The Scottish referee is about to make men’s Six Nations history at the Aviva Stadium in Dublin
In Saturday’s Men’s Six Nations 2026 match between Ireland and Italy, Hollie Davidson will make history – the Scot is about to become the first female referee in the championship since it began in 1882.
It’s the latest in a long line of firsts in a glittering career in which the 33-year-old Six Nations referee has blown the whistle at two Women’s World Cup finals, while also making a considerable mark in the men’s game. Here’s 10 things you need to know about one of the best officials on the planet.
10 things you should know about rugby ref Hollie Davidson
1. Hollie Davidson was born on 19 September 1992, and grew up in Aboyne, a village in Aberdeenshire.
2. She caught the rugby bug after her dad took her to watch Scotland international matches at Murrayfield, and subsequently helped to set up a girls team team at her school.
3. Davidson’s preferred position was scrum-half (she’s compared her playing style to a “yappy little terrier”) and she was called up for the Scotland U20 team in 2010.
4. She was later selected for Scotland’s senior squad, but forced to drop out when she dislocated her shoulder. Unfortunately, she wasn’t able to reach the same heights again after surgery, and never earned a full international cap.
5. Davidson studied economic history at the University of Edinburgh, and spent two years working for American bank JP Morgan after she graduated.
6. After hanging up her boots, she decided to focus on refereeing. In 2017, she quit banking job – taking a 50% pay cut to follow her dream – and became Scotland’s first female professional referee.
7. That same year she was selected as an assistant referee for the 2017 Women’s Rugby World Cup final in Belfast. She’s gone on to referee the 2021 and 2025 finals – the only other person to officiate two World Cup finals is South Africa’s André Watson.
8. In 2025 she was inducted to the Scottish Rugby Hall of Fame, joining luminaries of the game such as Gavin Hastings, Ian McGeechan and Bill McLaren.
9. Becoming the Men’s Six Nations’ first female referee on Saturday is the latest in a long line of firsts in Davidson’s career.
She was also the first female assistant referee in the Men’s Six Nations (England v Wales in 2024), the first woman to officiate matches for both the Springboks (against Portugal in 2024) and the All Blacks (against Wales in 2025), and the first to referee a men’s European final (the 2025 Challenge Cup final between Bath and Lyon).
10. Now she’s hoping to be selected to officiate at the Men’s Rugby World Cup in Australia. “My big goal would be to referee in 2027 at the Men’s World Cup, Davidson said. “I’d be lying if I said that that wasn’t one of my ambitions.”
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