The Industry Column – 9th October

Tim Lacey, CEO of global promoter, Ultimate Rugby Sevens, is sure that an International Olympic Committee nod for Rio 2016 inclusion would transform rugby sevens forever.

The fate of Rugby Sevens as an Olympic sport will be decided at the Olympic Congress in Copenhagen today, when the International Olympic Committee (IOC) meet to vote for or against its inclusion in the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

Ultimate Rugby Sevens has been working alongside the International Rugby Board and the worldwide Sevens community during the build up to this week’s Olympic decision, which if it goes our way, will transform the face of Sevens forever and bring unprecedented exposure, profile and funds to the game.

Unleashed under the global spotlight at Rio 2016, it will be the first time rugby has appeared in the Olympics since 1924. This decision is not only massive for Rugby Sevens, it is huge for rugby as a global sport.

Sevens is currently seeing extraordinary growth across the world with hundreds of new tournaments set to launch in the next year to add to the thousands already hosted in over a hundred countries.

The game is played with two teams of seven and played over two halves of seven minutes. The speed of the game means it can be played over a two-day period, perfect for the Olympic format.

As a major promoter of Rugby Sevens worldwide, we are focused on developing the sport into a coherent commercial offering and supporting its growth at all levels.

The Olympics’ decision would be a huge catalyst and we expect commercial and media interest to increase substantially in the wake of a positive decision.

Either way, Ultimate Rugby Sevens will continue working with the IRB and stakeholders all over the world to bring further structure to the game, secure commercial investment, develop players, and ultimately ensure the competition is of the highest quality.