England are on the verge of being named hosts of the 2025 women’s Rugby World Cup.
The country has been named as a "preferred candidate" by World Rugby and should it become official, it would mark the second time England will host the tournament since 2010.
Rugby Football Union chief executive Bill Sweeney is delighted for England to have an opportunity to stage the showpiece event.
He said: "Hosting it will be incredible. Our ambition is to stage the best attended women's RWC ever.”
The RFU will submit its final host bid to World Rugby in January, and Sweeney is hopeful that the 2025 tournament could be the most attended competition of its kind to date.
"Securing RWC 2025 would add to the impressive list of major sporting events that the UK has attracted since London 2012, reinforcing the UK's international reputation as a leading major events' destination and a global leader in promoting women's sport," he said after plans for a bid were confirmed on Friday.
"As well as providing great economic returns, hosting the tournament would help to further promote rugby as an inclusive sport and provide a springboard to narrow the gap between male and female participation."
It is estimated that the tournament could inject upwards of £156million into the economy, according to a recent study by Sheffield Hallam University’s Sport Industry Research Centre.
Since the event began in 1991, England have won the women's World Cup twice and lost in the final on five occasions.
The last rugby world cup to be held in England was the men’s edition in 2015, where the hosts failed to qualify for the knockout stages.
The next edition of the women's world cup, which was set to be held in New Zealand this year, will now go ahead in 2022 due to the coronavirus pandemic.
In the 2025 tournament, there will be more opportunities for teams to compete for the prestigious trophy, as the number of teams will increase from 12 to 16.
