What was supposed to have been a climax of the 2024/25 World Rugby Sevens World Series season where teams that finished in the bottom four and the top four teams in the Challenger Series were set to battle it out in a promotion and relegation qualifier has a new twist.

This is because the world-governing body pulled the rug from under their feet by changing the format in just two seasons. The new format which has been met with a lot of mixed feelings has seen the premier event that originally comprised 16 core teams before being reduced to 12 set to feature only eight teams next season. 

As a result, what was supposed to have been a promotion and relegation tournament pitting the top four teams in the Challenger Series and the bottom four from the just concluded World Series will instead be a second tier tournament. The eight teams shall play on a separate pitch away from the main one where the ‘elite’ teams shall battle it out for the ‘World Championship.’ 

Iconic Venues

For many years now, the event which was introduced in 1996/1997 to encourage the growth of the shorter version of the game in many member federations featured 16 teams and landed at many iconic venues such as England’s Twickenham, Scotland’s Murray Stadium and Hong Kong. In its original version, 16 teams were divided into four groups. 

Under this format, the top two teams proceeded to the cup competition and the bottom two to the lower tier. Titles on offer were the main cup, plate, bowl and shield.

When rugby was readmitted to the Olympics, World Rugby (originally International Rugby Board) introduced a new format that had only 12 teams. They explained this was in compliance with the International Olympic Committee requirements. World Rugby stated that the new changes were crucial to accommodating the women’s teams.

This season has seen further changes to the competition format with an introduction of another format where in the back-to-back competitions, 12 teams were grouped in four groups of three. Under this format, the top teams proceeded to the semi-final bypassing the knock-out quarter finals stage. 

New Rules

World Rugby also introduced a new 45 second rule during which a conversion should be made after a try is scored and the game be restarted.

According to a statement released on the World Rugby website, the changes were made as a result of consultations and are expected to ‘deliver long-term financial sustainability and grow the global reach of rugby sevens in the lead up to the LA 2028 Olympics.’

In a nutshell, the new format has a division one reserved for the top eight teams – men and women. They shall play in six tournaments. Division two shall have six teams – men and women and shall compete in three events. This appears to resemble the current Challenger Series format.

Division three is a stand alone Challenger event featuring eighty teams – men and women qualifying from regional competitions and playing in a one off tournament. The expanded calendar therefore has 13 tournaments ‘delivering more opportunity and exposure’ according to World Rugby.