Premiership match. League leaders Harlequins said they set a women’s rugby club attendance record on December 28, when 18,055 fans watched the team beat Leicester Tigers 42-17 at Twickenham Stadium. That was not an independent party; was part of a doubleheader with the Harlequins men’s team.



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