Current season or competition:![]() | |
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Sport | Rugby union |
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Inaugural season | 1993 (men) 2009 (women) |
Number of teams | 24 (men) 16 (women) |
Holders | ![]() ![]() |
Most titles | ![]() ![]() (3 titles) ![]() ![]() (2 titles) |
Website | rwcsevens.com |
Rugby World Cup Sevens (RWCS) was the former quadrennial world championship of rugby sevens, a variant of rugby union. Organised by World Rugby, it consisted of men's and women's tournaments, and was the highest level of competition in the sport outside of the Summer Olympics.
The first tournament was held in 1993 in Scotland, and was won by England. The winners of the men's tournament were awarded the Melrose Cup, named after the Scottish town of Melrose where the first rugby sevens game was played.[1] A women's tournament was introduced at the 2009 Rugby World Cup Sevens in Dubai, and was first won by Australia.
After the 2013 Rugby World Cup Sevens, the tournament took an extended, five-year hiatus to allow the integration of rugby sevens at the Summer Olympics into the competitive calendar. The 2022 Rugby World Cup Sevens was held at Cape Town Stadium, in Cape Town, South Africa, with Fiji winning the men's tournament and Australia winning the women's tournament.
In January 2025, it was reported that World Rugby will not schedule future Rugby World Cup Sevens, instead crowning the winners of the SVNS tournament series as world champion. [2]