World Rugby confirms LA 2028 Olympic qualification path

NEWS: World Rugby has confirmed the qualification pathway for rugby sevens at the LA28 Olympic Games, with 12 men’s and 12 women’s teams set to compete for Olympic glory.

A total of 24 teams will compete at LA28, with each qualified National Olympic Committee (NOC) able to select a delegation of 12 players per team.

As hosts, USA will receive an automatic quota place in both the men’s and women’s competitions.

The race for Olympic qualification will begin during the HSBC SVNS 2027 season, which is set to kick-off in Dubai in November 2026 before concluding in Bordeaux at the end of May 2027.

The four highest-ranked eligible men’s teams and four highest-ranked eligible women’s teams, excluding host nation USA, in the final HSBC SVNS World Championship 2027 standings will each secure a quota place for their National Olympic Committee at LA28.

With Olympic qualification on the line throughout the season, SVNS 2027 will provide an additional dimension to the battle for the overall SVNS world champions title as the world’s leading teams target an early ticket to Los Angeles.

Regional qualification pathway

Following the conclusion of HSBC SVNS 2027, attention will turn to the six regional qualification tournaments, which will take place across the second half of 2027.

One place in each of the men’s and women’s competitions will be available from each of World Rugby’s six regional associations:

Africa
Asia
Europe
North America
Oceania
South America

Should an eligible men’s or women’s North American team secure an LA28 place through the HSBC SVNS World Championship 2027, the North American regional qualifier will instead qualify a team for the Olympic Repechage. The corresponding LA28 quota place will then be awarded to the next highest-ranked eligible NOC at the final Olympic Repechage.

The regional qualifiers will provide another major opportunity for teams from across the world who have not yet qualified to realise their Olympic ambitions.

Olympic Repechage offers final opportunity

The final quota place in each competition will be decided at the Olympic Repechage tournament in June 2028.

Eight men’s and eight women’s teams, qualifying through the regional championships or Games, will contest the repechage, with the winners securing the 12th and final qualification place in their respective competitions at LA28.

The tournament will represent the last opportunity for teams to book their ticket to Los Angeles and will complete the line-up for the men’s and women’s Olympic rugby sevens competitions.

Building on a memorable Paris 2024

Rugby sevens will make its fourth Olympic Games appearance at LA28, having debuted at Rio 2016 before featuring at Tokyo 2020 and Paris 2024.

Paris delivered another memorable chapter in rugby sevens’ Olympic story with hosts France claiming an historic men’s gold medal, defeating two-time Olympic champions Fiji in the gold medal match at the Stade de France. South Africa completed the podium by claiming bronze.

In the women’s competition, New Zealand successfully defended their Olympic crown, overcoming Canada in the gold medal match, while USA secured their first Olympic rugby sevens medal with bronze.

With qualification places available through HSBC SVNS, six regional pathways and the final Olympic Repechage, the road to Los Angeles promises to showcase the global reach and competitiveness of rugby sevens as teams around the world chase their Olympic dream.