Why the smart money should be on rugby sevens
Why should we be taking more notice of rugby sevens at the moment, asks former player Jim Hamilton.
There are different versions of rugby, and while the 15-a-side game will always be my Everest, sevens offers something completely different. The sport is simple to follow, fast and incredibly athletic, and it allows individual personalities and athletes to shine in a way that can be harder in 15s. But the opportunity of rugby sevens goes well beyond what happens on the pitch.
Sevens has always had the travel, entertainment and experience built into it from the start – Hong Kong and Cape Town come to mind as great destinations. Anyone who has been to either of those tournaments understands that you are not simply getting a ticket to watch rugby but buying into a weekend and a host city.
That matters because the way people spend their money has changed. Sport is now competing with festivals, concerts, hospitality and countless other experiences for people’s time and attention and rugby as a whole needs to recognise that.
Investment and interest
Investment and interest in the wider game feel stronger than it has for a long time. Private equity is looking hard at the sport, having come into it through CVC Capital Partners, wealthy individuals want to invest – including the likes of Sir James Dyson and Bill Foley – and global brands such as Red Bull are putting serious energy into rugby.
Then you have the Olympics, and the athletes it is putting in front of people. Sevens gives us the clearest lens into that. I remember seeing Maddison Levi in Hong Kong for the first time – over six foot, incredibly powerful, fast and a genuine superstar athlete. Antoine Dupont going into the French sevens programme ahead of Paris 2024 was huge and Ilona Maher has become one of rugby’s biggest global personalities through sevens and the US programme.
Now you are hearing conversations about leading fifteens players wanting to experience sevens at future Olympic cycles. With Los Angeles 2028 on the horizon, that crossover is only going to accelerate.
London feels like a massive opportunity within all of that. It remains one of the great rugby cities in the world, but it is also where rugby, business, brands, innovation and a huge corporate audience collide. The Middlesex Sevens was an iconic part of the rugby calendar — I played in it for Leicester — and the World Sevens Series at Twickenham showed the appetite that exists; there’s history in the capital.
Rugby sevens showdown
And that is what we are building at the London City 7s on 17 September.
Nine teams will play on the doorstep of the Square Mile at the Honourable Artillery Company. Union Bordeaux-Begles, the reigning European champions, are coming alongside fellow French Top 14 side USAP Perpignan and rugby’s answer to the Harlem Globetrotters, the Barbarians.
Prior to the rugby, a sport business conference will open the day. We will be leading the conversation, followed by a full day of top-tier rugby and hospitality in the middle of the City. Around 3,000 people came through the gates last year and the event is fast becoming the place to be for rugby fans and business leaders alike.
This is the model this sport should be chasing: take brilliant athletes, short and understandable rugby, great cities, entertainment, brands and hospitality and build something people want to spend a day being part of. London is the obvious place to start.
Rugby is an exciting moment. The question now is how ambitious we want to be with it and we intend to answer that on the 17th September.
Jim Hamilton is part of the team behind the London City 7s, taking place on 17 September. Tickets start at £30. For more information visit here