The Cape Town 7s Dream Team has been revealed after the conclusion of the voting process.
Samoan trio have been included in the Dream Team. Cape Town player of the final Vaa Apelu-Maliko, Faafoi Falaniko, and Vaovasa Afa Sua have all made the cut after helping the Samoans win their first title since Paris in 2016.
Samoa’s men put in a brilliant performance to defeat New Zealand 12-7 in a closely fought Cup final played on Sunday in Cape Town.
For the second time in a row, New Zealand’s Akuila Rokolisoa has made the cut after appearing last weekend. Uruguay’s Mateo Vinals, Fiji’s Filipe Sauturaga and Matias Osadzuk are also part of the Dream Team.
The Series will return in January with teams set to make a stop in New Zealand for the Hamilton 7s.
The World Rugby Sevens Series 2023 promises to be the most competitive and compelling to date with more at stake than ever before as the top four ranked men’s and women’s teams will earn Olympic qualification for Paris 2024, while in the men’s Series the number of teams for the 2024 Series will reduce from 16 to 12 to equal the number of women’s teams and align with the Olympic competition structure, meaning fans can expect an intense battle to avoid relegation in the 2023 Series with every match and every point counting towards their final Series ranking.
How will relegation be decided from the men’s Series 2023?
The 15th-ranked core team based on accumulated Series points following the tenth round in Toulouse will be relegated. The teams ranked 12th, 13th and 14th at the end of Toulouse will enter a four-team relegation play-off together with the Challenger Series 2023 winners at the eleventh and final round of the Series in London.
The relegation play-off will be a round-robin format with the top two teams then playing a final. The winner will become the 12th core team in the 2024 Series, while the other three teams will enter their respective Regional Sevens Championships in order to qualify for the 2024 World Rugby Sevens Challenger Series. The Challenger Series will continue to provide a pathway for teams to qualify for the World Rugby Sevens Series.
