{"id":694299,"date":"2025-11-14T19:15:37","date_gmt":"2025-11-14T16:15:37","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/?p=694299"},"modified":"2025-11-14T19:15:37","modified_gmt":"2025-11-14T16:15:37","slug":"hannah-botterman-and-georgia-evans-are-championing-queerness-in-rugby","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/?p=694299","title":{"rendered":"Hannah Botterman and Georgia Evans are championing queerness in rugby"},"content":{"rendered":"<article class=\"main-article standard \">\n<div class=\"article-main-content article-wrapper has-media-but-its-an-image\" data-status=\"loaded\" data-primary-article=\"true\" data-url=\"\/life-culture\/article\/69082\/1\/rugby-s-hannah-botterman-and-georgia-evans-on-the-world-cup-and-queerness\" data-article-id=\"69082\">\n<header class=\"article-header has-portrait-image no-media\">\n<div class=\"wrapper dg-max-width\">\n<div class=\"inner\">\n<figure class=\"main-img has-figcaption\" data-img-aspect-ratio-type=\"portrait\" data-img-aspect-ratio=\"0.67\" data-template=\"Standard Article\"><span class=\"has-css-custom-props image-container\" data-aspect-ratio-type=\"portrait\"><span class=\"preserve-aspect-ratio\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Hannah Botterman x Georgia Evans\" class=\"img\" height=\"2700\" src=\"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/1430780-1.jpg\" width=\"1800\" title=\"1430780-1\"><\/span><\/span><figcaption class=\"img-caption\"><span class=\"inner\"><span class=\"credit\">Photography Sandra Seaton. Courtesy of <span class=\"nowrap\">SLT Studios<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<aside class=\"meta\">\n<div class=\"inner\"><span class=\"month\">November<\/span>\u00a0<br \/>\n<span class=\"day\" data-day=\"14\">14,<\/span>\u00a0<br \/>\n<span class=\"year\">2025<\/span><\/div>\n<\/aside>\n<div class=\"titles\">\n<div class=\"tags\">\n<div class=\"sections\"><a class=\"category vertical - life-culture\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dazeddigital.com\/life-culture\">Life &amp; Culture<\/a><a class=\"series\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dazeddigital.com\/q-and-a\">Q+A<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<h1 class=\"title\"><span>Hannah Botterman and Georgia Evans are championing queerness <span class=\"nowrap\">in rugby<\/span><\/span><\/h1>\n<div class=\"standfirst\">\n<h2>The rugby stars \u2013 and couple \u2013 share about the 2025 World Cup, expressing their lesbian identities, and getting online hate for being too masc and <span class=\"nowrap\">too femme<\/span><\/h2>\n<\/div>\n<p><span class=\"month\">November<\/span>\u00a0<br \/>\n<span class=\"day\" data-day=\"14\">14,<\/span>\u00a0<br \/>\n<span class=\"year\">2025<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"tags\">\n<div class=\"sections\"><a class=\"category vertical - life-culture\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dazeddigital.com\/life-culture\">Life &amp; Culture<\/a><a class=\"series\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dazeddigital.com\/q-and-a\">Q+A<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"providers\">\n<div class=\"contributors\"><span class=\"contributor\" data-contributor-role=\"Text\"><span class=\"contributor-role\">Text<\/span><a class=\"contributor-name\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dazeddigital.com\/user\/Alex\">Alex Peters<\/a><\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/header>\n<div class=\"article-body-container\">\n<aside class=\"primary\">\n<div class=\"sticky bottom\">\n<div class=\"read-more\"><span class=\"read-more-header\">Read More<\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"read-more-items\">\n<div class=\"read-more-item vertical-life-culture\">\n<div class=\"read-more-item-link\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.dazeddigital.com\/life-culture\/article\/68983\/1\/so-excited-to-catch-up-culture-friendship-recaps-friends\" class=\"article-list-item-image\"><span class=\"image-container\" data-aspect-ratio-type=\"landscape\"><span class=\"preserve-aspect-ratio\"><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Sorry, Baby (Film still)\" class=\"img\" src=\"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/1429729-18.jpg\" title=\"1429729-18\"><\/span><\/span><\/a><\/p>\n<div class=\"read-more-item-content\"><a class=\"category\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dazeddigital.com\/life-culture\">Life &amp; Culture<\/a><a href=\"https:\/\/www.dazeddigital.com\/life-culture\/article\/68983\/1\/so-excited-to-catch-up-culture-friendship-recaps-friends\"><span class=\"title\">Are we caught in a culture of never-ending catch-ups?