LOS ANGELES, CA (November 17, 2022) – World Rugby and the HSBC LA SEVENS returns to Southern California and its traditional window of February 25-26, 2023 at Dignity Health Sports Park. LA Sevens, part of the HSBC World Rugby Sevens Series, will feature Team USA and the 15 best rugby 7s nations as they go head-to-head in Southern California, at the same open-air stadium that will host rugby at the 2028 Summer Olympic Games.  The weekend will also feature broadcast coverage across multiple NBC platforms, including live television coverage on NBC Sports. The return of the HSBC LA SEVENS was announced today by Steve Cohen, AEG’s Chief Strategy Officer, and Dan Lyle, Director of AEG Rugby.

 

The HSBC World Rugby Sevens Series is an annual series of international rugby sevens tournaments taking place over 11 global cities including Dubai, Vancouver, Singapore and London, and featuring national teams from the top 16 countries. The US leg of the international series, most recently held in Los Angeles in 2022, is the largest annual rugby event in the United States. Tickets may be purchased by visiting www.lasevensrugby.com or by calling 1-888-9AXS-TIX beginning Friday November 18th. New to 2023 are “ticket experience packages” which include hotel accommodations and other unique benefits. These packages can also be found on www.lasevensrugby.com   

 

Participating Teams in this year’s HSBC LA SEVENS will include: USA, Team GB (England, Scotland, & Wales), Ireland, France, Spain, Canada, Argentina, Kenya, Japan, Australia, Fiji, Samoa, New Zealand, South Africa and newcomers to LA 7s - Uruguay and Chile. The two-day event, with over forty games providing more than 8 hours of play each day, will provide a preview to Southern California of the 2028 Olympic Games in LA., when rugby sevens will be one of the featured sports in the Summer Olympic Games. The event will feature an International Fan Festival that will include music, food, culture and entertainment from around the world and will take place in and around Dignity Health Sports Park during the event weekend.

 

Another unique component of the two-day event will be the grassroots community tournament, The Los Angeles Invitational, which will take place on the outer fields around the stadium, with 300 community teams playing in co-ed divisions of youth, high-school, college and adult clubs. The HSBC LA SEVENS is expected to draw a weekend attendance of over 45,000 international rugby fans.

 

The HSBC LA SEVENS will bring passionate fans from across the USA and around the world to join together and celebrate at the round-robin tournament. Los Angeles serves as host to the fast and intense competition with high scoring games, which coupled with the electricity of the spirited international fans, provides a unique and memorable event for all spectators. The event will also welcome celebrities from the world of television, film and music, along with top athletes from a variety of sports who are also rugby fans and supporters of their national teams.

 

Dan Lyle Director of AEG Rugby added, “Sevens rugby brings 16 countries together in an environment that is equal parts festival, sport and business – it is that combination which makes the sport unique and diverse, and as every fan who left Dignity Health Sports Park after year 2 in 2022 said they couldn’t wait to be back.”

 

As Nielsen research has reported the USA has the highest number of rugby fans of any single country worldwide with more than 33 million people. American fans will have the chance to see Team USA up close in Los Angeles and around the country as the event will be televised on NBC Sports. The HSBC LA SEVENS event will also offer a preview of a world championship event in advance of the 2028 LA Olympic Games.

 

Jon Miller, President of Programming, NBC Sports, “It’s good to have rugby back on home soil and with NBC Sports. Rugby 7’s has brought new viewers to the sport and NBC is committed to the long term and is looking forward bringing the excitement of HSBC LA Sevens into our viewers homes. Our partners in AEG have consistently shown that they have the vision, experience, and capabilities to not only put on a great event, but help shape the development of rugby in the USA.”

 

Tickets for HSBC LA SEVENS go on sale tomorrow (Friday November 18^th) at www.LAsevensrugby.com or by calling 1-888-9AXS-TIX.