Rugby Africa has adopted the World Rugby Sevens World Series tier format in the 2026 men’s seven-a-side competition.

A press statement on July 9, 2026 explained the  new format that has two tournaments and will decide the final men’s rankings after the completion of the season. Subsequently, a new tier, Sevens 3 has been introduced with the inaugural tournament to be hosted in Uganda from September 26-27, 2026 ahead of the top tier competition in Cascavelle, Mauritius in October.

The competition in Mauritius which was originally set for June has been rescheduled to October 3-4, 2026. When the tournament was postponed, Uganda, hosts of the new tournament withdrew because of health concerns and were replaced by Senegal.

New Era

With the tournament re-scheduled, Uganda’s downgrading to the lower tier has been confirmed and given a chance to re-qualify. The new changes were approved by the RA Executive and are expected to welcome a new dawn of 7s competitions in Africa towards a possible three tournament circuit.

Consequently, the tournament in Uganda, in September is a pathway for Africa teams to qualify for the World Rugby Sevens Tier three competition. Teams invited for this tournament in Uganda are the hosts, Madagascar, Zimbabwe, Zambia, Ghana and Tunisia. The winner will advance to the WR Tier Three competition.

The final results of the competition in Uganda shall also determine the pecking order of the 2026 Rugby Africa 7s men’s rankings. South Africa and Kenya occupy the top two positions. Therefore, the order in which the teams finish in Uganda will decide the next three to eight positions in the Africa ranking. For example, the winner in Uganda will be ranked third in Africa behind South Africa and Kenya with the lowest ranked eighth.

Mauritius Sevens

Uganda’s second tier tournament will pave the way for the rescheduled Mauritius 7’s with the new date being October 3-4, 2026. Teams expected in Tunisia are South Africa, Kenya, Mauritius, Nigeria, Burkina Faso, Morocco, Senegal and possibly the winner in the Uganda tournament. Africa Men’s 7s 2026 ranking will be determined through revised structure.

Therefore, South Africa and Kenya retain the two top positions regardless of the results at Mauritius 7s. The next 3-8 positions shall be occupied by the order the teams finish in Uganda. The winner of the tournament in Mauritius after the preliminary rankings shall occupy the ninth to 13th positions to complete the RA Men’s 7’s rankings for 2026. 

Revised Structure

The statement concluded: “Through this revised structure, Rugby Africa continues to invest in the growth, development and competitiveness of men’s seven’s rugby across the continent.” It is envisaged the new format will provide African teams with a platform to test their teams, develop players, and continue building towards international success.

Most importantly, the new format will temporarily fill the gap left by World Rugby’s decision to shrink the number of teams in the top tier to eight from the original 16 before it was later reduced to 12. In its original 16-team format, teams from various geographical regions were invited to compete against some of the top tier teams.

Women’s Sevens

It is likely that the new format will also be adopted in the women’s competition later in the year. Mauritius Sevens will pave way for the annual Safari Sevens to be hosted by Kenya from October 9-11 at the Nyayo National Stadium.

In February, 2027, Nyayo Stadium will be the venue for the World Rugby Tier Two tournament for the second time as Kenya tries for the third time to gain promotion to the top tier.