<\/span><\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"read-more-item vertical-event\">\n<div class=\"read-more-item-link\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.dazeddigital.com\/event\/article\/68701\/1\/joyride-cycle-berlin-dj-fuckoff\" class=\"article-list-item-image\"><span class=\"image-container\" data-aspect-ratio-type=\"landscape\"><span class=\"preserve-aspect-ratio\"><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Editorial-Header-01\" class=\"img\" src=\"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/1424402-1.jpg\" title=\"1424402-1\"><\/span><\/span><\/a><\/p>\n<div class=\"read-more-item-content\"><a class=\"category\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dazeddigital.com\/event\">Event<\/a><a href=\"https:\/\/www.dazeddigital.com\/event\/article\/68701\/1\/joyride-cycle-berlin-dj-fuckoff\"><span class=\"title\">Berlin! Sign up to attend our city takeover with VanMoof<\/span><\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"read-more-item vertical-life-culture\">\n<div class=\"read-more-item-link\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.dazeddigital.com\/life-culture\/article\/69080\/1\/scientists-ask-what-if-we-made-computers-out-of-human-brains-biocomputer-neurons\" class=\"article-list-item-image\"><span class=\"image-container\" data-aspect-ratio-type=\"landscape\"><span class=\"preserve-aspect-ratio\"><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Guillermo Del Toro&#039;s Frankenstein (2025)\" class=\"img\" src=\"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/1430723-2.jpg\" title=\"1430723-2\"><\/span><\/span><\/a><\/p>\n<div class=\"read-more-item-content\"><a class=\"category\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dazeddigital.com\/life-culture\">Life &amp; Culture<\/a><a href=\"https:\/\/www.dazeddigital.com\/life-culture\/article\/69080\/1\/scientists-ask-what-if-we-made-computers-out-of-human-brains-biocomputer-neurons\"><span class=\"title\">Scientists are now making computers out of human brains<\/span><\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/aside>\n<div class=\"article-body wrapper\">\n<div class=\"dazed-gallery has-12-images \">\n<div class=\"inner\">\n<header>\n<div class=\"info\"><span class=\"heading\">Hannah Botterman x Georgia Evans x <span class=\"nowrap\">SLT Studios<\/span><\/span><\/div>\n<\/header>\n<div class=\"gallery\">\n<div class=\"gallery-thumbs\">\n<div class=\"gallery-thumb\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.dazeddigital.com\/life-culture\/gallery\/36318\/0\/hannah-botterman-x-georgia-evans-x-slt-studios\"><span class=\"has-css-custom-props image-container\" data-aspect-ratio-type=\"landscape\"><span class=\"preserve-aspect-ratio\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Hannah Botterman x Georgia Evans\" class=\"img\" height=\"1200\" src=\"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/1430779.jpg\" width=\"1800\" title=\"1430779\"><\/span><\/span><\/a><\/div>\n<div class=\"gallery-thumb\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.dazeddigital.com\/life-culture\/gallery\/36318\/1\/hannah-botterman-x-georgia-evans-x-slt-studios\"><span class=\"has-css-custom-props image-container\" data-aspect-ratio-type=\"landscape\"><span class=\"preserve-aspect-ratio\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Hannah Botterman x Georgia Evans\" class=\"img\" height=\"1200\" src=\"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/1430773.jpg\" width=\"1800\" title=\"1430773\"><\/span><\/span><\/a><\/div>\n<div class=\"gallery-thumb\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.dazeddigital.com\/life-culture\/gallery\/36318\/2\/hannah-botterman-x-georgia-evans-x-slt-studios\"><span class=\"has-css-custom-props image-container\" data-aspect-ratio-type=\"landscape\"><span class=\"preserve-aspect-ratio\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Hannah Botterman x Georgia Evans\" class=\"img\" height=\"1200\" src=\"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/1430770.jpg\" width=\"1800\" title=\"1430770\"><\/span><\/span><\/a><\/div>\n<div class=\"gallery-thumb\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.dazeddigital.com\/life-culture\/gallery\/36318\/3\/hannah-botterman-x-georgia-evans-x-slt-studios\"><span class=\"has-css-custom-props image-container\" data-aspect-ratio-type=\"landscape\"><span class=\"preserve-aspect-ratio\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Hannah Botterman x Georgia Evans\" class=\"img\" height=\"1200\" src=\"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/1430775.jpg\" width=\"1800\" title=\"1430775\"><\/span><\/span><\/a><\/div>\n<div class=\"gallery-thumb\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.dazeddigital.com\/life-culture\/gallery\/36318\/4\/hannah-botterman-x-georgia-evans-x-slt-studios\"><span class=\"has-css-custom-props image-container\" data-aspect-ratio-type=\"landscape\"><span class=\"preserve-aspect-ratio\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Hannah Botterman x Georgia Evans\" class=\"img\" height=\"1200\" src=\"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/1430778.jpg\" width=\"1800\" title=\"1430778\"><\/span><\/span><\/a><\/div>\n<div class=\"gallery-thumb\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.dazeddigital.com\/life-culture\/gallery\/36318\/5\/hannah-botterman-x-georgia-evans-x-slt-studios\"><span class=\"has-css-custom-props