A focus on driving fan and commercial growth on the newly formatted World Sevens Series was the driving factor behind World Rugby opting not to return to New Zealand beyond the 2023 tournament.
As revealed by the Herald early last month, this weekend’s event in Hamilton will bethe end of more than two decades in which New Zealand has been a fixture on the World Sevens calendar.
There were discussions between New Zealand Rugby and World Rugby about remaining a stop of the series, which is expected to be a more condensed series with all events featuring both men’s and women’s tournaments.
While the host countries are yet to be announced, it has been confirmed that New Zealand would not be one of them.
“We thank NZ Rugby for their positive involvement in targeted dialogue regarding the new series model. Following the decision taken that an event in New Zealand would not be included in the 2024 series, we continue to work closely together towards delivering a very special and memorable event in Hamilton in January 2023,” a World Rugby spokesperson confirmed.
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“The future series is focused on driving fan and commercial growth, enabling greater investment to be put back into the rugby sevens ecosystem for the benefit of all participating unions, teams and players.”
World Rugby would not provide further detail as to why the New Zealand leg would be scrapped while discussions were ongoing with other prospective hosts.
The New Zealand leg of the sevens began in 2000 in Wellington but was moved to Waikato Stadium in 2018, after the Sky Stadium event’s ticket sales collapsed in dramatic fashion and turned the event from a guaranteed sell-out into somewhat of a sad punchline. Until 2020, the New Zealand stop featured only a men’s tournament, although a four-team women’s showcase was played during the 2019 tournament.
Plummetting ticket sales saw the New Zealand World Sevens Series stop moved from Wellington to Hamilton in 2018. Photo / Photosport
Black Ferns Sevens playmaker Tyla Nathan-Wong said it was disappointing, particularly given the women’s series had just become a fixture of the Hamilton event before Covid-19 meant it was not held in 2021 and 2022, but it provided added motivation this weekend.
“It’s a bit of mixed emotion really,” she said. “We’re gutted that it’ll be the last World Series for the foreseeable future that we get to play at home, but that also makes it much more special to us and more meaningful.”
In the current format, the men’s series has 11 stops while the women’s series features seven. The new format will see both men’s and women’s draws play seven tournaments, with every event hosting both draws.
World Rugby said they had received “unprecedented” interest from potential host nations, and would be likely to confirm the new identity and make-up of the series in the coming months, though confirmed the first edition would run from December 2023 through June 2024.
The organisation’s focus for the revamped series is expected to favour some of the more lucrative stops on the tour as they bid to appeal to a younger and more global fan base now the sport is entrenched in the Olympics.
NZR general manager of professional rugby and performance Chris Lendrum voiced his disappointment about the impact on New Zealand in an interview with the Herald last month. However, he was realistic around World Rugby, who are trying to raise revenue to re-invest in the game and the series globally.
“It’s a sad moment, isn’t it? I guess the message is Hamilton ... is the last event of its kind coming to our shores.”
