10 Mar 2015

Sevens move to Sydney

11:54 am on 10 March 2015

The Australian leg of the World Rugby Sevens tour will be moved from Gold Coast to Sydney from next season.

Some of the crowd at the Sevens spell it out

Some of the crowd at the Sevens spell it out Photo: Photosport

The Australian round has struggled to attract crowds at the Queensland tourist resort and just 20,000 fans turned up over two days last October for the fourth version of the event.

ARU chief Bill Pulver said he believed Sydney had the potential to match the excitement surrounding tournaments like Hong Kong, Twickenham and Wellington.

The Canadian city of Vancouver will host an indoor round of the series from the 2015-16 season, taking the total number of legs to 10.

The current nine-leg season doubles as a qualifier for the 2016 Olympics, with the top four teams booking spots for the debut of sevens in Rio de Janeiro.

South Africa, New Zealand, Fiji and Australia currently occupy those positions ahead of Hong Kong round later this month.