image-container\" data-aspect-ratio-type=\"landscape\"><span class=\"preserve-aspect-ratio\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Hannah Botterman x Georgia Evans\" class=\"img\" height=\"1200\" src=\"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/1430781.jpg\" width=\"1800\" title=\"1430781\"><\/span><\/span><\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"gallery-footer\">Gallery \/ 12 images<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"embed-content\" data-embed-type=\"raw-html\">\n<p><span>It\u2019s been a big year for women\u2019s sports in the UK. Not only did the <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.dazeddigital.com\/tag\/lionesses\"><span>Lionesses<\/span><\/a><span> win their second Euros in a row, beating favourites Spain in a nail-biting final penalty shoot-out, but the Red Roses, England\u2019s women\u2019s rugby team, took victory in the Rugby World Cup finals to become champions for a third time. The match was played in front of a <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/sport\/2025\/sep\/27\/england-outclass-canada-to-capture-glorious-womens-rugby-world-cup-triumph\"><span>world-record crowd of 81,885<\/span><\/a><span>, and the tournament enjoyed unprecedented attendance numbers and TV viewership. It\u2019s expected the win will <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/sport\/2025\/oct\/23\/premiership-womens-rugby-capitalise-increased-interest-world-cup-england-red-roses\"><span>bring a boost of popularity<\/span><\/a><span> to women\u2019s rugby similar to that experienced by the WSL after the Lionesses victory.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>Two of the players on the pitch during the tournament were England\u2019s <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/hannahbotts_\/?hl=en\"><span>Hannah Botterman<\/span><\/a><span> and Wales player <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/georgiaemilyyx\/?hl=en\"><span>Georgia Evans<\/span><\/a><span>. Though on opposing sides, when the whistle blows the pair are in a relationship, and they were among the over <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.autostraddle.com\/every-out-queer-player-in-the-2025-womens-rugby-world-cup\/\"><span>50 openly queer athletes<\/span><\/a><span> across the 16 teams that participated in the World Cup. Like <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.dazeddigital.com\/life-culture\/article\/68148\/1\/5-lioness-fans-on-what-makes-the-womens-football-community-so-special-nike\"><span>many communities within women\u2019s sports<\/span><\/a><span>, rugby is a space that welcomes and celebrates queer women, and over the years it has offered both Botterman and Evans acceptance and solidarity. \u201cWithin the rugby community, anything goes. It doesn\u2019t matter who you are, how you present, no one cares,\u201d says Botterman, who also plays for the Bristol Bears. \u201cEveryone can express themselves how they want to express themselves and know there\u2019s going to be no judgment.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>However, with increased public attention to the sport has also come attention from those infamously angry and miserable online commentators. From criticising Botterman for looking too masculine to attacking Evans\u2019s signature pink bows to such an extent that both <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.bbc.com\/sport\/rugby-union\/articles\/cn5e5lr9e0zo\"><span>Evans<\/span><\/a><span> and the <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.bbc.com\/sport\/rugby-union\/articles\/cm21520dp9yo\"><span>Wales team<\/span><\/a><span> had to make statements condemning the abuse, it seems no way of presenting on the pitch was acceptable for some people. \u201cNon-rugby fans are often surprised when they meet me. I\u2019m like, \u2018what do you expect a rugby player to look like?\u2019 It\u2019s always a challenge being taken seriously as a femme-presenting rugby player, but I hope this changes as time goes on,\u201d says Evans, who plays for Saracens. \u201cNobody fits into one box.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>To champion their identities as lesbians and, respectively, a butch and a femme, Botterman and Evans are starring in a campaign for SLT Studio launching a new ring collection. <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.dazeddigital.com\/beauty\/article\/63058\/1\/i-kissed-a-girl-amy-spalding-give-a-vampy-make-up-tutorial\"><span>Amy Spalding<\/span><\/a><span>\u2019s brand became <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.dazeddigital.com\/fashion\/article\/65190\/1\/lesbian-fashion-has-a-new-cult-accessory-amy-spalding-rings-dykonic-times\"><span>famous for its Dyke rings<\/span><\/a><span> \u2013 a must-have accessory among lesbian circles \u2013 and now we have even more options for wearing our identities loud and proud on our hands. Below, the two athletes discuss the 2025 World Cup, expressing their lesbian identities, and dealing with the online hate.