With less than 50 days to go until the Olympic Games Paris 2024, World Rugby has unveiled the official match schedule for the highly anticipated World Rugby Sevens Repechage tournament.
The prestigious event will take place in Monaco from 21-23 June, 2024 and serve as the final qualification tournament for the upcoming Olympic Games Paris 2024.
Stade Louis II in Monaco, which hosted final qualification events prior to the Rio 2016 and Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games, will again provide the stage for deciding the final men’s and women’s qualifiers for Paris 2024.
The competition will feature 12 men’s and 12 women’s teams vying for the ultimate prize of representing their country on the Olympic stage, with only the winners securing their tickets to Paris.
South Africa’s Blitzboks, strong contenders after winning the first round of HSBC SVNS 2024 in Dubai, will headline the men’s competition, which also includes core teams from the HSBC SVNS 2024 circuit Canada, Great Britain, and Spain. The women’s tournament features a wide-open field with Czechia making their Repechage debut.
Participating teams:
Men’s teams: Brazil, Canada, Chile, China, Great Britain, Hong Kong China, Mexico, Papua New Guinea, South Africa, Spain, Tonga, Uganda.
Women’s teams: Argentina, China, Czechia, Hong Kong China, Kenya, Jamaica, Mexico, Papua New Guinea, Paraguay, Poland, Samoa, Uganda.
In the women competition, Poland will kick-off the tournament against Czechia at 13:00 local time (GMT+2) on Friday, 21 June, while Hong Kong China will face Papua New Guinea to kick-off the men’s pool matches at 14:40. Both finals will take place on Sunday, 23 June, which is also Olympic Day when the global Olympic Movement is celebrated, and the rugby sevens Olympic line-up will be completed.
World Rugby Chairman, Sir Bill Beaumont said: “The Olympic Games are the biggest multi-sport event in the world and a stage like no other for rugby sevens players. Stakes will be high and we expect intense and passionate world-class rugby in Monaco over the three days as teams compete for the final Olympic spots.”
“We wish the best of luck to all teams involved in the pursuit of their Olympic dream and hope to see many fans at Stade Louis II for this fantastic tournament. Our gratitude and thanks to Their Serene Highnesses Prince Albert II and Princess Charlene of Monaco and the Fédération Monégasque de Rugby for hosting this prestigious event for the third time in succession.”
After the conclusion of the Repechage tournament, the Olympic pools for rugby sevens at Paris 2024 will be announced at a media briefing held in the Salon d’Honneur of Stade Louis II in the presence of the captains of the qualified teams, and World Rugby and Paris 2024 representatives.
Pools for the Wheelchair Rugby competition at the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games will also be unveiled at the same time.
Rugby sevens is set to provide an unforgettable curtain raiser at Stade de France as the first sport, along with football, to kick-off the Olympic Games in Paris on 24 July, 2024, two days ahead of the Opening Ceremony.
All six World Rugby regions are represented among the 11 men’s and 11 women’s teams that have already secured their spots in Paris via the HSBC SVNS and regional qualification competitions.
In the men’s event, hosts France, who were crowned HSBC SVNS 2024 Champions in Madrid earlier this month with global superstar Antoine Dupont in their ranks, are joined by New Zealand, Argentina, Fiji and Australia who booked their places in Paris by ranking in the top four positions of the HSBC World Rugby Sevens Series 2023, along with the six regional qualification tournament winners in Uruguay (South America), Ireland (Europe), USA (North America), Kenya (Africa), Samoa (Oceania) and Japan (Asia).
The women’s Olympic line-up includes HSBC SVNS League Winners New Zealand, HSBC SVNS Grand Final Champions Australia, Ireland and USA as the top four qualifiers through the 2023 World Series, along with hosts France. They have been joined by Brazil, Canada, Great Britain, South Africa, Fiji and Japan as regional qualification tournament winners.
Paris 2024 is rugby sevens’ third appearance at the Olympic Games, and the sport is proving to be one of the most high demand events of the Paris Games, following the outstanding success of Rugby World Cup 2023 in France. Remaining tickets are available via the Paris 2024 website.
Fiji’s men have dominated the Olympic competition to date with double gold medal success on debut at Rio 2016 and again in Tokyo five years later. New Zealand are the reigning women’s Olympic champions and Australia won the inaugural women’s Olympic gold medal in Rio.
