Hollie Davidson

Hollie Davidson
Davidson in 2023
Born (1992-09-19) 19 September 1992
Aboyne, Scotland
Height1.65 m (5 ft 5 in)
SchoolAboyne Academy
UniversityUniversity of Edinburgh
OccupationRugby union referee
Rugby union career
Position Scrum half
Amateur team(s)
Years Team Apps (Points)
- Murrayfield Wanderers
– Edinburgh University RFC
International career
Years Team Apps (Points)
2010-12 Scotland U20s
Refereeing career
Years Competition Apps
2017- Women's Sevens Series
2018- Rugby Europe
2018 Commonwealth Games
2018 Rugby World Cup Sevens
2019- Women's Six Nations
2019- Super 6
2021 Pro14
2021- URC
2022 1872 Cup
2026- Top 14
2026- Six Nations Championship
2026- Nations Championship

Hollie Davidson (born 19 September 1992) is a Scottish professional rugby union referee who is contracted with the Scottish Rugby Union.[1] She was given a Scotland referee cap in February 2025.[2]

Playing career

Davidson began playing competitive rugby when she was 14.[3] At Edinburgh University she played for the women's rugby side, winning the BUCS rugby championship.[4]

She played at scrum-half for Murrayfield Wanderers and the Scotland under-20s from 2010-12.[5][6] One week before she was due to receive a senior cap with Scotland she dislocated her shoulder, ending her playing career.[7][5][8]

Referee career

Professional career

In 2015 Davidson joined the SRU's refereeing course, when a new course was held on Saturdays.[6] Prior to this time the refereeing courses were held on Sunday, the same day as women's professional rugby matches, thus making it impossible for women to train as referees.[3] Davidson became Scottish Rugby Union's first full time professional women's referee in 2017.[8] In 2018, Davidson was assistant referee for the Glasgow Warriors v Zebre match in the Pro14.[9]

In 2019 Davidson became the first woman to referee in the Melrose Sevens.[10] On 16 November 2019, she refereed the Stirling County v Southern Knights match in the Super 6.[11] In January 2021 Davidson was appointed to officiate a men's professional match for the first time.[12] That match, and a subsequent match to which she was appointed, were cancelled, and she was then appointed in March 2021 to a further Pro14 fixture.[13] She refereed her first Pro14 fixture on 19 March 2021; a Munster v Benetton match, winning plaudits from the Munster Head Coach Johann van Graan: "I thought the referee was very good. She was very calm, she communicated to the players exceptionally well before the game. I felt she handled the game really well and I think a real good step forward for her and was very pleased with her performance."[14]

Davidson refereed the 1872 Cup match on 18 March 2022 between Glasgow Warriors and Edinburgh Rugby in the United Rugby Championship.[15]

In May 2025, Davidson refereed the final of the 2024-25 EPCR Challenge Cup, becoming the first female referee for a European Final.[16]

International career

From 2017, Davidson has refereed in the World Rugby Women's Sevens.[17] In 2018, she refereed in the Rugby Europe, the Commonwealth Games and the Rugby World Cup Sevens.

Davidson has refereed in the 2019 Women's Six Nations Championship in the Wales v Ireland match on 17 March 2019.[8]

In 2021, Davidson was chosen as one of the referees for the rugby sevens tournament at the delayed 2020 Summer Olympics.[18]

In 2022, she was appointed to an all-women team of match officials for a men's test match in Lisbon between a Tier 1 side, Italy, and the host Portugal.[19]

In November 2022, Davidson was appointed to referee the final of the 2021 Rugby World Cup between hosts New Zealand and England.[20]

In 2023, Davidson was the only female member of the panel of referees for the 2023 World Rugby U20 Championship. She was also appointed to be an assistant referee in three full international warm-up matches for the 2023 Rugby World Cup.[21] In December 2023, Davidson was appointed to be an assistant referee at the England v Wales men's match in February 2024, where she became the first female assistant referee in a men's Six Nations Championship match.[22]

On 20 July 2024, Davidson refereed a test match between South Africa and Portugal in Bloemfontein, becoming the first woman to referee a Springboks match.[23]

In September 2025, Davidson was the referee for the final of the 2025 Women's Rugby World Cup between Canada and England, making her the only referee other than André Watson to oversee two Rugby World Cup finals.[24]

In November 2025, Davidson refereed Wales vs New Zealand in Cardiff, making her the first woman to referee an All Blacks test match.[25][26]

On 14 February 2026, Davidson became the first female to referee a Six Nations men's match, when she officiated at the game between Ireland and Italy at the Aviva Stadium in Dublin.[27][28] In April, she stood down from refereeing the 2026 Women's Six Nations to focus on the men's game.[29]

On 18 April 2026, she became the first woman to referee a Top 14 match, between ASM Clermont-Auvergne and Lyon at Michelin Stadium.[30]

On 11 July 2026, she became the first woman to referee a Nations Championship match between Fiji and England at the Hill Dickinson (Everton) Stadium[31]

