The World Sevens Series will touch down in the United States for this weekend’s Las Vegas Sevens, which will run between Saturday the 2nd of March and into the early hours of Monday the 4th of March.
We should be in for a cracker of an event this weekend with the host nation, the United States, having finished in second place in all four of this season’s previous legs. They come into their home tournament level on points with the log-leading New Zealanders, and four points clear of third-placed Fiji.
Las Vegas Sevens
Saturday 2 March – Sunday 3 March
Sam Boyd Stadium
Pools
- Pool A: New Zealand, Spain, Canada, and Samoa
- Pool B: United States, France, Argentina, and Kenya
- Pool C: England, South Africa, Japan, and Chile
- Pool D: Fiji, Australia, Wales, and Scotland
To Win Outright
- Fiji
- New Zealand
- United States
- South Africa
- Australia
- England
- Argentina
Contenders
Fiji
2018 Las Vegas Finish: Third
The Fijians will be looking to close the gap on New Zealand and the United States this weekend by winning in Las Vegas for the first since their 2016 victory.
The Islanders have been a bit unpredictable this term winning two events while two events (Cape Town and Hamilton) while finishing in sixth in Dubai and Seventh in Sydney.
Vegas hasn’t been the happiest of hunting grounds for the Fijians over the past two seasons, with the men in ‘black and white’ losing the 2017 final to South Africa and finishing last season’s tournament in third. They did win back to back titles in 2015 and 2016, however. So it’s not as though they don’t know how to get the job done on American soil.
New Zealand
2018 Las Vegas Finish: Fifth
The current circuit leaders will be to claim their third tournament victory of the season when they take to the Sam Boyd Stadium this weekend.
While Vegas hasn’t been the happiest of hunting grounds for the New Zealanders in the recent past – the last time they won in Vegas was back in 2008 while the last time they made a final was in 2015 – you can expect a solid showing from them here as this young crop of Kiwis has enjoyed a renaissance this term and seem to be on the way to bringing back the glory days to New Zealand Sevens. And while they have lost a few players to Super Rugby call-ups, they will still be a real threat in Vegas.
United States
2018 Las Vegas Finish: Champions
The hosts have been the most consistent side on the circuit this year finishing all four events in second-place. This is quite some achievement for the men from North America as they have been one of the least consistent teams on the circuit for a number of years now.
They really have developed a great all-around squad and with a multitude of players stepping up to the mark this season.
The United States will be pretty confident headed into their home vent as it’s a tournament they have thrived at, winning last year’s edition as well as finishing in third in 2017.
Dark Horse
Argentina
2018 Las Vegas Finish: Runners-Up
The Argentines are yet to really hit their straps this season with their best finish being the seventh-placed finish they claimed in Dubai.
Despite their failures this term, the South Americans are still a decent darkhorse to follow in Las Vegas. They finished last year’s stop in Vegas as runners-up and there were signs that they were starting to gel as a side out in Sydney
Verdict: United States
I really do fancy the hosts to retain their title. They have been ultra consistent this term and are due a tournament win.
