World Rugby has announced the second part of the schedule of the HSBC SVNS 2024-2025 roster, with both Singapore and LA confirmed. There will be no European leg this season, even though Madrid was announced to be hosting for three years last season.
The season will also be one leg shorter than last season and will feature seven global destinations culminating with a (renamed) SVNS World Championship in Los Angeles. Singapore will once again host the penultimate round in which the SVNS league winners will be crowned – as they did last season.
The SVNS 2025 kicks off in Dubai on 30 November 2024 – new teams to join the top flight of Sevens Rugby are the Kenya and Uruguay men and China women. The Japanese women are the other Asian representation in the SVNS Series.
Other good news for fans in Asia (in our opinion) is that the Singapore leg reverts to taking place the weekend following the Sevens in Hong Kong.
World Rugby Chief Executive Alan Gilpin said: “We are delighted to announce the HSBC SVNS 2025 schedule, featuring the best 24 men’s and women’s rugby sevens teams in the world competing in seven iconic global destinations across seven months…. We are excited to announce Los Angeles as host of the winner-takes-all HSBC SVNS World Championship 2025, which will take place in the LA 2028 Olympic venue.”
Singapore SVNS 2025
The National Stadium in Singapore will host the sixth round of the SVNS Series from 5-6 April with pre-sale tickets available from Monday 11 November 2024
The SVNS League Winners 2025 – the team with the most cumulative points from the first six rounds – will be decided in Singapore which was the case last season. It means the teams fighting for SVNS survival will also know if they head to LA as part of the top 8 or the bottom four where they will face the Challenger Series contenders.
Keep an eye out for more announcements for events around the dates of the Singapore SVNS – last year the SEA 7s, B.A.C Bears Furious 5s Beach Festival, as well as T1 and a number of youth and school tournaments were held.
World Rugby confirmed, “The top eight men’s and women’s teams at the end of the Singapore event will head into the winner-takes-all World Championship, taking place for the first time in Los Angeles on 3-4 May.”
No European Legs – HSBC SVNS 2024-2025
Fans have expressed their disappointment online about not having any legs in Europe this season, while ironically World Rugby continues to highlight the impact of the Olympics held in Paris.
In June of 2024, World Rugby announced, “Madrid will host the Grand Final of the reimagined World Rugby Sevens Series for three years from the 2023-24 season, World Rugby and the City of Madrid have confirmed.”
This seems to be no longer the case – and the final in LA this season is now called the SVNS World Championship which will take place at Dignity Health Sports Park, the LA 2028 Olympic venue. The reasons for heading back to LA are complicated. The success of the USA Women’s team winning bronze at Paris 2024, the subsequent rise in popularity of Ilona Maher, and targeting the US markets for the Olympics and Rugby World Cups.
We have not attended the event in LA ourselves but unanimously of the people we have spoken to on the SVNS Series – it seems to be ranked the least favourite leg.
Match Officials HSBC SVNS 2024-2025
Hong Kong China Rugby had previously announced their representation for the SVNS and Challenger Series for the upcoming seasons. Lee Chui Yan Sunny (HKCR) is the only Asian match official onthe SVNS Series.
World Rugby confirmed that the women’s SVNS will have an all-female match officials panel for the first time ever – we are not really sure that is necessary as the best officials should be appointed and if they happen to be female then so be it – rather than a policy.
World Rugby confirmed the 35 Emirates Match Officials who make up the men’s and women’s panels for HSBC SVNS 2025 and the World Rugby HSBC Sevens Challenger 2025. World Rugby said that “12 unions are represented among the 17 officials named on the SVNS 2025 panels with just over half returning from the 2024 group to join the newcomers to the High Performance Sevens Referee squads.”
Men’s Panel
- Ben Connor (WRU)
- Francisco González (URU)
- Nick Hogan (NZR)
- AJ Jacobs (SARU)
- Peter Martin (IRFU)
- Tevita Rokovereni (FRU)
- George Selwood (RFU)
- Evan Urruzmendi (FFR)
Women’s Panel
- Tiana Anderson (NZR)
- Ella Goldsmith (RA)
- Maria Latos (RD)
- Lee Chui Yan Sunny (HKCR)
- Jess Ling (RA)
- Zoe Naude (SARU)
- Lavenia Racaca (FRU)
- Kat Roche (USAR)
- Chloe Sampson (NZR)
SVNS 2025 Participating Teams
- The women’s SVNS 2025 participating teams are New Zealand, Australia, France, USA, Canada, Fiji, Ireland, Great Britain, Japan, Brazil, Spain and China.
- The men’s teams roster includes Argentina, Ireland, New Zealand, Australia, France, Fiji, South Africa, Great Britain, USA, Spain, Uruguay and Kenya.
SVNS Rugby News 2024-2025
- Fans Guide To HSBC SVNS Series 2024-2025.
- Bryan Habana – The HSBC SVNS Series Is Incredibly Diverse & We Should Celebrate That.
- Kai Tak Stadium Confirmed As Cathay/HSBC Hong Kong Sevens 2025 Venue.
- 2025 Cathay/HSBC Hong Kong Sevens – What You Need To Know.
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