Thousands of local and international rugby fans are set to flock to the Cape Town Stadium this weekend when the HSBC World Rugby Sevens Series returns to the city.
Also read: Look: Cape Town shows its gees at the HSBC Sevens
According to News24, tickets are still available for this weekend’s Cape Town Sevens, with around 34 000 sold for Saturday’s opening day and 31 000 sold for Sunday.
The capacity of Cape Town Stadium is around 50 000, and Sevens at the iconic venue has traditionally signalled the start of the festive season in the region.
Tickets for both days start at R150.
Meanwhile, the Blitzboks are eager to impress their home fans after winning the opening event in Dubai last weekend, their fifth consecutive title in the desert and their 11th overall.
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However, South Africa has struggled at their home event in recent years, with their last home victory coming in 2015, when the event was held for the first time in the Mother City.
England (2016), New Zealand (2017), Fiji (2018), New Zealand (2019), and Samoa (2022) have all won gold since then. (Due to COVID-19, the event was cancelled in 2020 and 2021).
Some believe that the Blitzboks struggle in front of a home crowd.
The Blitzboks will compete in a difficult Pool A alongside Ireland, the United Kingdom and the United States. Following some changes to the world series, the event has been reduced from 16 to 12 teams. Naturally, this translates into tougher pool contests.
Last year, the Blitzboks finished fourth at the Cape Town Sevens. They were defeated 10-7 by Samoa in the semi-finals before falling 22-14 to the United States in the third-place match.
The Blitzboks had one injury casualty from the Dubai Sevens, with prop Christie Grobbelaar ruled out for this weekend due to an ankle injury.
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After the team returned from Dubai, he underwent a scan in Cape Town, which revealed that he is unable to play on Saturday or Sunday.
Tiaan Pretorius and Tristan Lleyds were called into camp on Tuesday, and the squad will be reduced to 13 players on Thursday.
Pretorius made his Blitzboks debut last year, while Lleyds has been part of the wider training squad for the last few months.
Those wishing to purchase tickets for the Cape Town Sevens can do so here.
Also read:
Cape Town thrilled to join revamped World Rugby Sevens Series
Picture: Murray Swart / Cape{town}Etc
