World Rugby needs to relook at World Cup format

Probably one of the most used cliches in life is - if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it. And it could easily apply to the way World Rugby came in with force to change a winning formula in Cape Town this past weekend for the Rugby World Cup Sevens.

For what was supposed to be a Tour de Force celebrating the shortened game and giving it a boost in the face of critics that say it should fall away to make the Olympics the pinnacle of Sevens, ultimately turned out to be a tournament where the rugby on the field was celebratory, but the experience off the field was poor.

A convoluted schedule, one which saw the host nation play one game at the end of each of day one and two, while fans had to endure 14 hours of rugby without seeing their heroes, as well as wait until 10:33pm on the Saturday night for the quarterfinal tells you everything that is wrong with World Rugby’s planning.

It is true the same knockout winner-takes-all formula was used with some success in San Francisco, but the 2018 tournament didn’t have close to the crowds that turned up in Cape Town and who were expecting a vibe close to the annual Cape Town Sevens.

That tournament is one of the best on the World Series circuit, and every year is sold out, with Sevens being a fitting end to a calendar year of rugby before the Christmas season ends.

Perhaps the organisers didn’t take into account that in September - unlike December - the sun sets way earlier in Cape Town and a 10:33pm kickoff wouldn’t suit the tournament.

LONG DAYS

The point is, World Rugby set out a system where 40 teams would descend on Cape Town and play a pre-qualifying tournament and then simultaneous tournaments focusing on men and women during the weekend.

What it turned out to be was mind-numbingly long days that started often at 8am and in Saturday’s case, only ended after 11pm.

It is tough to ask even the most passionate rugby nut to follow a tournament like that, even if they are journalists. It is impossible to keep a rugby-hungry public happy.

In the Cape Town 7s, the games are set out into blocks, and the top teams play in two hour sessions, enough time to soak up the atmosphere and have a few cold beverages between the games. It is a case that the crowd enjoys the rugby, pops out for a few beers, and then returns for the next block.

It works. It works well and in Cape Town especially it has been a shining light for Sevens rugby.

What we got this past weekend was a long stretch of games - with prime time viewing being the Women’s clash between China and Madagascar.

For families, for those who just love rugby and for anyone else at the tournament it was excruciating - a nightmare day that would never end.

I lost count how many fans bumped into me - friends, colleagues and total strangers - and all of them said the same thing - the day is too long.

SA Rugby president Mark Alexander said 105 000 fans had come through the turnstiles. Given the Cape Town Stadium markets itself as 50 000 tickets plus 7000 hospitality, and was supposed to be sold out for day two and three, something doesn’t add up.

The number is still a record for a Sevens World Cup, and that should be celebrated.

DISAPPOINTMENT

But all too often it turned out to be a weekend where fans were left disappointed by the schedule, by the fact they had to wait so long to see the host nation play and that the whole experience was tainted by that.

Add to that the disappointment of the Blitzboks performance - which wasn’t World Rugby’s fault but dampened the mood even more - and it wasn’t surprising to see the stadium half full for most of days two and three.

At first I thought most of the fans were mulling around outside, but walks around the stadium confirmed this wasn’t true. A lot of fans had gone home, given up, or only come through for parts of the day.

This wasn’t like the Cape Town Sevens at all.

The rugby on the field all round was glorious and Australia Womens’ and Fiji Mens were deserved winners and played some exceptional rugby during their campaigns.

DAMAGE DONE

But off the field, World Rugby’s showpiece celebration suffered - and all because of their own complicated, long-winded scheduling.

Perhaps the kicker was World Rugby sending out a press release patting themselves on the back and saying the format "was a hit with fans" while blindly missing what was in front of their eyes.

World Rugby's CEO Alan Gilpin was challenged at the tournament closing press conference but sidestepped the issue, saying it would be reviewed and if necessary, changes would be made.

But the damage was already done - self-inflicted- by the world body.

No World Cup should ever suffer the same fate again.