New Zealand celebrate winning the 2017 Women's Rugby World Cup. Photo / INPHO/Dan Sheridan
The World Champion Black Ferns will play at Chicago's Soldier Field for the first time as they join the Maori All Blacks, the USA Eagles, Italy and Ireland in a triple-header in November.
The NFL stadium will host three international rugby matches over the course of one day, featuring the
USA Rugby Men's and Women's Eagles taking on the Maori All Blacks and the champion Black Ferns respectively. Six Nations Champions Ireland return to Chicago to take on Italy.
The match will be an historic one for the Black Ferns who will run out on North American soil for the very first time, reinforcing the rapidly growing interest in women's rugby worldwide.
New Zealand Rugby Chief Rugby Officer Nigel Cass said: "This is going to be a very special weekend for rugby and for New Zealand. Our teams, sponsors and supporters have enjoyed wonderful experiences with previous fixtures featuring the All Blacks and Maori All Blacks in Chicago, so we are excited to be able to bring our Women's Rugby World Cup champions, the Black Ferns, to be part of such a wonderful spectacle of rugby.
"These matches will be a fantastic way to kick off end of year campaigns for both teams."
Match times (November 3):
12pm: USA Eagles (W) v Black Ferns
3pm: Ireland v Italy
5:15pm: USA Eagles (M) v Maori All Blacks