Personal life

Davidson has a degree in economic history from Edinburgh University.[5] Davidson is openly gay.[32]

References

  1. ↑ "Zebre Rugby team to face Connacht Rugby". Guinness PRO14. 5 April 2019.
  2. ↑ Barnes, David (12 February 2025). "Hollie Davidson receives referee cap". The Offside Line. Retrieved 12 April 2026.
  3. 1 2 Scottish Rugby (18 February 2020). "Scottish Rugby referee Hollie Davidson". YouTube. Retrieved 30 May 2022.
  4. ↑ "Former under-20 cap Hollie whistling a new tune". The Scrum. 29 September 2016.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  5. 1 2 3 McDonald, Sally (18 June 2018). "Scotland's first full-time female rugby referee can't wait to jet off to San Francisco for World Cup Sevens". The Sunday Post.
  6. 1 2 Third, Paul (14 June 2017). "Aboyne's Hollie Davidson enters the history books". Press & Journal. Retrieved 12 April 2026.
  7. ↑ Morrison, Iain (6 January 2019). "Hollie Davidson happy to blow whistle on route to top rugby refereeing". The Scotsman. Retrieved 12 April 2026.
  8. 1 2 3 "Hollie Davidson's Six Nations debut". Scottish Rugby Union. 20 March 2019.
  9. ↑ "Preview: Glasgow Warriors v Zebre". Guinness PRO14.
  10. ↑ "Tweet". twitter.com. Retrieved 8 January 2021.
  11. ↑ Morrison, Iain (16 November 2019). "Super6: honours even for Stirling County and Southern Knights". The Offside Line. Retrieved 12 April 2026.
  12. ↑ "Scottish referee Hollie Davidson to referee first men's match in Challenge Cup". BBC Sport. 6 January 2021. Retrieved 12 April 2026.
  13. ↑ "Hollie Davidson and Joy Neville to undertake referee and TMO roles at Munster-Benetton game". BBC Sport. 16 March 2021.
  14. ↑ Kinsella, Colm (20 March 2021). "Munster Rugby's Johann van Graan praises referee in ground-breaking fixture". Limerick Leader. Retrieved 12 April 2026.
  15. ↑ "Glasgow Warriors-vs-Edinburgh Rugby". United Rugby Championship.
  16. ↑ Burke, Andy (21 May 2025). "From injury to history - Davidson's rise to ref European final". BBC Sport. Retrieved 10 October 2025.
  17. ↑ Lyall, Jamie (13 June 2017). "Hollie Davidson - the pioneer with 'the whole refereeing package'". BBC Sport. Retrieved 12 April 2026.
  18. ↑ "Scottish Rugby duo selected to referee at Tokyo Olympics Games". Scottish Rugby. 16 April 2021. Retrieved 12 April 2026.
  19. ↑ "Hollie Davidson to lead first all-female officials team in men's rugby union Test". The Guardian. 30 May 2022. Retrieved 30 May 2022.
  20. ↑ "Scotland's Hollie Davidson appointed to referee women's World Cup final". The National. 8 November 2022. Retrieved 8 November 2022.
  21. ↑ Bean, Graham (13 June 2023). "Hollie Davidson makes history (again) and sets sights on men's Rugby World Cup". The Scotsman. Retrieved 6 September 2023.
  22. ↑ "Hollie Davidson to become first female assistant referee in men's Six Nations". The Guardian. 5 December 2023. Retrieved 5 December 2023.
  23. ↑ "Hollie Davidson set to make history as she referees South Africa v Portugal Test". The Independent. 19 July 2024. Retrieved 20 July 2024.
  24. ↑ "Davidson makes history (again)". Six Nations Rugby. Retrieved 27 September 2025.
  25. ↑ "Hall of Fame ref Hollie is first woman to take charge of All Blacks game". BBC News. 30 October 2025. Retrieved 7 July 2026.
  26. ↑ McKendry, Patrick (23 November 2025). "'The guys stood up' – Robertson praises All Blacks' final flourish". 1News. Retrieved 12 April 2026.
  27. ↑ McRae, Donald (10 February 2026). "Hollie Davidson: 'The stuff shouted from the sidelines was ridiculous – all the classics'". Irish Times. Retrieved 11 February 2026.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  28. ↑ "Davidson to referee in 2026 Men's Guinness Six Nations". Scottish Rugby. 17 December 2025. Retrieved 11 February 2026.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  29. ↑ "Hollie Davidson stood down from the entire Women's Six Nations". Ruck. 10 April 2026. Retrieved 12 April 2026.
  30. ↑ "Pour la première fois de l'histoire, une femme va arbitrer un match de Top 14". rugbyrama.fr (in French). Retrieved 20 April 2026.
  31. ↑ "Hollie Davidson set to make history again next weekend". ruck.co.uk. Retrieved 11 July 2026.
  32. ↑ "Hollie Davidson set to make history again next weekend". ruck.co.uk. Retrieved 11 July 2026.
This page is issued from Wikipedia. The text is available under Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 unless otherwise noted. Additional terms may apply for the media files.