Sevens Series: Host venues confirmed for next four-year cycle
NEWS: Nine out of 10 host locations for the next four-year cycle of the men’s World Rugby Sevens Series 2019-23 has been confirmed.
Nine existing men’s world series destinations – Dubai, Cape Town, Hamilton, Sydney, Vancouver, Hong Kong, Singapore, London and Paris – are set to feature again as part of the next four-year cycle, with the host location in the USA to be confirmed at a later stage in the season.
The new schedule includes at least six combined men’s and women’s events, as the women’s series increases to eight rounds for the first time in its history over the next four-year cycle.
Dubai, Cape Town, New Zealand, Sydney, Hong Kong and Paris will host combined men’s and women’s Sevens events from next season onwards as part of the next four-year world series hosting cycle.
World Rugby announce new look men’s and women’s HSBC World Rugby Sevens Series 2019-23https://t.co/gzD4jEVceM pic.twitter.com/4OtsqWpZkQ
— World Rugby Sevens (@WorldRugby7s) March 13, 2019
In the women’s series, the USA Women’s Sevens will again be hosted in Glendale, Colorado, with Langford, British Columbia, also remaining as a stand-alone event next season.
As popularity and profile of Sevens continues to grow both on and off the field, boosted by Olympic inclusion, World Rugby saw unprecedented global interest, receiving more than 20 expressions of interest from member unions, as part of the highly competitive tender process.
SA Rugby CEO, Jurie Roux, welcomed the decision taken by World Rugby.
“This is a wonderful addition to the already very successful Cape Town Sevens and a massive boost for women’s rugby in South Africa,” said Roux.
“We are constantly looking at ways of improving the fan experience and I know many of our loyal supporters will be pleasantly surprised when they see the levels of skill and commitment shown by the women.
“Apart from that, it will create another opportunity for Paul Delport and the Springbok Women’s Sevens team to play together in a tough tournament, but also to play in front of their family and friends, something that doesn’t happen often.”
New look #HSBC7s!
➡️ New world series schedule to include at least six combined men’s and women’s rounds from 2019-20
➡️ Women’s world series increases to eight rounds for the first time in its history https://t.co/gzD4jEVceM pic.twitter.com/gW2Fiuwzn1
ADVERTISEMENT— World Rugby Sevens (@WorldRugby7s) March 13, 2019
Paul Delport, Springbok Women’s Sevens coach, thanked World Rugby for their decision
“Cape Town is a fantastic place to play and it will be a proper home tournament for us,” said Delport.
“We are really looking forward to competing at that level, at home. Last year we played at the Commonwealth Games and the World Cup and and for us to grow as a team and as individuals, we need to be playing at the highest level.”
Zintle Mpupha, Springbok Women’s Sevens captain, said: “We’ve all dreamed about playing at home one day, so this is really a dream come true for us. We can’t wait to play in front of our own people in Cape Town.”
The dates for the 2019/20 World Rugby Sevens Series will be confirmed in due course by World Rugby.
World Rugby Chairman Sir Bill Beaumont said: “This is an exciting time for sevens as the HSBC World Rugby Sevens Series is set to break new ground with more combined rounds than ever before on the circuit, as Cape Town, Hamilton and Hong Kong welcome women’s world series teams for the first time from next season.
“We are delighted to see the women’s series expand to eight rounds over the next four-year cycle, a historic move that will provide more high quality competitive international playing opportunities for women’s sevens teams, a core strand of our Accelerating the Global Development of Women in Rugby plan.”
