Asia Rugby Emirates Sevens Series 2026 Leg 1 Suzhou Preview

The Asia Rugby Emirates Sevens Series (ARESS) 2026 Leg 1 takes place in Suzhou, China, from 29–30 August, as the Japanese women and Hong Kong China men start their title defence in a busy Asian 7s season.

Feature Photo Credit – CTRU / Mr Wu – (Updated Squad announcements)

12 women’s and 12 men’s national teams will compete across the two-day tournament and across two legs this season. ARESS Leg 2 takes place in Colombo, Sri Lanka from October 17-18, 2026, and the combined log points will determine the standings.

Unless something has changed but not been announced, the bottom two men’s and women’s teams will be relegated at the end of ARESS 2026.

Asia Rugby Emirates Sevens Series 2026 Leg 1 Suzhou Pools

We will update tournament squads as they are announced.

Men’s Pools

Kazakhstan and India are the newly promoted Men’s teams this season.

Pool A

• Hong Kong China

The HKCR Men’s team have had a camp in Portugal, with players also competing in the UK LIT 7s Series where they finished runners-up. In addition, they have competed in a couple of Chinese 7s provincial tournaments. They will be strong favourites to lift the title again this season as they look to defend their status as Asia’s best Men’s 7s team for the 6th time.

Four players made their Hong Kong Sevens debuts earlier this year: Julien Bourron, Mathew Rickard, Blake Elliott and Johnny Esono Mba Oyana, and experienced player Mike Coverdale played his second season in the RPL with Bengaluru Bravehearts.

The squad has built up a lot of depth, and they are current Asian Games, ARESS and Chinese National Games champions with a rotating roster usually captained by James Christie and Seb Brien, and the likes of experienced players such as Max Denmark (after having made a recovery from surgery), Allesandro Nardoni, Bryn Phillips, Callum McCullough, Liam Herbert, and youngsters like Matt Rickard and Julien Bourron becoming regulars.

They have also had players playing Men’s XV Tests in what is a busy period of rugby for HKCR. With Head Coach Jevon Groves under pressure every season to deliver results, they come into the ARESS well prepared.

“The Asian Games squad will be named after the first Asian series event, so part of next weekend is giving boys an opportunity, the guys who haven’t had many chances this year.

We’re looking for that performance and how the group connects because some of them haven’t been involved for a while because of the fifteens. There were five or six boys away for a tough campaign over the summer.

It’s great to have them back; you can see that they looked after themselves, knowing that they’ve had to come into this tough Asian Games bloc now. There are some real senior players there, players of maturity and calmness in the way that they bring that leadership into the squad; I’m looking forward to seeing that,” said Head Coach Jevon Groves.

James CHRISTIE (captain); Matteo AVITABILE; Julien BOURRON; Jack COMBES; Max DENMARK; Blake ELLIOT; Juan ESONO, Liam HERBERT; Callum MCCULLOUGH; Alessandro NARDONI, Bryn PHILLIPS; Harry SAYERS; Rory STEWART-COX

• Thailand

The Thailand men’s 7s team have an element of pressure from the TRU to deliver better performances and put themselves into medal contention. The team has been bolstered by the addition of experienced JRLO campaigner Ben Paltridge, who will make his debut for the Thais.

The team had a camp in Japan as part of their preparations and played in a Japanese 7s tournament – several of their players also competed in the Men’s XV Unions Cup 2026.

The team also won the SEA Games 7s 2025 and were SEA 7s 2026 runner-up in Singapore since then. They also won the Johor 7s 2026 under the All For One (which is effectively the Thai Men’s Development team’s name).

• Malaysia

Malaysia seems to be rebuilding on all fronts, and they took home gold at the SEA 7s 2026 in Singapore, defeating Thailand 10-5, following the disappointment of losing out on a medal in the Southeast Asia 7s in Bangkok in December 2025.

The Bunga Raya Development team has played in the Borneo 7s 2026 and Johor 7s 2026 – they finished 4th in the latter.

The Men’s national head coach in recent times has been Nik Safuan Ismade Nik Man.

• Uzbekistan

The Uzbekistan men have played the CASA 7s and the Borneo 7s this year.

