Dubai: The build-up to this year's Emirates Airline Dubai Rugby Sevens could not have been more exciting, with the sport on the verge of Olympic Games inclusion.
Tickets for the hugely popular tournament, which takes place on December 3-5 this year, go on sale today. And with the popularity of Sevens Rugby at an all-time high, organisers are expecting a rush for tickets similar to last year when over 130,000 fans packed into Emirates' then newly-built sports venue, The Sevens, for the three-day event.
It was, in fact, that world record-breaking crowd, along with the historic Rugby World Cup Sevens held at the same venue just a few months later, that greatly impressed the International Olympic Committee, whose final decision on inclusion in the Games will be made on October 9. That's the opinion of Paul Treu, coach of Dubai Rugby Sevens reigning champions, South Africa.
On his visit to Dubai last week to prepare for the December tournament, Treu said: "I think what really made the Executive Board of the IOC decide to recommend Sevens be included in the Olympics was the World Cup here in Dubai. The IRB have put a lot of energy into this campaign and the IOC have seen the growth of Sevens; they've seen the support for Sevens, and they've seen the number of people that came out to watch the teams.
"I think Dubai has been instrumental in the whole marketing campaign to show them that," said Treu before adding a special message to the Dubai public: "Hurry up and make sure that you get your tickets because they're going to fly. The Dubai Sevens is really going to be massive this year, especially once Sevens becomes an Olympic sport next month."
Tickets are available from The Sevens ground on the Al Ain Road, Emirates headquarters, the Dnata Travel Centre on Shaikh Zayed Road and numerous Costa and MMI outlets as well as online through www.dubairugby7s.com. The Costa outlets where tickets are on sale are: Mall of the Emirates, Dubai Mall and Al Wahda Mall, Abu Dhabi and the MMI outlets where they are available are: Al Wasl Road, Ibn Battuta, Mall of the Emirates, Shaikh Zayed Road and Festival City. What makes the Emirates Airline Dubai Rugby Sevens such a special event is the fact that apart from the 16 elite IRB teams, over 150 local, social and international invitational sides take part, meaning over 2000 players will converge on The Sevens in the first weekend of December.
"It's hard to imagine that it's already been almost a year since that exceptional first Emirates Airline Dubai Rugby Sevens at The Sevens," said Gary Chapman, President Group Services and Dnata, Emirates Group. "Preparations are well underway for what we are certain will be another spectacularly successful tournament at the beginning of December," he added.
Have your say
Do you think rugby should be included in the Olympics? How much of a boost would such an inclusion give to the sport? Tell us at letter2editor@gulfnews.com or fill in the comments form below.
