NAIROBI, Kenya, May 2, 2025 – After six legs of a gruelling schedule, it all comes down to Los Angeles for the national men’s rugby 7s who will be competing in this weekend’s (May 3-4) relegation playoffs.
Kelvin ‘Bling’ Wambua’s side have been one of the darlings of the World Rugby 7s Series, attracting droves of their vociferous fans in every corner of the globe in which they have participated.
Indeed, if not for their unlucky fortunes on the pitch, Shujaa have stood heads and shoulders above other nations for their unique aura they espouse on the pitch and in the stands.
Nonetheless, all that matters for nothing if they do not top the relegation playoffs — and earn the chance to play in the second tier of the newly revamped series.
Shujaa step onto Dignity Health Sports Park Stadium under a storm occasioned by World Rugby’s official announcement of a new format that is seemingly aimed at spicing up the competition and providing increased revenue to all teams involved.
What is the new 7s Series format?
The skies have been pregnant for a while now with thick clouds of uncertainty over the future of the current format of the tournament.
However, Thursday’s announcement confirmed the hailstorm that has been the worst fears of many stakeholders.
As per World Rugby, next season’s tournament will be divided into three: Divisions 1, 2, and 3.
The top division will include the first eight teams in the present World Sevens Series standings — for both men and women — and will feature six legs.
Division 2 will comprise six teams, including those that finish in the top four positions in this weekend’s playoffs, as well as two more from Division 3.
It will comprise three legs of competition.
Division 3 will be a standalone Challenger event comprising eight teams per gender, which will qualify via regional qualifiers.
This means that Kenya are effectively ‘relegated’ from the core tier.
However, they still have something to fight for — finishing at least in the semis to avoid dropping into the latter division where they will have to go through regional qualifiers to feature in the competition.
They face Samoa, Portugal and hosts United States in Pool A as Uruguay, Germany, Canada and Ireland battle each other in the other group.
At the end of the regular season, the top eight teams from Division 1 and the top four in Division 2 will clash in a two-day World Championships to determine the winner for the men and women’s categories.
What about the Lionesses?
The Lionesses head into LA buoyed by their dominant showing in the Challenger Series.
Back-to-back wins in the first and second legs in Cape Town put them in the driving seat.
They then secured a third place finish in the final leg in Krakow, topping the Challenger Series standings with 56 points, two ahead of second-placed South Africa.
More of the same in Los Angeles and Dennis ‘Ironman’ Mwanja’s charges will have gained more than enough momentum for one last push for the high table of World Rugby 7s Series.
They face Brazil, Spain and Colombia in Pool A as China, South Africa, Ireland and Argentina square it out in Pool B.
