A push back towards World Rugby’s radical change in the format of the World Rugby Sevens Series starting this season could have just started following an announcement by the organizers of McDonalds Coral Coast Fiji Sevens that they were returning to a 24-team men’s division on January 15-17, 2026.

The announcement read: “Ladies and Gentlemen, we are pleased to announce that in 2026 we will see a return to a 24 teams men’s division. With the world of rugby sevens constantly evolving and changing, we wanted to return to the roots and essence of the game we love. In 2010, when we started this tournament, we played the tourney with 24 teams, in line with the Hong Kong 7s and a true statement to stamina and seeing the best teams battle it out for supremacy. In 2026, we will witness this same battle take place in the cauldron of Lawaqa Park, continuing with the 10 minute halves in the men’s final.”

Top Players

This bold statement has been further strengthened by the presence of top players who have been the face of the shorter version of the game who will be playing in the tournament for various teams. One of the teams is McDonalds Mike Friday’s Select that has an array of world class players who became the darling of fans in the Series.

Among them are two of Ireland’s biggest stars Terry Kennedy, the 2022 World Rugby Sevens Player of the Year and Jordan Conroy. They will re-unite with Harry McNulty, Jerry Tuwai, Semi Kunatani, New Zealand’s Gillies Kaka, Matai Leuta, Perry Baker as well as Welsh playmaker Luke Treharne. Tuwai and Baker have also won the World Rugby Sevens Player of the Year.

First Female Inductee

Another coup by the organizers is naming Portia Woodman-Wycliffe as the tournament’s ambassador, the first ever woman to hold this honor. She will become the first female inductee into the Rugby Walk of Fame, joining the legends like Jonah Lomu, Waisale Serevi, Bryan Habana, Jerry Tuwai, and Collins Injera in another historic milestone.

A combination of these rugby legends at Lawaqa Park for the weekend could send a strong message to World Rugby about the possibility of other tournaments going back to their roots and breaking ranks with the ‘new format’ of eight teams abruptly announced by World Rugby in May this year.

Premier Sevens

Already, India has set the pace by starting a Premier Sevens competition that is modeled along the successful Cricket Premier League. At the heart of these developments are strategic partners to sports, the sponsors. It is in the interest of the sponsors to ensure that numbers tell a story of the popularity of the game.

Closely linked to sponsors is an introduction of Prize Money. The winner at the tournament which is free for fans on all days will bag  the i-Wau Trophy and FJ$50,000 prize money. With more sponsors working together with organizers of the tournaments, we could see a return to the exciting days when World Rugby Sevens had 16 teams playing for the cup, plate and bowl titles.

Hong Kong Sevens

This development could also prompt the organizers of Hong Kong Sevens, one of the oldest tournaments to reconsider returning back to the 24-team format if the sponsors, Cathay Pacific, believe it will provide value for money.

In Africa, Safari Sevens, a premier tournament could also adopt the new format to attract more teams and promote the game especially with the participation of its top three teams South Africa, Kenya and Zimbabwe.