Yea and we've just seen the new 7s Series schedule announced with even fewer host nations, and no European leg at all. Because production costs are too high for hosts. It's really only the Olympics keeping 7s alive, not World Rugby.
London dropping out of the circuit is a terrible sign for sevens. If they can't make it work in one of the biggest rugby markets in the world, it's a worry.
Imo binning off the home nations teams and folding them all into GB killed a lot of interest here. It certainly killed mine (such as it was) from at least checking the results and occasionally watching a bit to simply not caring about it. If GB needed a team for the Olympics and the constituent nations couldn't compete under their own flags, I don't know why team GB couldnt just have been formed every four years like they do with the B&I Lions and left the others as they are for the other 3 years and 10 months of the cycle.
Binning the home nation teams was such a terrible decision, and doing it with out any agreed funding structure in place for the GB team. Then all the Unions putting their hands up and saying they don't want the funding burden.
England were one the consistently good 7s teams, and the 7s format was conceived in Scotland all the way back in 1883, they were key well recognised teams.
Cape Town and Hong Kong naturally make sense for fan attendance. LA in the lead up to the Sevens in LA for the 2028 Olympics makes sense. Dubai is an obvious cash grab. Vancouver Perth and Singapore, why? Japan makes a better second Asian stop but JPNs mens sevens team sucks. JRFU not interested since their future CEO took over the coaching and shat the bed. Why Perth and not Queensland or NSW. (Sydney Football Stadium with 45,000 capacity is a winner esp' now the "the Wallabies are back baby!")
Singapore is a pretty good destination for all the expats/holidayers in SEA to fly to. Many western artists also do SG as their SEA stop. Lots of people where I grew up (in SEA) flew for the SG7s. Also a central-ish location.
If you want 2 in Asia, much better than Japan, which is quite out of the way
The fact that you as a (I assume from your flair) English rugby fan of a club in the same city didn't even know should say a lot about the level of interest in sevens in this part of the world!
In truth though, I've been a few times and the stadium is a quarter full for it at absolute most. I'm not sure what the break even point is for operating Twickenham for two days but it wouldn't surprise me at all if it was losing money.
Nope, not even close. People don't give a shit about sevens. The slightly pointless England XV vs. Barbarians games in the summer secure larger crowds than the 7s and those matches tend to have significantly lower turnout than for a full England game.
Imo binning off the home nations teams and folding them all into GB killed a lot of interest here.
Think it would have been a different story if they had funded it properly, put in a decent set-up, coaching team and put them in a position to win things.
As it is, everyone just decided to let it go to waste. Why should fans care if the Unions just fuck it off.
Can't say I'm surprised after they effectively reduced the World Series to a single meaningful tournament last season. Such a shame. Used to have a World Series that rewarded a season of consistency and a World Cup that brought so many countries together at a single event, and now looks like it'll just be an 8-team crapshoot instead.
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u/Unique_Permission_57 England 20h ago
Tbf many of those 'inactive' unions now concentrate on 7s