Struggling Wellington sevens tournament moves to Hamilton
ByReuters
Published 22/05/2017 at 02:31 GMT
WELLINGTON, May 22 (Reuters) - The New Zealand stop on the men's world sevens circuit has moved from Wellington to Hamilton from next year, New Zealand Rugby said on Monday.
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After being one of the more popular events on the world circuit and on New Zealand's sporting calendar, the Wellington tournament had stagnated in recent years and struggled with poor ticket sales.
Tickets previously sold out within minutes but a clampdown on unruly behaviour by police, local authorities and stadium officials saw its popularity plummet.
This year's event sold less than 15,000 tickets for the 34,500 capacity Wellington Regional Stadium.
It posted only its second loss in 18 years and New Zealand Rugby (NZR) said several other cities had expressed an interest hosting it for the remaining two years of the licence granted by World Rugby.
"Hamilton and the Waikato region are rugby mad," NZR Chief Strategy and Operations Officer Nigel Cass said in a statement in announcing the shift.
"We're looking forward to introducing international sevens to the local community and for visiting fans from around New Zealand to experience the heart of rugby in New Zealand.
"We are confident our partners in Hamilton will deliver an exceptional tournament that fans will love."
The tournament will be held on Feb. 3-4 next year, a week after the Sydney tournament, and is the fourth stop on the world sevens circuit.
(Writing by Greg Stutchbury; Editing by Peter Rutherford)
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