HSBC SVNS World Championship Series: A beginner’s guide

The 2026 Hong Kong Sevens is set to be an historic occasion, with new teams, multiple invitational tournaments in the background and 2026 marking 50 years of Sevens rugby being played in the Fragrant Harbour.

Overshadowing all of this, however, is the inaugural leg of the HSBC SVNS World Championship, a new look three-leg finals campaign to decide the overall winners of the 2025-26 Series.

So, what are the key things you need to know about this new format, and what makes it such an exciting prospect for Sevens fans?

RugbyPass gives you a beginner’s guide to the HSBC SVNS World Championship Series, breaking down the key things you need to know and how it will play out.

Three rounds, winner takes all

The HSBC SVNS World Championship sees the ladder wound back to zero, with the eight teams of World Series and the four qualifying teams of SVNS 2 set to play across three rounds of action.

These three rounds are set to be played from April to June, with Hong Kong China, Valladolid in Spain and Bordeaux in France set to host each of the three finals.

At the end of the final match in France, the finals ladder from the last three rounds will be added up, with the best-performing sides across the three events being crowned the overall champions of the 2025-26 Series.

This means that anyone can win, despite previous form, and unlike the 2024-25 Series that saw a one final, winner takes all scenario play out in Los Angeles, the three legs allow more opportunities for the chasing pack to catch those at the top, and for the top to strike back.

Regular season success kicks in

Similar to qualification for the XVs Rugby World Cup, the regular season becomes critical as to how difficult a side’s run will be in the finals.

With 12 teams now participating in both the men’s and women’s competitions, the pool stage will now be expanded from two pools of four teams to three pools of four teams.

In the men’s competition, the top three finishers of South Africa, Fiji and Australia will be the top-tier sides in each respective pool, with the next three best performing sides on the ladder (New Zealand, France and Argentina) taking the second-tier spots, and so on.

This will also apply in the women’s competition, with New Zealand, Australia and the USA being the top-tier sides for each respective pool.

The SVNS 2 teams’ form also comes into consideration here, with the best performing sides across the three-leg series in Nairobi, Montevideo and São Paulo getting the best run in finals.

This will mean the top two finishers in the men’s SVNS 2 competition, the USA and Kenya, will qualify for the ‘weakest’ pool, with Argentina and Spain qualifying for the women’s.

Relegation on the table

While the strongest will look to secure the 2025-26 title at the top, every match now becomes critical, with promotion and relegation firmly in the picture.

With only eight teams taking part in the top tier of SVNS, the four chasing sides from SVNS 2 will be looking to try and find their way into the top eight on the ladder come the end of action in Bordeaux.

This puts a huge amount of pressure on the bottom three sides that featured in the World Series, as they look to stave off the SVNS 2 competition and hold onto their spots.

In the men’s competition, the likes of Argentina, Spain and Great Britain will be most under threat from the SVNS 2 challengers of the USA, Kenya, Germany and Uruguay.

The women’s competition, meanwhile, will see SVNS 2 challengers in Argentina, Spain, South Africa and Brazil look to unseat the likes of Fiji, Japan and Great Britain.

A new look champion?

With the ladder now set to be wound back to zero, the race opens up once again as to who will win the 2025-26 Series, with the inclusion of finals legs proving happy hunting ground for surprise challengers in the last few years.

The men’s regular season in 2023-24 and 2024-25 was dominated by Argentina, only for the finals to see Pumas 7s stumble and France and South Africa, respectively, emerge victorious.

This was also the case for the women’s competition, with New Zealand topping the 2023-24 regular season ladder only to flounder at the final in Madrid, with Australia taking the top honours and France finishing in silver.

Now, with three finals events instead of one, a sudden-death event, it opens the opportunity for those sides who have dominated the regular season to strike back, but also provides more opportunities for challengers to emerge.

Will South Africa and New Zealand flounder after strong seasons in the men’s and women’s competition?

First leg the most critical for finals

While Valladolid and Bordeaux will decide who tops the ladder and who is relegated, Hong Kong China is now a critical juncture for everyone.

It will mark the only finals event where form of the regular season dictates the run teams will have, meaning everyone will be looking to make sure they make the most of their opportunities at Kai Tak Sports Park.

The top three sides in both competitions will look to use their favourable draws to start finals in the right fashion and push for the title.

The SVNS 2 sides, several of whom have been in strong form after already being promoted from SVNS 3, will be looking to continue that momentum and pick up a top-eight position.

It makes the Hong Kong Sevens arguably the most important leg in the whole season, which seems fitting as the city prepares to celebrate 50 years of exhilarating Sevens action on its shores.