With the 2019 Hong Kong Sevens just over a month away, we begin our preparations with a little introduction to the iconic rugby tournament that electrifies the city and sets the hearts of rugby fans all over the world aflutter!
18
The number of times defending champions Fiji have won the Cup in Hong Kong. To put their dominance in perspective, only New Zealand come anywhere close in the Hong Kong Sevens leaderboard with 11 titles to their name. Different class.
22
This year marks the 22nd edition of the Hong Kong Women's Sevens Tournament, held at the So Kon Po Ground near the Hong Kong Stadium. While the Hong Kong Sevens began as far back as 1976, the Women's Rugby Sevens only came into existence in 1997.
40
The total number of mens' and women's teams that Hong Kong will play host to in April. This marks the biggest gathering of rugby unions anywhere in 2019, with teams hailing from a staggering 34 Unions scattered across the world.
44
Now in its 44th edition, the iconic Hong Kong Sevens has come a long way from its humble beginnings at the Hong Kong Football Club where 12 teams played in front of a relatively measly 3000 fans, to becoming an world-renowned rugby spectacle attracting flocks of visitors every year.
13,000
The average amount in HKD each tourist splashes out during their stay.
With tickets at a premium and in hot demand, some elect to spend entire afternoons taking in the Sevens action televised at local bars and restaurants instead. All the drinking, eating and merrymaking makes for quite a fillip for the F&B industry, who will also be hoping that boorish behaviour is kept to a minimum...
120,000
Housing a cumulative total of 120,000 spectators over 3 days, the 40,000-capacity Hong Kong Stadium was built in 1994 and has since become the home of the Hong Kong Sevens.
That is set to change soon, with the new 50,000-seater Kai Tak Stadium now in the works - a move that will modernise, but also affect the Sevens experience for some whose memories are firmly etched in the South Stand.