Pool B

• Japan

The Japanese Men’s 7s under Head Coach and former England player Phil Greening have had a mixed bag of results as he faces the challenges of getting a consistent group of players representing the 7s program. They defeated HKCR in last season’s HSBC Division 3 in Cape Town but didn’t progress to HSBC D2.

Greening said via the JRFU, “The China tournament is a great opportunity to play in the SVNS Division 3 (next season), so I want to achieve a good result. To that end, I’m preparing to play at a fast pace. I’m also working on improving the consistency of my play in daily practice. I believe that this will also be good competition leading up to the Asian Games.”

In last season’s ARESS, they were runners-up to Hong Kong China, a team they also lost to in the final of the Melrose Claymores 2026 at the Cathay HSBC Hong Kong Sevens – but they were very competitive and are the most likely team to try and topple HKCR from their perch.

They announced an SDS (development camp) the week prior to the first ARESS leg, with most of the players drawn from Japan Rugby League One teams.

Shotaro Tsuoka is one of those selected (he is an Asian Games and Paris 2024 Olympian) and played in the RPL with Kolkata Banga Tigers – the first Japanese player to compete in the Rugby Premier League.

Another player to keep an eye on is Takayuki Nakano (Toyota Verblitz), who has a full-time 7s contract.

“We can’t take the next step unless we become number one in Asia. I believe that if we go through a good process and grow step by step, we will get good results. There’s the Asian Games, but instead of looking that far ahead, we want to cherish each and every day of practice, starting with the morning menu, and win (the tournament in China first)”, said Takayuki Nakano.

The final squad was confirmed here by the JRFU.

• UAE

The UAE Men’s team have been relatively quiet as their season was cut short. The Shaheen 7s (mostly Fijian players) have been competing at several good-level tournaments such as the Monaco 7s and Borneo 7s, but they are not all eligible for the UAE Men’s team.

Jacques Benade serves as the High Performance Head Coach for UAE Rugby, appointed to the role in April 2026 following the departure of Apollo Perelini from UAERF.

Fijian-born regulars Niko Volavola (captain) and Emosi Ratuvecanaua (Vice Captain) lead the side, which features players from 8 different clubs.

• Niko Volavola (C) – Shaheen
• Mohammad Ali Bandari – Shaheen
• Emosi Ratuvecanaua (VC) – Dubai Sharks
• Aaron Dubois – Dubai Sharks
• Bradley Janes (VC) – Dubai Dragons
• Martin Mangwiro – Dubai Hurricanes
• Connor Morrall – Dubai Hurricanes
• Tobias Oakeley – Dubai Hurricanes
• Thomas Affley – Dubai Exiles
• Oisin Fagan – Dubai Exiles
• Gerhard Botha – Al Ain Amblers
• Jeremaia Kilicanasau – Abu Dhabi Quins
• Daniel Plumtree – Bath University

• Singapore

The Singapore Men’s team claimed bronze at the SEA Games 7s 2025, and have played in the Johor 7s as a Development Team and domestic tournaments in 2026.

Declan Martens is Men’s Assistant Head Coach, and Zaki Mahmood is the Head Coach. Marah Ishraf was the captain in the prep camps, which included a training camp with the Sri Lanka and Indian Men’s 7s teams in Colombo. But Daryl Liau will captian the side for the first time in China.

Hidayat Jerffrydin played his first season in the RPL with Chennai Bulls – the first Singaporean to compete in the Indian 7s competition.

• India

Newly promoted India men will also face a stern step-up in the ARESS 2026 and recently took part in the tri-nations camp with Singapore (same pool) and Sri Lanka to prepare for the season.

Former England Sevens Rugby player and record-holder and current RPL coach (Chennai Bulls) Ben Gollings has been involved in a coaching capacity in recent seasons with the Indian teams, but Paul Albaladejo (former France 7s) is the Head Coach.

Six players come from Delhi Hurricanes RFC. The recent Indian 7s Men’s captain is Mohit Khatri, and most of the players have now had two seasons of playing the RPL with and against top players from the HSBC SVNS Series.

Pool C

• Sri Lanka

The surprise package last season as they returned to the top tier in Asia and came in third overall. They have a full-time program for their 7s this season, so more of them will be expected, as 21 players have been signed in the exclusive High Performance 7s programme.

