Dubai Rugby Sevens 2022: tickets, standings, fixtures and which teams are playing

The World Sevens Series events will be back at full-tilt at the Emirates Dubai Sevens on Friday and Saturday, for the first time since the start of the Covid pandemic.

Two years ago, the Sevens was cancelled entirely for the first time in a history that stretches back over half a century.

Last year, the most popular event on the Middle East rugby landscape returned – but not all teams were able to make it because of travel limitations.

When it returns over this National Day weekend, the international men’s event will be restored to 16 teams, up from 12 last year, while the women’s event will be back up to 12.

That is the apex of a competition pyramid, which will involve over 4,500 participants across rugby, netball and cricket, as well as a new fitness challenge.

Which teams are playing?

Some of the most recognisable faces at the Sevens are actually those participating in the invitational tournaments beyond the main stadium – most notably in the International Vets.

Dafydd James, the former Wales and British & Irish Lions wing, will captain a star-studded team called 100 World Legends.

Last year, they had the series’ record point-scorer, Ben Gollings, as their coach. Since he has gone on to take charge of Fiji instead, they have replaced him with the most celebrated figure in sevens, Waisale Serevi.

No home nations rivalry - again

One of the features in years past was the rivalry between England, Scotland and Wales supporters in the stands around Pitch 1.

That has been dissipated in recent times, though. Instead, they all have to tolerate each other as the three unions have joined forces to form a Great Britain team – as happened in Dubai for the first time last year.

In July, World Rugby confirmed that will be the case going forward. The GB teams will participate on the men’s and women’s World Series as they ready themselves for the 2024 Paris Olympics.

This series season will serve as qualification for the Olympics. The top four sides will qualify directly.

South Africa celebrate winning the men's HSBC World Rugby Sevens series in Dubai on December 4, 2021. Chris Whiteoak / The National

Who are the defending champions?

South Africa have raised the men’s trophy five out of the last six times in Dubai. That included twice last season, when tournaments were played on back-to-back weekends as the World Series attempted to cope with the continue travel complications after Covid.

The rest of the field might have some belief that the Bok stranglehold could be broken. They only finished eighth in the first leg of this year’s series, in Hong Kong in November.

In the women’s tournament, Australia also won back-to-back titles in Dubai last year.

Pools

Men’s World Sevens Series

Pool A - Australia, South Africa, Great Britain, Kenya

Pool B – Fiji, Argentina, New Zealand, Uruguay

Pool C – France, Ireland, Spain, Uganda

Pool D - Samoa, USA, Canada, Japan

Women’s World Sevens Series

Pool A - Australia, USA, Canada, China

Pool B - France, New Zealand, Great Britain, Brazil

Pool C - Fiji, Ireland, Spain, Japan

Australia’s Henry Hutchison, left, heads for a try as Fiji’s Josevani Soro attempts a tackle in the Hong Kong Sevens men's final on November 6, 2022. AFP

Standings

After one event of the 11-leg World Sevens Series, Australia have the lead, after winning the title in Hong Kong.

Top 5

1. Australia

2. Fiji

3. France

4. Samoa

5. Argentina

Fixtures

Eighteen invitational competitions for a variety of ranges and abilities get underway on the outside fields at The Sevens, starting at 8am on Thursday.

A day later, the Women’s World Sevens Series competition starts at 9am with Ireland playing Spain. The Men’s World Sevens Series tournament starts at 10.06am when United States face Canada on Pitch 1.

All fixtures are available here.

Tickets

General admission tickets remain available for all three days. Prices range from Dh375 for a day pass for adults to Dh475 for a season pass.

Tickets are available online here.

Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.

Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.

“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.

Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.

“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.

Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.

From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.

Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.

BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.

Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.

Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.

“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.

Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.

“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.

“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”

The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”