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<figure class=\"inline-img expandable dev-view-hide\" data-img=\"98f87360-7e8f-4d0b-8d26-b39500c2311c\" data-src=\"https:\/\/images-prod.dazeddigital.com\/2000\/azure\/dazed-prod\/1430\/0\/1430771.jpg\" data-img-aspect-ratio-type=\"square\" data-img-aspect-ratio=\"1\"><span class=\"has-css-custom-props image-container\" data-aspect-ratio-type=\"square\"><span class=\"preserve-aspect-ratio\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Hannah Botterman x Georgia Evans\" class=\"img\" height=\"2000\" src=\"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/1430771.jpg\" width=\"2000\" title=\"1430771\"><\/span><\/span><figcaption class=\"img-caption\"><span class=\"caption\">Creative director &amp; producer Amy Spalding &amp; Rupert McMinn, styling Gareth Valentino, hair Dan Adams, make-up <span class=\"nowrap\">Grace Macartney<\/span><\/span><span class=\"credit\">Photography Sandra Seaton. Courtesy of <span class=\"nowrap\">SLT Studios<\/span><\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<div class=\"embed-content\" data-embed-type=\"raw-html\">\n<h1>Hannah Botterman<\/h1>\n<p><strong>You\u2019ve had an incredible year with the Red Roses: you helped England win this year\u2019s World Cup and bring home the gold trophy, in a record-breaking final and momentous achievement for Women\u2019s Sport \u2013 talk to us about that!<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>Hannah Botterman:<\/strong><span> It was honestly one of the most insane experiences I\u2019ve ever had in my whole entire life. The final selling out Twickenham Allianz, the whole atmosphere and then all the days that came after. It wasn\u2019t just the day itself. We had such a good time throughout the whole journey to then win it at the end, at home in front of a home crowd was just honestly insane.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><strong>How does it feel to not only be a world champion but to be a part of the turning point for women\u2019s sport?<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>Hannah Botterman:<\/strong><span> It\u2019s really nice to see how much all the different women\u2019s sports champion each other. We were super into watching the football and cheering the girls on, and the cricket girls are at a World Cup right now. During our World Cup the support that we felt from other female sports people was insane. I think something that\u2019s so special about women\u2019s sport is that it\u2019s so intertwined and everyone champions everyone. It\u2019s a real special community to be a part of.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><strong>Does doing all of this as an out and proud queer woman make a difference?<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>Hannah Botterman:<\/strong><span> This tournament, I\u2019ve received so much love, like so much love, and I think people being able to see that \u2013 like let\u2019s say a younger me, ten, 15 years ago, that maybe wanted to chop their hair off a bit earlier but didn\u2019t, who was scared of so many things. Seeing someone that looks like me being celebrated so openly, that\u2019s pretty important for the younger generation.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><strong>How have you expressed your queerness?<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><span><strong>Hannah Botterman:<\/strong> I had real long hair until I was like 16, and then I went past the Super Cuts and was just like, take it off. The only thing though, I can\u2019t go to the toilet by myself in public. I\u2019ve had some not particularly nice experiences going into women\u2019s toilets because people assume I\u2019m a man for some reason. I get super anxious about that, so I don\u2019t do that. So I\u2019m always like, \u2018Do you need the toilet? Anyone? Anyone need a toilet?\u2019 All of my close friends will know and they\u2019ll just be like, \u2018I\u2019m going to the toilet now. Do you want to go?\u2019<\/span><\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p><span>Seeing someone that looks like me being celebrated so openly, that\u2019s pretty important for the younger generation.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"embed-content\" data-embed-type=\"raw-html\">\n<p><strong>Does your masc presentation ever cause problems in the rugby world?<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>Hannah Botterman:<\/strong><span> I just get a lot of, I don\u2019t even know if you can even call it hate. But you know, \u2018I thought this was the women\u2019s team.\u2019 I get so much of that on TikTok and Instagram, there\u2019s constantly comments about me being a man. People will always have something to say. There will be someone somewhere that has something to say because you\u2019re too feminine or because you\u2019re too masculine.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><strong>What do you love most about the culture and community of women\u2019s rugby?