An exciting weekend of rugby awaits, with the 2022 Rugby World Cup Sevens taking place in South Africa from September 9th to 11th.
| Date: | September 9th-11th from 6:30 AM GMT |
| Venue: | Newlands Rugby Stadium, Cape Town, South Africa |
| Watch on: | NBC in the USA and ITV in the UK |
Steeped in almost three decades of history, the RWCS is the largest event in Rugby Sevens, with 24 nations from across the world participating. Fans will be treated to a jam-packed schedule across three days, as a straight knockout format will have punters flocking to rugby union betting sites over the weekend.
We look at the online bookmakers’ 2022 Rugby World Cup Sevens odds ahead of this event and preview which teams are best placed to come away the winner.
First played in 1993 at Murrayfield in Scotland, England were the inaugural winners of the men’s tournament. Since then, Hong Kong, Argentina, the UAE, Russia, and the USA have all played host, with Fiji winning twice, Wales once, and New Zealand three times.
Prior to 2009, the RWCS was played only on the men’s side of the sport—however, this shifted when the 2009 RWCS in Dubai hosted both men’s and women’s World Cups. Since then, the tournament has had participants on the men’s and women’s sides, with Australia winning the inaugural competition and New Zealand collecting the next two trophies.
This weekend will mark the eighth edition of the tournament for the men and fourth for the women, with New Zealand going for a record-extending fourth men’s title and third women’s title.
With four different winners across seven tournaments, the men’s RWCS is hotly contested. Here’s a look at the 2022 Rugby WC Sevens betting odds:
With eight countries getting a direct path into the Round of 16, several clear favorites have emerged in the betting odds for Rugby 7s WC 2022:
The Flying Fijians are looking to equal New Zealand’s record of three RWCS tournament wins by claiming their first title since 2005 and look good to do so in the Rugby 7s WC 2022 odds.
After having won two of the first four RWCS, Fiji will be frustrated by their lack of success in the last three tournaments. Since then, Fiji has won the World Rugby Sevens Series three times, collecting two Olympics Gold Medals as well. Coming into this weekend, Fiji has won two World Rugby Sevens Series competitions this year, in April and May. Most recently, they lost a tight final 28-21 to New Zealand in Los Angeles last month.
Hot on Fiji’s tails in our Rugby 7s World Cup predictions 2022 are New Zealand, the defending champions.
Coming off a championship win in Los Angeles last month, New Zealand has had a tough few years in Rugby Sevens due to the Covid-19 pandemic. They have sat out the majority of tournaments played since early 2020, finishing in 8th place this season. However, a win in Los Angeles as well as two other recent runner-up results have given the bookmakers enough confidence to rate New Zealand as one of the favorites ahead of the RWCS.
Neck-and-neck with New Zealand in the betting odds for the Rugby 7s WC 2022, South Africa is coming off a second-placed finish in this year’s World Rugby Sevens Series.
The year began with South Africa dominating, winning the first four tournaments of the year. However, since then, the men in green have only managed two fourth-placed finishes out of the last five events, showing some worrying signs.
However, with star players and a track record of performing well in big tournaments, South Africa is still a hot favorite over the weekend.
25+ sportsSuperb bonusesEasy to useVIP programLive gamesMany bonusesMany bonuses24/7 supportMobile appsLive bettingMany sportsFast payoutsGreat supportMobile appsLive bettingWomen’s Sevens is less congested than the men’s tournament, with two clear favorites in the Rugby 7s WC 2022 odds.
With Pacific teams dominating the online bookmakers’ odds heading into the women’s RWCS, here’s a closer look at each of these favorites:
Similar to the men’s team, New Zealand’s women’s side has been impacted by the Covid-19 pandemic since 2020.
This season, the side has only been able to play two tournaments. However, they performed strongly, placing first and second in these showings, to confirm that they are still one of the best teams in the world. With two wins already at the RWCS, New Zealand are well placed to extend their dominance over the weekend.
One of the sport’s best rivalries will be continued over the weekend, as Australia offers the most significant challenge to New Zealand’s RWCS aspirations.
This season, the Australian women have won all but two of the World Rugby Sevens Series played and have placed first in the series overall. However, in the two tournaments, New Zealand was active in, the sides split the results, with the Kiwis winning the most recent event in Toulouse.
A little off the pace from favorites New Zealand and Australia, any expert picks would be remiss to count out the Fijian women.
Placing third in this year’s World Rugby Sevens Series, with two second and one third place tournament finishes, Fiji is poised to pounce on the RWCS should either New Zealand or Australia falter. They will be eager to claim their first RWCS trophy, having never made it beyond the quarter-finals before.
Both the 2013 RWCS in Moscow and the 2018 RWCS in San Francisco produced the best possible result for New Zealand—wins in both the men’s and the women’s competitions. Heading into this weekend’s tournament in South Africa, with the men’s second favorite in the 2022 Rugby World Cup sevens odds at 5.00 (4/1) and the women clear favorites on 2.00 (1/1), the question is: Can New Zealand do it again, and make it three clean sweeps in a row? Or will Fiji, Australia, and South Africa spoil their party?
Our prediction is there’s a good chance New Zealand will do it again.
