The Fiji Rugby Union is excited that the New Zealand leg of the World Rugby Sevens Series will resume next January.
World Rugby, New Zealand Rugby and the mayor of Hamilton City in New Zealand announced the return of the Hamilton 7s next January 21-22.
“That’s exciting news, even though we have not been officially informed,” FRU chief executive officer John O’Connor said.
“We are looking forward to the tournament. Hamilton 7s is one of our top tournaments because it is held closer at home. It is almost like a home series to us.”
Fiji has a stronghold in the tournament as its inaugural champion with the huge number of Fijians living in New Zealand, especially Hamilton and Auckland.
The announcement is expected to excite Fijian fans to support Ben Gollings and his team next year.
The side won bronze at the London 7s in England on Sunday.
Meanwhile, the resurrected Hamilton event, which returns to the World Rugby Sevens Series schedule after missing the 2021 and 2022 series, will feature the full men’s and women’s draws with all matches to be broadcast live and exclusive on Sky.
NZ Rugby’s head of tournaments and competitions Cameron Good said the announcement was a feel-good moment after two tough years for the events industry.
“The HSBC New Zealand Sevens has been one of the highlights of the sporting summer since it moved to Hamilton in 2018 and has left a gap in the events calendar over the past two years due to Covid. We are thrilled to be bringing a truly international sporting event back to Aotearoa, back to Waikato and back to Hamilton.
“It’s great news for the Black Ferns Sevens and All Blacks Sevens, who are desperate to play in front of their home fans again; it’s great news for the local and regional economies and it’s great news for all the fans out there who have made it such a vibrant and colourful celebration of sevens.”
Dallas Fisher, managing director of 37 South and co-promoter of the Hamilton tournament, said the news was a huge boost for the Waikato region. Fisher said the tournament had injected about $3 million in Waikato.