They easily won the inaugural CASA (Central Asia South Asia) 7s in Tashkent in May 2026, and competed in European tournaments including the UK LIT 7s 2026 and Howard Hinton Sevens.

Kiwi Peter Woods has returned to be the Head Coach of the team, signing on in June (despite the coaching team being announced in March as  Shamy Nawaz, who now will look after the U18s Girls). Woods previously was in the role for the Tuskers from 2016 to 2018 and the Commonwealth Games and Asian Games.

In March 2026, SLR had interviewed ex-France international and rugby sevens coach Thierry Janeczek to take a six-month contract, but in the end this was not offered (we have been told).

Srinath Sooriyabandara made his debut and became the first Sri Lankan to play in the Rugby Premier League with Kolkata Banga Tigers and will captain the team.

• China

Always an unknown quantity due to a lack of information made about their program and selections, the Chinese usually field a powerful and competitive team.

They lost to both Hong Kong China and Japan in the Melrose Claymores 2026, but since then competed in several European tournaments such as the eaaast 7s in France, the Algarve 7s in Portugal, and the Costa Blanca 7s in Spain.

If former NZ 7s player Sam Dickson is still in the coaching seat, they could spring some surprises with the athletes they have.

• Korea

Another unknown quantity as there seem to be some internal issues in Korean rugby, but under the current president there is more of a focus on 7s rugby – although their results last season were disapointing.

Usually Korea are one of the top Men’s 7s sides in Asia, but they have slipped down the pecking order, although they won’t be taken lightly.

• Kazakhstan

The Kazakhstan men join their women in the top tier and might find the step-up challenging in ARESS and have a tough pool to start with. They recently had a camp in Chiang Mai, Thailand, which might have been a good camp, but they did not face top-tier opposition.

They reached the final of the Borneo 7s 2026, losing to Nationwide Nadi 7s 38-5 in the Men’s Cup Final in March, and participated in the CASA 7s and Costa Blanca Rugby 7s 2026.

Magomedrasul Magomedov, the captain of Kazakhstan’s national rugby sevens team, played in India’s Rugby Premier League (RPL) for the Bengaluru Bravehearts.

The side is coached by South African Ludwiche Van Deventer, who took over the role following changes in the coaching setup in mid-2025. He is supported by specialist and strength & conditioning staff including Jannie Brooks, who was part of Naas Botha’s coaching staff for the India national rugby team pre-pandemic.

Women’s Pools – Asia Rugby Emirates Sevens Series 2026 Leg 1 Suzhou

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

Pool D

• Japan

The team that will be seen as clear favourites, the Sakura 7s players have also faced the highest quality opposition since last season, by competing in the HSBC SVNS Series and Championship rounds (there they placed 6th), and players competing domestically in the Taiyo Women’s Sevens Series 2026.

Much will depend on the selections of the Head Coach Yuka Kanematsu, who capped new players in last season’s ARESS win but didn’t give them all chances in the SVNS Series.

They have announced a SDS camp will be held from August 21-27, and a team for the 1st leg will follow the conclusion of that. Harunako Utsumi, Natsuki Ouchida, Mei Ohtani, Marin Kajiki, Chiaki Saegusa, Michiyo Suda, Minako Taniyama, Honoka Tsutsumi, Yume Hirano, Sakurako Yazaki are all named and played in the HSBC SVNS World Championship for the Sakura 7s.

Two inclusions from Tokyo Sankyu Phoenix (runners-up in the domestic TWSS 2026) are of note – Arisa Nishi (who played the 2024 Paris Olympics and 2025 RWC and captained the team this season and is still only 22 years old, and Rinka Matsuda. The Sakura XV wing and fullback scored 6 tries on the final day of the Grand Championship 7s final & the same wing scored two hat-tricks in two Tests for the Sakura XV in the Asia Rugby Emirates Women’s Championship this year as they defended their XVs title.

They have world-class talent and when their style sticks, they are one of the most enjoyable teams to watch with their high standards of skills, chop-tackle precision and work rate.

The final squad was confirmed by the JRFU on 27th August.

• India

The Indian team competed well last year in their first season in the ARESS, and have competed in domestic tournaments as well as having taken part in a tri-nations camp with Sri Lanka and Thailand in Bangkok.

