- The semi-finals were confirmed following a thrilling first day of HSBC SVNS action in Cape Town with a new competition format adding to the drama
- Hosts South Africa thrash Argentina and Ireland to top pool, while Spain continued fine form to set up semi-final clash. Fiji against France is a repeat of Olympic gold medal match
- New Zealand face France and Australia take on the USA in women’s semi-finals
- Play begins at 09:00 local time (GMT+2) on Sunday with the semi-finals from 13:12 and the women’s and men’s finals at 18:35 and 19:11 respectively.
- Fans around the world can watch here and tickets are available from R250 on Ticketmaster here
The semi-finallists were confirmed at the end of a thrilling first day at HSBC SVNS Cape Town and there was joy for the fervent home crowd as South Africa put both Argentina and Ireland to the sword to set up a men’s semi-final clash with Spain who continued the fine form that saw them reach their first SVNS final in Dubai last weekend.
The second men’s semi-final sees a repeat of the Olympic gold medal match as Fiji take on France as both teams topped their pools with perfect win records.
South Africa sent a raucous and passionate crowd at Cape Town into raptures with a 29-5 win over Argentina in the last match of the first day at the DHL Stadium, having earlier overcome a depleted Ireland with a comfortable 34-7 win.
South Africa head coach Philip Snyman said: “Everybody had a good understanding of what they needed to do and executed those roles very well, so I am very happy with day one’s efforts. We created a lot of pressure and that gave us turnovers, especially in the last game against Argentina.
“We are not getting ahead of ourselves because we are in the semi-finals. There was a good energy in the group all week. So overall there is a positive mindset all around and that showed today. That is done now, we have achieved our aim to finish top of the pool, but the work is far from completed.
“We have to come back tomorrow even better and make sure we are clinical in everything we do. If we can maintain our ball possession tomorrow like we did today and the tackle completion remain the same as well, we will have a good day.”
With a crowd of more than 30,000 enjoying the first day’s entertainment, tickets are still available for finals day from R250 on Ticketmaster here, with a 50% discount available from midnight local time.
Dubai finalists Spain secured a semi-final berth for the second week running with a thoroughly impressive 19-14 win over Australia in the deciding match of a tight Pool B. Earlier they were made to work for their 14-7 win over Kenya who returned to the SVNS series this year.
Olympic champions France laid on an attacking masterclass to beat New Zealand 47-15 after Les Bleus had laid down an earlier marker with an eight-try 50-12 win over the USA, who have yet to win on this season’s tour.
Fiji began the day with a scintillating 10-try 70-7 victory over a Uruguay, before clinching a hard-fought 17-12 victory over Great Britain to top pool A.
The women’s semi-finals see Olympic champions New Zealand face France, while reigning SVNS champions and current leaders Australia take on the USA in a repeat of the Olympic bronze medal match in Paris which saw the USA claim their first rugby sevens medals in history.
Australia survived being reduced to five players for more than a minute unscathed as they beat Olympic silver medallists Canada 26-10 to continue their unbeaten run in this HSBC SVNS series. The match was notable that Australia’s Maddison Levi failed to get on the scoreboard for the first time in 27 matches. The recently crowned World Rugby Sevens Player of the Year had earlier taken her try tally this season to 18 with a hat-trick as Australia beat Brazil 45-5.
New Zealand – runners-up in Dubai last weekend – survived a Pool B scare against Japan to set up a semi-final against France. The Black Ferns Sevens earlier made rather lighter work of opening opponents China, running in six tries – Mahina Paul and Risi Pouri-Lane getting two each – to open their Cape Town account with a 40-10 win.
The action was intense from start to finish on a drama-filled day of world class rugby sevens as a newly introduced competition format meant every match counts more than ever.
The new format features four pools or three teams with the pool winners proceeding directly to the semi-finals, while teams finishing second in their pool compete in the fifth to eighth place play offs and teams finishing third in their pools play off for ninth to twelfth positions.
Based on player welfare considerations following consultation with teams, the new format is being implemented for the second rounds of ‘back-to-back’ events, in Cape Town and Singapore, which are played on the weekends immediately following the events in Dubai and Hong Kong respectively.
Alongside many of the medal winning stars of the Olympic Games there were a host of new faces on display following 91 players debuting in the 12 men’s and 12 women’s squads at the opening round of HSBC SVNS last weekend in Dubai.
Finals day begins at 09:00 local time (GMT+2) on Sunday with the semi-finals at 13:12 and the women’s and men’s finals bringing the event to it’s climax at 18:35 and 19:11 respectively.
HSBC SVNS 2025 features seven events across seven months in seven iconic global destinations. Six regular season rounds will be played in Dubai, Cape Town, Perth, Vancouver, Hong Kong and Singapore to decide the HSBC SVNS League Winners, before the HSBC SVNS World Championship in Los Angeles, which will see the top eight men’s and women’s teams compete at Dignity Health Sports Park which will host the LA 2028 Olympic rugby sevens.
VIEW HSBC SVNS 2025 CALENDAR >>
Fans can watch the HSBC SVNS action wherever you are in the world, either via broadcast partners or on www.RugbyPassTV.
