Attention turns to the first event of the revamped and rebranded HSBC SVNS 2024, which gets underway on 2-3 December with the highly anticipated return of Emirates Dubai 7s as the pools and match schedule are announced.
New Zealand begin the defence of their women’s 2023 titles, while Australia women look to repeat their victories at The Sevens Stadium last December. The new look HSBC SVNS 2024 features seven regular season events plus a Grand Final with promotion and relegation at stake.
The action begins at 07:00 local time on Saturday, with the final on Sunday at 17:13 (SA Time).
The pools and schedule for the opening round of the reimagined HSBC SVNS 2024 have been announced today ahead of the highly anticipated Emirates Dubai 7s as rugby sevens return to the world stage.
The biggest sports and entertainment festival in the Middle East, Emirates Dubai 7s has been a mainstay on HSBC SVNS since its inception in 1999 and will feature the best women’s rugby sevens teams competing on two fields across two days.
In the women’s competition, the New Zealand Black Ferns, who won six of seven tournaments to claim their seventh series title, headline Pool A alongside Fiji, Great Britain and the World Rugby Sevens Challenger Series 2023 champions South Africa who join the series this season.
Defending Emirates Dubai 7s champions Australia will face Brazil, Ireland and Japan in Pool B, while last season’s overall bronze medal winners USA take on France, Spain and their North American rivals Canada in Pool C.
Under the new model, HSBC SVNS 2024 features seven regular season events plus a Grand Final. The top eight placed teams based on cumulative series points at the conclusion of the seventh round in Singapore will secure their opportunity to compete in the new ‘winner takes all’ Grand Final in Madrid, where the women’s 2024 champions will be crowned.
Madrid will also play host to the high stakes relegation play-off competition where teams ranked ninth to 12th will join the top four teams from the World Rugby Sevens Challenger, with the top four placed teams securing their place on HSBC SVNS 2025.
World Rugby Chief Competitions and Performance Officer, Nigel Cass said: “We are excited to kick off what will be a thrilling year for rugby sevens at the Emirates Dubai 7s in December front of a packed house of knowledgeable, enthusiastic and passionate rugby fans.
“With a new and exciting format featuring promotion and relegation plus a ‘winner takes all’ competition at the Grand Final in Madrid, we know the action will be fierce at The Sevens Stadium in Dubai from the opening match on Saturday morning to the final whistle on Sunday evening to get the season underway in style.”
HSBC Sevens Dubai Women Fixtures - Day 1
07:00 USA vs Spain
07:00 France vs Canada
07:22 Australia vs Brazil
07:22 Ireland vs Japan
07:44 New Zealand vs South Africa
07:44 Fiji vs Great Britain
09:15 France vs Spain
09:37 USA vs Canada
09:59 Ireland vs Brazil
10:21 Australia vs Japan
10:43 Fiji vs South Africa
11:05 New Zealand vs Great Britain
13:45 Canada vs Spain
14:07 USA vs France
14:29 Japan vs Brazil
14:51 Australia vs Ireland
15:13 Great Britain vs South Africa
15:35 New Zealand vs Fiji