World Rugby has confirmed the schedule for the much-anticipated HSBC World Rugby Sevens Series 2022 as the sport looks to capitalise on a highly successful and impactful Olympic Games in Tokyo.
The 2022 Series will feature 10 men’s and seven women’s rounds over six months, kicking off with a pair of combined men’s and women’s events in Dubai. The Emirates Dubai Sevens will host a behind closed doors round on 26-27 November, 2021, followed by a second event on 3-4 December with fans in attendance at The Sevens Stadium.
The Series will then return to Europe as Spain plays host for the first time with combined men’s and women’s events in Malaga and Seville on 21-23 and 28-30 January, 2022 respectively. The new venues in Spain temporarily replace traditional Series hosts Sydney, Australia, and Hamilton, New Zealand, who were unable to host in 2022 due to the logistical challenges associated with the COVID-19 pandemic in their region.
The men’s Series continues with North American rounds in Vancouver on 26-27 February and Los Angeles on 5-6 March before moving to Asia where Hong Kong returns to host a combined men’s and women’s event on 1-3 April, followed by a men’s event in Singapore on 9-10 April. A women’s standalone event will take place in Langford, Canada, on 30 April-1 May before both men’s and women’s teams travel to a new Series venue in Toulouse, France, on 20-22 May where the women’s Series champions will be crowned. The men’s Series concludes with the final event in London on 28-29 May.
What To Know :
- The 2022 Series will include 10 men’s and seven women’s rounds over six months
- Series to kick-off with a pair of combined men’s and women’s events in Dubai
- Three new hosts as Malaga and Seville in Spain, and Toulouse in France welcome teams
- Unique system introduced to mitigate the risk of some teams not being able to participate in all events and to determine Series rankings and decide relegation in 2022
- Rugby sevens continues to grow following highly successful Olympics in Tokyo which generated more than 22 million video views and over 100 million social media impressions.
- Exciting year ahead with the 2022 Series followed by the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham on 29-31 July and Rugby World Cup Sevens in Cape Town on 9-11 September.
- The 16 men’s core teams after the Dubai events are Argentina, Australia, Canada, England, Fiji, France, Ireland, Japan, Kenya, New Zealand, Samoa, Scotland, South Africa, Spain, USA and Wales. South Africa entered the 2022 Series as defending champions after claiming the 2021 title in Edmonton, Canada, in September, while New Zealand, who were unable to compete in Canada, were the 2020 Series winners.
-The 11 core women’s teams after the Dubai events are Australia, Brazil, Canada, England, Fiji, France, Ireland, New Zealand, Russia, Spain and USA. New Zealand’s Black Ferns Sevens will be aiming to defend their title after being crowned champions in 2020.