LIT Super Sevens Series 2025 Formed – Asian Teams Welcomed

The Super Sevens Series, the UK’s elite rugby sevens series, has merged with the London International 7s Tournament Series (LIT7s Series), the UK’s premier social rugby sevens series, to form the “LIT Super Sevens Series”. Over recent years Hong Kong China Rugby and China Rugby Football Association have entered teams to compete in the Series and the organisers hope more sides from Asia will register.

Update October 18 2024 – Venues

For the newly formed series in 2025, the merger of the two Series will see it become the UK’s largest rugby sevens series and is set to feature over 200 Men’s and Women’s Social, Open and Elite teams over four legs of the competition. 

LIT7s founder Ellaine Gelman said of the appeal of Asian teams entering in 2025, “The growth of rugby in Asia is very exciting. We want the very best teams competing in the LIT Super Sevens Series and we welcome Asian teams to take part. The Series gives teams a consistently high standard of competition against some of the best rugby 7s teams in the world. This experience can greatly help any Asian sides looking to grow and compete on that elite level”.

It appears as if Hong Kong China will have a women’s and men’s team involved in the LIT Super Sevens Series 2025 and the organisers confirmed in October 2024 that  Spain, Poland and Germany (TBC) will be competing in the Series alongside teams from the United Kingdom.

Super Sevens Series

The Super Sevens Series was established in 2012 by Terry Sands (former England 7s Manager) and Barrie Torbett with the aim of bringing together the best men’s and women’s sevens teams in the UK and “create a pathway for professional sevens participation for players and referees alike.”

Sands and Torbett said, “The Series has achieved so much since its inception in 2012 with countless players and referees using the Series as an opportunity to gain experience and develop their skills to help them achieve their ambitions to represent their country at the highest level possible.

So many teams have experienced what it’s like to participate in a multi-leg series where a very different commitment is required to perform consistently throughout the series. All have benefited significantly from participation, and we believe the Series can maintain its quality whilst being available to a larger combined audience.”

In addition to offering a pathway to many UK-based players, international sides like Hong Kong China, China, Germany and Spain have also taken part in the Super Sevens Series.

London International 7s Tournament (“LIT7s”)

The LIT7s was founded in 2012 by Ellaine Gelman, and has grown “into the largest rugby sevens tournament in the UK with 70 teams competing in 2024.” The LIT7s Series was founded in 2023 and is currently the only amateur series in the UK featuring 60 teams across four events at rugby clubs around the country.

Gelman has for the past two years entered a women’s team into the HKFC Tens in the week’s leadup to the Cathay/HSBC Hong Kong Sevens and the LIT7s has welcomed international sides including the Chinese National Team, the French National 7s Champions, the Jordanian National Side, HK Football Club Women and others.

In 2024, LIT hosted the inaugural LIT London 7s held at Wimbledon AFC which saw the competition of elite teams from the USA, New Zealand, Fiji, Ireland, Jamaica Great Britain and more.