Women's rugby is experiencing an unprecedented boom across the globe, but while England charges ahead at full speed, Italy is struggling to keep pace. The Red Roses have been nothing short of dominant in this year's Women's Six Nations, averaging an astonishing nine tries per game. Coach John Mitchell's squad looks unstoppable heading into Saturday's clash against Italy in Parma—their growing injury list seemingly irrelevant given their depth and firepower.

But when you look beyond the scoreboard, this matchup tells two very different stories. England's players are world champions enjoying sold-out stadiums and full-time professional support. Italy's Azzurre, by contrast, are still building from the ground up. A disappointing World Cup campaign highlighted the challenges facing Fabio Roselli's squad, where many players juggle rugby with full-time jobs. The Italian Rugby Federation offers 25 "professional" contracts for the women's team, yet even in Six Nations preparation, some players had to sacrifice training days due to work commitments.

That reality is hard to fathom for someone like Elena Linari, captain of Italy's women's football team and a player for London City Lionesses—a club backed by billionaire and women's sports advocate Michele Kang. Linari grew up around rugby, thanks to her father's passion for the game. She counts Jonah Lomu among her sporting idols and has developed a close friendship with Italy and Harlequins prop Silvia Turani. At the Women's Six Nations launch, the two swapped national team shirts, a symbol of the growing crossover between women's sports.

"I'm lucky because I can do what I love for a job," Linari says. "I've experienced having teammates who sacrificed their days off and holidays just to train or play. That's not right. Here, Michele Kang gives us the chance to be a unique club, but there's still so much work to do." As women's rugby explodes in popularity, the gap between the haves and have-nots has never been more visible—and Italy is fighting to close it, one training session at a time.