Rugby Sevens World Series is fast and exciting and never more so than last year’s Cape Town final that England stole from South Africa In a dramatic end to 2016.

The New Year is here and this means that the HBSC World Series will continue, this time kicking off in New Zealand, Wellington on 28 January.

The two-day rugby fest is one of the most eagerly awaited rugby sevens tournaments in rugby fandom.

Rugby App – stay up to date with live scores and news

Rugby fans can stay up to date with live scores and news of the games. Using the Twitter hashtag #HSBC&s, users can find the link to the App download, or visit the iTunes Website direct to get this essential fan tool.

Using the Twitter hashtag #HSBC&s, users can find the link to the App download, or visit the iTunes Website direct to get this essential fan tool.

Watching online live streaming is mostly geo-blocked in Europe, so here are some places you can watch live and official highlights, in that part of the world.

  • UK, the Isle of Man and Channel Islands – Tv.Sky and itv
  • France – Canalplus (fr)
  • Germany, Austria and Switzerland - DAZN
  • Turkey, Greece, Malta, Cyprus and Israel – Fox Sports

For worldwide coverage of the series, there are several options and luckily these are not all geo-blocked.

Fans can try Sport24, Sntv, Sunsetvine (UK) and worldrugby org

HSBC Pools in Wellington

The pools were drawn in December and the four pools show an interesting fight up ahead, especially in Pool B where South Africa will have to face off against Olympic teams of note - Fiji, Australia, and Japan.

Here’s how the pools look:

  • Pool A – England, Kenya, Papua New Guinnea and Argentina
  • Pool B - South Africa, Fiji, Japan and Australia
  • Pool C – New Zealand, France, USA and Samoa
  • Pool D – Scotland, Wales, Russia, and Canada\

Getting tickets for the 28th/29th January if you are fortunate enough to be in Wellington for the matches can be purchased online, but these tickets are going fast, so better to be early and grab your seat well in advance.

The tournament which is hosted at the Westpac Stadium attracts a lot of spectators every year. Event Finder tells us to expect two days of rugby “Loaded with live music, Food+Fizz alley, and a fusion of colour costumes, sport, and entertainment!”

How the tournament works

If you are new to the exciting HSBC Rugby Series, the sixteen teams play each other in their pools in a round robin knockout.

Each team plays for between 7 to 10 minutes a side fielding 7 players. You can expect fast play and some exuberant rugby. Two days of play-offs are fantastic fun. ‘Buns on Seats’ by 9.30am is advised as there is more than rugby to entertain 7’s fans.