The Asia Rugby Emirates Sevens Series will feature 12 men’s teams and 12 women’s teams when it opens in Suzhou later this summer. Men’s participants include Japan, Hong Kong China, Sri Lanka, host China, the United Arab Emirates, Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore, Korea, Kazakhstan, India and Uzbekistan. Women’s entrants comprise Japan, China, Thailand, Hong Kong China, Kazakhstan, India, Singapore, the United Arab Emirates, Malaysia, Sri Lanka, Uzbekistan and Iran, according to Asia Rugby.
The two-round series moves to Colombo, Sri Lanka, for its concluding leg on October 17-18 where the overall champions will be crowned and awarded a place in the SVNS 3. Matches in Suzhou will offer national squads high-level preparation for the Aichi-Nagoya 2026 Asian Games scheduled the following month. Asia Rugby described the series as the region’s highest level of annual sevens competition and an important platform for squad development.
Four nations will make their series debuts after winning promotion through the Asia Rugby Emirates Sevens Trophy staged in Muscat, Oman. India and Kazakhstan advanced in the men’s competition while Iran and Uzbekistan progressed on the women’s side. The governing body noted that these promotions illustrate the value of its competition pathway in broadening participation among its 36 member unions.
Asia Rugby has run the Emirates Sevens Series as its flagship annual sevens event since 2009. The competition has produced Asian Games medallists, Rugby World Cup Sevens representatives and teams pursuing Olympic qualification while offering emerging unions a route to top-tier regional competition. Earlier editions have been hosted in locations including Singapore, Indonesia and Qatar with strong performances recorded by established powers such as Japan.
In an announcement on its website, Asia Rugby President Qais Al Dhalai said, “The Asia Rugby Emirates Sevens Series continues to be one of the flagship competitions in our calendar, showcasing the very best of rugby sevens across our region. We are proud to welcome Asia’s leading men’s and women’s teams to Suzhou as they begin another exciting Series. Our partnership with Emirates continues to strengthen rugby throughout Asia by providing world-class competition while supporting the growth of the game across all 36 Member Unions. It is particularly encouraging to see emerging nations such as Iran, Uzbekistan, India and Kazakhstan earning their place through the Emirates Sevens Trophy, demonstrating that investment in development pathways is delivering real results.” Asia Rugby will supply extensive digital coverage of the event.
Asia Rugby Competitions Committee Chairperson Asanga Seneviratne said the standard of rugby in both the men’s and women’s events keeps rising. He noted that matches attract growing global audiences and provide a key platform for development across the continent. All fixtures will be broadcast live on RugbyPass TV subject to territorial availability while Asia Rugby shares highlights and additional content across its social media channels.