Most of the squad were involved in playing the first edition of the Women’s RPL and playing alongside world-class athletes and coaches.

Former Blitzboks player and SA Women’s Head Coach, Paul Delport, is the Women’s Head Coach for the second season.

• UAE

The UAE domestic season was interrupted by the conflict in the Middle East, so they have had less rugby and very little international rugby (unlike their Men’s team).

The UAERF has seen some top-tier coaching talent depart, and the Women’s team were rocked by the non-participation at the Asian Games, apparently without explanation from their own union – even though they qualified.

The current head coach is Philadelphia Olando, a former Kenya 7s and XV player (she captained them to two Olympics), with Alexandrea Cook and Georgia Barber named as co-captains.

Hollie Murphy returns to the team after a serious injury 12 months ago and has said she will be playing her final tournaments for the UAE.

• Iran

The newcomers to ARESS will probably struggle at this level, but not a huge amount is known of the team. It’s a tough pool at this level, so any positive result will be welcome.

Pool E

• China

The Chinese Women’s 7s team has been rebuilding since the Paris 2024 Olympics and China National Games held in late 2025, with many of the senior players retiring from the sport.

Their youth and age-grade teams have been exposed to good-quality tournaments such as the Global Youth 7s in New Zealand, and many are stepping up to the senior side.

You could see last season they were a team in transition, and as always with Chinese rugby, much is unknown, but there will be high expectations after the team faltered in HCBC SVNS Division 2 2026, with a poor final tournament in Brazil costing them a place as a core team in the SVNS Circuit.

They will be the team most likely to challenge Japan for top honours.

• Kazakshtan

A team that has also been rebuilding but now comfortably outside of the top four in Asia, the Kazakhstan Nomads 7s were easily top-3 contenders a few years ago in the region – they were gold medalists at the 2010 Asian Games.

They played the CASA 7s and lost the final to Sri Lanka, and were a surprise omission from the Melrose Claymores, which they were invited to the past two years.

Like their men’s team, they had a preparation camp in Phuket, Thailand, and are still coached by a former SA 7s player, Fabian Juries, who also coaches the Kazakhstan national XV Women’s team.

• Singapore

The Singapore women’s 7s have been busy and in camp for some time, while playing in domestic tournaments this year. They played the SEA Games 2025 (winning bronze) and competed in the Singapore SEA 7s 2026. They also had a Development team reach the final of the Johor 7s 2026, where they were runners-up.

They took part in a training camp in Hong Kong, and their Head Coach is listed as Paul Tietjens, who has been coaching the Singapore 7s Men’s team in recent seasons.

Stalwarts in the side include Victoria Chew and Sam Teo, while Jayne Chan has been a try-scoring machine for the national teams; she has been playing Rugby League in Australia this season so might not be available.

• Uzbekistan

The Uzbekistan women also competed in the Borneo 7s 2026 in March 2026 and reached the Women’s Cup Final, losing 5-19 to the Borneo Flyers, and participated in the CASA 7s.

David Dakuitoga is the new head coach of the Uzbekistan Women and is the founder of the coach and founder of Yamacia club in Fiji. He was Assistant Coach to Mike Friday at the McDonald’s Coral Coast Fiji 7s, and he led Navosa to promotion in the 2026 Skipper Cup.

Pool F

• Thailand

Under Head Coach and former NZ 7s player and Nagato Blue Angels Head Coach Lote Raikabula, there are high expectations for the Thai women, who came third last season and pipped Hong Kong China and went on to Cape Town for the SVNS D3 but failed to qualify for Division 2.

Pol. Lt. Col. Kunthon Prachuabmoh won his third term as TRU President this year and has said he wants the Thai Womens rugby 7s team to win a medal at the Asian Games to be held in Japan later in 2026 and the men to finish in the top 5.

They have a good blend of young and experienced players and, by this stage, are considered close to full-time rugby pros. The TRU provides salary support to athletes during periods without competitions, allowing them to continuously train and develop their potential.

Thailand also competed in the Melrose Claymores 2026 in Hong Kong, where they defeated the hosts 24-12 before losing to Denmark in the final. They are current Southeast Asia 7s gold medal holders and SEA 7s champions.

