Asia Rugby 7s 2026 National Team Tournament Dates & Venues Guide

Although the XVs 2026 rugby season doesnt quite end across the region with the domestic seasons at different times of the year, and there continue to be XVs Tests for some nations, the national Asia Rugby 7s 2026 tournament season is coming up in Asia.

Feature Photo Credit – Mr Wu / CTRU

Asia Rugby hosted a President’s Town Hall 2026 with President Qais Al Dhalai on 21st July, in particular, as they mentioned, to mark the end of the 15s season, as the 7s season is upon us.

We should make note that several 7s tournaments have had date changes compared to what was initially announced – it would be great if Asia Rugby could announce these when they happen – publicly. Furthermore, even some Unions we spoke to only found out about the change of dates when they stumbled across the Asia Rugby Tournaments calendar or saw media reports.

Additionally, the one big improvement made by Asia Rugby has been that all tournaments are now streamed and accessible to the wider rugby audience. The next step is to improve the standard and quality of commentary.

Asia Rugby Emirates U18 Sevens 2026

Photo Credit – Mr Wu / Asia Rugby – Asia Rugby Emirates U18 Sevens 2025

The U18 Sevens in Asia is due to be hosted in China from 5-6 September 2026, with the competing teams this year still to be announced. We have started to see unions announce camps for their U18 squads.

The teams that competed in 2025 were:

Boys: Hong Kong China | Malaysia | China | Japan | Kazakhstan | Uzbekistan | India | Qatar – Japan were the champions, and HKCR were runner-up, with China claiming third.

Girls: Hong Kong China | Malaysia | China | Japan | Kazakhstan | Uzbekistan | India – China were the winners, and Japan were runners-up. HKCR were third.

• Venue: Qingdao, China
• Date: 5-6 September 2026 – The original date posted by Asia Rugby was 12-13 September 2026

Asia Rugby Emirates Sevens Series 2026

Photo Credit – Asia Rugby – ARESS Champions Sakura 7s and HKCR Men

China (Suzhou) and Colombo (Sri Lanka) will be hosting the two legs of the ARESS 2026, much like in 2025.  Asia Rugby finally announced details late in July but changed the dates for the first leg. It was confirmed that 12 Women’s and 12 Men’s teams would again take part, with promoted teams from 2025 included.

The Japan Sakura 7s Women and Hong Kong China Men are defending champions.

Asia Rugby President Qais Al Dhalai said via Asia Rugby: “The Asia Rugby Emirates Sevens Series continues to be one of the flagship competitions in our calendar, showcasing the very best of rugby sevens across our region. We are proud to welcome Asia’s leading men’s and women’s teams to Suzhou as they begin another exciting Series.”

Asia Rugby Competitions Committee Chairperson Asanga Seneviratne added, “We are delighted to open the 2026 season in Suzhou before bringing the series to a close in Colombo later this year. We look forward to another outstanding edition of the Emirates Sevens Series, showcasing the talent, passion, and continued progress of rugby across the region.”

Women’s Teams – ARESS 2026

• Japan
• China
• Thailand
• Hong Kong, China
• Kazakhstan
• India
• Singapore
• United Arab Emirates
• Malaysia
• Sri Lanka
• Uzbekistan (promoted)
• Iran (promoted)

Uzbekistan and Iran were promoted from the Trophy Series, while the Philippines and Indonesia were relegated to the Trophy Series in 2026.

Photo Credit – Asia Rugby – Sabay Lynam HKCR Women

Men’s Teams – ARESS 2026

• Hong Kong, China
• Japan
• Sri Lanka
• China
• United Arab Emirates
• Thailand
• Malaysia
• Singapore
• Korea
• Uzbekistan
• Kazakhstan (promoted)
• India (promoted)

Photo Credit – Asia Rugby

The Philippines and Chinese Taipei were relegated to the Trophy Series, and Uzbekistan remains in the top flight even though Asia Rugby’s own standings show they were below the Philippines on the log?

ARESS Leg 1: Suzhou, China – August 29-30, 2026 (the dates originally announced were August 15-16, 2026)
ARESS Leg 2: Colombo, Sri Lanka – October 17-18, 2026

Asian Games 2026 – Rugby Sevens

(Updated)

The 2026 Asian Games, officially the 20th edition, will take place in Aichi & Nagoya, Japan, from September 19 to October 4, 2026.

The final confirmed list of participating rugby 7s teams was confirmed by Asia Rugby on 23rd July, with the pool draw held the same day.

We have seen unions target this tournament as it’s linked to funding from their respective Olympic Committees. Several unions have or will be sending their 7s teams to camps overseas in preparation.

In 2022, the medalists were:

• Women: China (Gold), Japan (Silver), Hong Kong China (Bronze)
• Men: Hong Kong China (Gold), South Korea(Silver), Japan (Bronze)

We can tell you that media and union accreditation is very challenging as it’s not an Asia Rugby or JRFU event, and we all wait to hear more about streaming and coverage.

Live Pool Draw – July 23 on the Asian Games YouTube.

Image Credit – Asia Rugby

• Venue: Nagoya (Paloma Mizuho Rugby Stadium), Japan
• Date: 1-3 October 2026

You can see more from the 2022 Asian Games here.

Asia Rugby U20 7s 2026

Malaysia Rugby announced this as provisionally to be held in November 2026 in India, which was later confirmed by Asia Rugby’s tournament calendar.

In 2025, the tournament was also held in India (Bihar Sports University of Rajgir, Nalanda district) with 9 nations and 16 teams involved (8 men’s and 8 women’s teams).

For the Men, Hong Kong China won by defeating Sri Lanka 33-0 in the final, and Malaysia finished third.

In the Women’s Division, China won by defeating Hong Kong China 29-21 in the final. India finished third, beating Uzbekistan

The participating nations for 2026 are TBC.

• Venue: Bhubaneswar, India
• Date: 14-15 November 2026

Asia Rugby Emirates Sevens Trophy 7s 2026 – South, South East & East

More details are TBC, but Asia Rugby suggests this Trophy tournament will include only South, South East & East Asian countries.

The Philippines and Chinese Taipei have dropped down from the ARESS, but the participating teams are still TBC.

• Venue: TBC, Chinese Taipei
• Date: 21-22 November 2026 – Original dates posted by Asia Rugby were 19-20 September 2026

Asia Rugby Emirates Sevens Trophy Sevens 2026 – West & Central 

Asia Rugby suggested this Trophy tournament only features West & Central Asian countries, and will take place in November. The participating teams and venue are still TBC.

• Venue: TBC
• Date: 21–22 November 2026

Photo Credit – Asia Rugby Emirates Trophy Series 2025 winners – Uzbekistan Women & Kazakhstan Men

How To Watch the Asia Rugby 7s 2026 Tournaments

The Asia Rugby Emirates Sevens Series will be broadcast on RugbyPass TV subject to territory availability. Asia Rugby will also offer coverage on its official digital platforms.

Broadcast details for the Asian Games 2026 are TBC.

Asian Rugby Tournament News 2026

• Asian International Rugby Tournaments 2026.
• The Philippines Defend Unions Cup Crown in Thailand – Finals Day Reactions.
• WXV Global Series Challenger 2026.
• The Best Social 2026 Rugby Tournaments In Asia.