Relaunched in the fall with a new staff, the Belgian team played its first match of the season against Germany. A work clearly in progress compared to the test match in March 2023 at the Nelson Mandela Stadium when they lost 10-14. The Germans will have generally dominated the Belgians physically, confining them to in defence for most of the match. Trailing 12-5 at the break, Belgium were unable to prevent Germany from extending their lead and ultimately lost 36-17 Read more about Germans retain advantage over Belgium ..read more

Michaela Blyde’s hat-trick powered New Zealand to a 29-14 victory over old rivals Australia to take their second gold medal of HSBC SVNS 2024 in as many weeks. Both sides went into the final unbeaten in Los Angeles but brilliance from Blyde, plus scores from Risi Pouri-Lane and Portia Woodman-Wickliffe, proved the difference as they closed the gap with series leaders Australia in the standings to just four points. Read more about Ferns close the gap at top of SVNS ..read more

Canada, South Africa and Dubai have been awarded this year’s WXV1, WXV2 and WXV3 tournaments, respectively. The awards were made after bids were also put in by at least two European unions – France and Spain – and come much earlier than last year and before any teams have actually yet qualified. The qualification process was also confirmed, including the status of the Netherlands v Colombia playoff, and the dates of the competition. As in 2023, WXV1 will be made up of the top three from the Six Nations and Pacific Fours. Read more about Venues for WXV 2024 announced ..read more

Portia Woodman-Wickliffe scored a hat-trick as New Zealand won 35-19 in a dominant display against France in the HSBC Vancouver 2024 final, defending their title and winning their first gold medal of the season. After a rocky start to the year, the Black Ferns Sevens were without peer all weekend on Canadian soil, scoring a total of 32 tries and conceding just seven all weekend. The final was a spectacle, but it was Canada’s 19-14 victory over SVNS series leaders Australia to secure the bronze medal that really got the home crowd on their feet. Read more about Ferns back on form in Vancouve ..read more

The Dutch began strongly, and took just seven minutes to get on tp the scoreboard with Elisabeth Boot finding the gap in the Portuguese line. 0-7 However, Portugal soon began to show up some Dutch frailties. Quick thinking by scrumhalf Ana Santos won Portugal the ball from a Dutch scrum, and a few moments later Mariana Marques was ghosting through the Dutch line to score under the posts. 7-7. The next twenty minutes were even, but the Dutch forwards gradually managed to take control, and on the half hour the Dutch went ahead again with a try from Esme Ligtvoet. 7-12. Read more about Dutch w ..read more

The fourth Arab 7s was held in Taif this weekend. The largest tournament to date - eight teams – it is  rare example of a cross-regional tournament (with teams from Asia and Africa) and this year’s was not only the first major rugby tournament held in Saudi Arabia, it also featured the home nation’s international debut. The Saudi rugby federation was relaunched only last year and is part of an attempt by the country to diversify into new areas such as sport as the world moves away from oil. A major target for the new Read more about Tunisia win third Arab 7s title ..read more

The Italian Benneton Rugby franchise beat Iberians Valencia 41-12 against at 14:00 at the Stadio Monigo in Treviso to complete a wins over the both of the Spanish teams in the tournament and so lift Latin Cup. The Italian team proved to be superior, especially at the beginning of the match in which they managed to score four tries in the first 10 minutes of the match. The Spanish reaction cut the lead before the break, but in the second half the Italian continued to be superior. Read more about Benneton win first Latin Challenge ..read more

WXV has proved to be a notoriously difficult competition for commentators, writers, followers of the game and even players and coaches to get their minds around. The misleading and confusing statements made during last year’s WXV1 about whether or not Wales would automatically play in WXV1 this year was a case in point.  Read more about WXV: The devil in the detail ..read more

The expanded 2024 tournament, which now features two teams from each of the three nations – Ireland, Scotland and Wales – opened at the end of December with the two teams from each nation playing each other In Ireland, the Clovers carved out a 10-point lead in a fiercely-contested Celtic Challenge opener at Musgrave Park, but a trio of final quarter tries saw the Wolfhounds emerge as 21-15 winners. Read more about Celtic Challenge reaches playoffs ..read more

A sell-out crowd amid a party atmosphere in Perth witness Ireland's women make history and end Australia's winning run. Ireland won the third event of the series, beating Australia 19-14 in the final to spark jubilant scenes at the final whistle. In front of the biggest rugby crowd in the Western Australia capital since 2017, Ireland claimed their first series win in only their second final, ending a 29-game losing streak to Australia in the process. Read more about First SVNS round win for Ireland ..read more