Rugby: Los Terros looking for permanence in World Sevens Series in London
Completing another fine performance on the World Tour, Teros 7 ended their participation in the Toulouse Sevens with a semi-final finish tied for 9th place.
Finishing below Spain in the general table, Uruguay will have to play a repechage to stay in London. The light blue team started the tournament facing Kenya, where they won convincingly 19–5, but in their second appearance, the team led by Ivo Dugonjić lost 26–0 against Canada, therefore finishing in the top 8. Classification is compromised. In the last match of the group, Los Terros 7 fell to a tight 14–12 tie against New Zealand (the tournament champions), which forced them to play in a 9th to 16th place field.
In the quarter-finals, Uruguay won convincingly against Japan 17–5, but in the semi-finals they lost to mighty Fiji 31–15, thus ending their participation in the tournament.
Having finished 12th in the general standings, Uruguay will have to play a repechage for a spot in the World Sevens Series during the London Sevens to be played from 20 to 21 May. It will be Homer to stay in the competition against Kenya, Canada and Tonga.
When the number of teams is reduced to 12 in 2024 (to align with the women’s modus operandi and the Olympic Games), the first 11 in the rankings remain in the circuit; while the 12th–14th places (along with Uruguay, Kenya and Canada) would meet a week later in a round-robin tournament, which Tonga would join as winners of the World Rugby Sevens Challenger Series. From there, the twelfth and final team will qualify for 2024, while the remaining three selected will enter their respective regional seven championships.
