Harlequins Ladies renamed Harlequins Women

Harlequins has announced that approval has been granted to the Club to change the name of Harlequins Ladies to Harlequins Women.

In a move which further emphasises Harlequins strive for parity for the women’s game, the name change was initiated in order for the Club to be reflective of the current landscape across women’s sport and to support one of Harlequins’ key strategic focuses to achieve gender equality in the sport across both playing and administration.

In a statement, Harlequins said: "The Harlequins Ladies moniker will always be a key part of the Club’s history and heritage, but the focus now is on the future and providing equal opportunities for every female across the organisation alongside the delivery of excellence for the Harlequins Women’s players to enable them to achieve their potential."

Harlequins Head Coach Karen Findlay commented: “It’s fantastic that the Club has worked with the RFU to secure this change to our name; an imperative aspect for us as we enter the next phase of revolutionising our great sport.

“Our name is our identity, it’s what we stand for and what we are about. We have great strong female role models who are ambassadors for the game and who are significantly contributing to inspiring the next generation of female players coming through. It is therefore right that the name reflects that shared sense of purpose.”

The change will come into effect immediately.