<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>Hannah Botterman:<\/strong><span> Within the rugby community, anything goes. It literally doesn\u2019t matter who you are, how you present, no one cares. And it is so refreshing that everyone within that space doesn\u2019t care. Everyone can express themselves how they want to express themselves and know there\u2019s going to be no judgment from their peers. How I feel in a rugby setting, on a rugby pitch, is the most comfortable I feel. You can just be yourself, and it doesn\u2019t matter what you look like. The same goes for the queer community.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><strong>Do you ever feel there\u2019s a disconnect between how you\u2019re perceived on the pitch versus off?<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>Hannah Botterman:<\/strong><span> Body image-wise, being a larger person allows me to do my job well. But within society, that\u2019s not deemed what people find attractive. Coming to terms with that has taken a long time and it\u2019s not just me, like for a lot of the girls within the team also.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<figure class=\"inline-img expandable dev-view-hide\" data-img=\"903a444a-9bfb-4093-a777-b39500c23943\" data-src=\"https:\/\/images-prod.dazeddigital.com\/1800\/azure\/dazed-prod\/1430\/0\/1430774.jpg\" data-img-aspect-ratio-type=\"portrait\" data-img-aspect-ratio=\"0.67\"><span class=\"has-css-custom-props image-container\" data-aspect-ratio-type=\"portrait\"><span class=\"preserve-aspect-ratio\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Hannah Botterman x Georgia Evans\" class=\"img\" height=\"2700\" src=\"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/1430774.jpg\" width=\"1800\" title=\"1430774\"><\/span><\/span><figcaption class=\"img-caption\"><span class=\"caption\">Creative director &amp; producer Amy Spalding &amp; Rupert McMinn, styling Gareth Valentino, hair Dan Adams, make-up <span class=\"nowrap\">Grace Macartney<\/span><\/span><span class=\"credit\">Photography Sandra Seaton. Courtesy of <span class=\"nowrap\">SLT Studios<\/span><\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<div class=\"embed-content\" data-embed-type=\"raw-html\">\n<h1><strong>Georgia Evans<\/strong><\/h1>\n<p><strong>You recently came under fire for wearing bows and make-up on the pitch \u2013 can you tell us a little bit about that?<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>Georgia Evans:<\/strong><span> When I was in the World Cup just before the Canada game, I wore two big pink bows on the top of my hair, as I always do for every game. After that, a picture went around social media and there was just troll after troll after troll talking about what I looked like \u2013 my make-up, the bows in my hair \u2013 that I should focus more on the rugby. Horrid comments that were just really derogatory, putting me down for my appearance.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>I made a statement about it afterwards, and oh my God, did I not realise how much it would blow up. People from across the world, saying I stand with G. At the next game against Fiji, you had all the stewards, all the young girls and boys wearing big pink bows. I don\u2019t get emotional very often but I got off the bus and I just couldn\u2019t stop myself from shedding tears.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>The bow for me, represents my femininity, being in such a male-dominated sport and keeping that part of me shining. It\u2019s all just about self-expression and being yourself on the pitch. No matter what, there\u2019s always a space for you. Whether it\u2019s in rugby, or any other sport.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><strong>How did the hate make you feel?<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>Georgia Evans:<\/strong><span> It was disappointment. Because Wales weren\u2019t doing well, people were trying to find any reason to blame it on something, and it just came back to my appearance. But then, within minutes of me putting that post out I had to stop going on social media because it was just blowing up. I couldn\u2019t quite get over the amount of messages: the love was incredible. To all the haters that say I can\u2019t wear bows on the pitch, fuck you!<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<figure class=\"inline-img expandable dev-view-hide\" data-img=\"bc9526a4-a9be-4f23-8270-b39500c2698e\" data-src=\"https:\/\/images-prod.dazeddigital.com\/1800\/azure\/dazed-prod\/1430\/0\/1430781.jpg\" data-img-aspect-ratio-type=\"portrait\" data-img-aspect-ratio=\"0.67\"><span class=\"has-css-custom-props image-container\" data-aspect-ratio-type=\"portrait\"><span class=\"preserve-aspect-ratio\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Hannah Botterman x Georgia Evans\" class=\"img\" height=\"2700\" src=\"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/1430781-1.jpg\" width=\"1800\" title=\"1430781-1\"><\/span><\/span><figcaption class=\"img-caption\"><span class=\"caption\">Creative director &amp; producer Amy Spalding &amp; Rupert McMinn, styling Gareth Valentino, hair Dan Adams, make-up <span class=\"nowrap\">Grace Macartney<\/span><\/span><span class=\"credit\">Photography Sandra Seaton. Courtesy of <span class=\"nowrap\">SLT Studios<\/span><\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<div class=\"embed-content\" data-embed-type=\"raw-html\">\n<p><strong>How was your coming out journey?