The final event of the 2023-24 World Sevens Series takes place at Civitas Metropolitano Stadium in Madrid this weekend. For the first time in the circuit’s history, the winner will be determined solely by the results of the ‘Grand Final’ tournament.
At the same time four core positions in each of the Men’s and Women’s brackets are up for grabs, with the bottom four finishers on the table pooled together with four qualifiers from the Challenger Series. Pool play will determine knock-out seeding then it’s a winner-take-all fourth and final match for each team that will determine who will have core status next year.
The tournament begins at noon local time on Friday, 6am Eastern, 3am Pacific. All matches will be broadcast list on TSN+ in Canada and on RugbyPass TV worldwide. Semifinals and Finals will also air on Peacock in the USA. A full list of fixtures can be seen here.
MEN’S QUALIFIER
Half of the entries in the Men’s Qualifier are Americas teams. The USA missed the cutoff for the top eight by a single point, while Canada were last on the table this season. Chile and Uruguay emerged from the Challenger rankings as contenders from South America.
For the North American sides the stakes are high. While the USA has already qualified for the Olympics, Canada has yet to do so and a loss in Madrid could have dire financial consequences for the men’s program. The USA similarly could see funding cuts to their program.
Chile and Uruguay have named competitive outfits that feature numerous crossover players who have featured in Super Rugby Americas and their respective test sides. Canada will lean on the likes of fully-capped Cooper Coats and Matthew Oworu, while the USA feature long-time stalwarts Madison Hughes, Stephen Tomasin, and Perry Baker.
POOL A: Canada, Germany, Uruguay, USA
POOL B: Chile, Kenya, Samoa, Spain
 CANADA Phil Berna (capt.) Liam Bowman Jack Carson Cooper Coats Noah Flesch Elias Hancock Thomas Isherwood Josiah Morra Cody Nhanala Matthew Oworu Matt Percillier David Richard Kal Sager |
 CHILE Clemente Armstrong Lucca Avelli Cristóbal Game Nicolás Garafulic Gonzalo Lara Nicolás Saab Tomás Salas Luca Strabucchi Ernesto Tchimino Iñaki Tuset Francisco Urroz Benjamín Videla Diego Warnken (capt.) |
 URUGUAY Ignacio Álvarez Felipe Arcos Pérez Diego Ardao (capt.) Bautista Basso Tomás Etcheverry Ignacio Facciolo Juan González Valentín Grille Guillermo Lijtenstein James McCubbin Dante Soto Juan Manuel Tafernaberry Mateo Viñals |
 USA Perry Baker Orrin Bizer Aaron Cummings Malacchi Esdale Naima Fuala’au Madison Hughes Lucas Lacamp Faitala Talapusi Stephen Tomasin Maka Unufe Pita Vi Kevon Williams (capt.) Lance Williams |
WOMEN’S QUALIFIER
There will be two South American sides in the Women’s Qualifier bracket. Brazil were the 10th-place finishers on the circuit and should be confident of retaining their spot. Japan will also be favored to carry on as a core side. Argentina have improved dramatically but will need inspiration from captain Sofia Gonzalez to lead them to a first-ever core position.
POOL A: China, Japan, Poland, Spain
POOL B: Argentina, Belgium, Brazil, South Africa
 ARGENTINA Sheila Carlevaris Virginia Brígido Cristal Escalante Mayra Genghini Sofía González (capt.) Gimena Mattus Azul Medina Josefina Padellaro Micaela Pallero Antonella Reding Talía Rodich María Taladrid Brisa Trigo |
 BRAZIL Luiza Campos (capt.) Thalia Costa Thalita Costa Marina Fioravanti Raquel Kochhann Gabriela Lima Isadora Lopes Milana Mariano Mariana Nicolau Bianca Silva Leila Silva Yasmim Soares Marcelle Souza |
MEN’S CHAMPIONSHIP
Los Pumas were the top name on the log heading into Madrid, leading Ireland by two points after a stellar campaign. The two sides are joined by New Zealand as the top contenders, with France a darkhorse with the addition of superstar Antoine Dupont. Argentina are building nicely towards the Olympics with a good mix of youngsters and battle-hardened veterans.
POOL A: Argentina, Australia, France, Great Britain
POOL B: Fiji, Ireland, New Zealand, South Africa
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WOMEN’S CHAMPIONSHIP
The two North American sides have put together powerful rosters but a podium finish is likely the best they can hope for with New Zealand and Australia the top-ranked sides by a distance this season. A silver finish in Hong Kong will boost the USA’s hopes, with Canada earning one bronze over the sevens tourneys in the build-up.
Established sevens stars Alev Kelter, Ilona Maher, and skipper Lauren Doyle are among an impressive cast for the Women’s Eagles. Canada have notably recalled three players from their Pacific Four-winning campaign – Fancy Bermudez, Maddy Grant, and captain Olivia Apps.
POOL A: Canada, Great Britain, New Zealand, USA
POOL B: Australia, Fiji, France, Ireland
CANADA Olivia Apps (capt.) Fancy Bermudez Alysha Corrigan Caroline Crossley Chloe Daniels Maddy Grant Asia Hogan-Rochester Piper Logan Taylor Perry Florence Symonds Shalaya Valenzuela Keyara Wardley Charity Williams |
USA Kayla Canett Lauren Doyle (capt.) Nicole Heavirland Alev Kelter Kristi Kirshe Sarah Levy Ilona Maher Alena Olsen Ariana Ramsey Stephanie Rovetti Alex Sedrick Sam Sullivan Kris Thomas |
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