<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>Georgia Evans:<\/strong><span> I had no idea I was gay until I had my first girlfriend, so it was a shock to everybody, including myself. Here I am ten years later! All the way through school I had boyfriends and I slept with boys. But when I started playing rugby, I got into my first lesbian relationship. I had some trouble when I came out with my family, but after that had settled and we were on good terms, I\u2019ve always been happy and open about being a lesbian, and it\u2019s something that I don\u2019t hide.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><strong>Do you think being a femme presenting rugby player makes people underestimate you?<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>Georgia Evans:<\/strong><span> A lot of the time you get comments, \u2018you play like a girl\u2019. I don\u2019t understand what playing like a girl means, because to me that means that I am doing something really cool, really strong. I\u2019m being the best athlete that I can be.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>I do get underestimated a lot because I\u2019m girly and I\u2019m wearing a big pink bow and I\u2019m wearing make-up, and that does change how people look at me. If you watch the full 80 minutes of me playing, your opinion will quickly change. If the bow is what offends people, but it makes people watch, keep watching because I\u2019m still going to be on at the 80th minute and you&#8217;ll see what I can do.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><strong>Advice for femme-presenting queer women?<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>Georgia Evans:<\/strong><span> It\u2019s so important to be confident and happy as who you are. A lot of people think of gay women in one specific way, and I think it\u2019s important that young girls growing up can see that you don\u2019t have to fit into that box. There can be femme lesbians, and you can be however you express yourself.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>I express myself the same way on and off the pitch: it\u2019s part of who I am. My identity involves me wearing a big pink bow and making sure that my femininity stays at the forefront of everything I do in a male-dominated sport. If I can just show that one young girl that she doesn\u2019t have to change who she is, whatever space she wants to fill. There\u2019s always gonna be space for her.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<footer class=\"article-footer\">\n<div class=\"wrapper\">\n<div class=\"article-series\">\n<h4 class=\"heading\">More on these topics<\/h4>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"article-series\"><a class=\"series\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dazeddigital.com\/life-culture\">Life &amp; Culture<\/a><a class=\"series\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dazeddigital.com\/q-and-a\">Q+A<\/a><a class=\"series\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dazeddigital.com\/tag\/sport\">Sport<\/a><a class=\"series\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dazeddigital.com\/tag\/queer-women\">queer women<\/a><a class=\"series\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dazeddigital.com\/tag\/lgbt\">LGBTQ+<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/footer>\n<div class=\"grid\">\n<div class=\"lava-lamp\">\n<div class=\"lava-lamp-text-container\">\n<h3 class=\"lava-lamp-subheading\">Expand your creative community and connect with 15,000 creatives from around the world.<\/h3>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"grid 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Courtesy of SLT Studios November\u00a0 14,\u00a0 2025 Life &amp; CultureQ+A Hannah Botterman and Georgia Evans are championing queerness in rugby The rugby stars \u2013 and couple \u2013 share about the 2025 World Cup, expressing their lesbian identities, and getting online hate for being too masc and too femme November\u00a0 14,\u00a0 2025 Life [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":694300,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[76],"class_list":["post-694299","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-politics","tag-dazeddigital-com"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/694299","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=694299"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/694299\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/694300"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=694299"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=694299"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=694299"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}