There are several key players, but Jirawan Chutrakun (Thailand 7s top try scorer 2025) made a recovery from a long-term injury last season and played with the Nanairo Prism Japanese womens teams in the Taiyo WSS 2026. Don’t disregard strike weapons such as Pornnapa, Rattanaporn, or Thanachporn.

Regular playmaker and often captain Wannaree Meechok recently had surgery and is out of action.

• Hong Kong China

One of THE pool games to watch will be HKCR Women and Thailand, who have formed a great rivalry in recent years to be the 3rd best team in Asia behind Japan and China.

The HKCR Women have lost the services of coach Robbie Fergusson but have had good preparation with a camp in Poland, winning the UK LIT 7s Series final event, and playing in provincial Chinese tournaments. Head Coach Andy Vilk will be targeting finishing in the top 3 here and in the Asia Games.

The Head Coach said, “We’ve been really lucky to get some good preparations; we’ve had two tournaments in China and the European tour; good, consistent game time, and those experiences allowed us to look at different combinations, to get tournament experience and to work on our game without necessarily the results pressure on it.”

After taking a break, there is a welcome return for veteran but key player Natasha Olsen-Thorne, while the likes of co-captain Chloe Chan, Ka Yan Chong (who scores plenty of tries), Julia Mibuy Oyana, and Shanna Forrest, among others, form the core of the team.

We imagine there would have also been some tough decisions as the Women’s XV team (who many of the 7s players have also represented) play the WXV Challenger Series in September at home, but the Asian Games is often a priority event.

Chloe Chan (captain); Maggie AU YEUNG; Michaela BALTAZAR; Agnes CHAN; Stephanie CHAN; CHONG Ka Yan; Shanna FORREST; Julia Mibuy MBA OYANA; AU King To; NAM Ka Man; Vivian POON; Gabrielle RIVERS; Haruka UEMATSU 

• Malaysia

The Malaysian Women’s XV team made a return in Test rugby this year, winning the SEA Women’s Championship XVs 2026, while their 7s team claimed silver at the SEA Games 2025 in Bangkok, losing to Thailand in the final. They have several cross-over athletes who represented both teams.

The Bunga Raya women’s Development team also played the Johor 7s 2026, where they finished 3rd.

The selected squad includes several players from Selangor who just won the Sukma Rugby 7s – including Captain Nur Izzah and Vice-Captain Dinah Syafiqah.

• Sri Lanka

The women’s team won the inaugural CASA (Central Asia South Asia) 7s in Tashkent in May 2026, but unlike their men’s team, dont have full-time contracts this season.

Former Sri Lanka star Leonard de Zilwa was named as the head coach of the Sri Lanka Women’s rugby team in March 2026.

They had a pre-series camp in Thailand alongside the hosts and the Indian Women 7s team.

Match Officials – Asia Rugby Emirates Sevens Series 2026 Leg 1 Suzhou

Asia Rugby confirmed the 24 match officials for the opening round with representation from China, Chinese Taipei, Hong Kong China, Japan, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Singapore, Sri Lanka, Thailand and the United Arab Emirates.

Rizwan Malik, Vice President of Asia Rugby and Chairperson of the Asia Rugby Match Officials Committee, said: “The Asia Rugby Emirates Sevens Series brings together the region’s leading teams, and we are confident that this talented group of officials will uphold the highest standards throughout the opening round in Suzhou.”

Referees & Assistant Referees

Female match officials are Hibiki Ikeda (JRFU),  Sunny Lee (HKCR); Christabelle Lim Mee & Adeline Chew (SRU), Joanna Bezuidenhout (Qatar Rugby), Niu Yuru (China).

Male match officials include: Ibuki Tetsuka, Koki Yamamuchi (JRFU), Craig Chan, Morgan White, Thomas Ngan Chun (HKCR), Qu Shenggang (China), Wei {Sonny} Ming Lin (CTRU), Leow Wei Liang (SRU), Dechdanai Wangyuen (TRU),  Aymen Jriji (Saudi Arabia), Ishanka Abeykoon (SLR), James Fairbourn (UAERF)

Referee Management

• Dilroy Fernando, Referee Manager – Asia Rugby

Performance Reviewer and Television Match Official

• Shane Barr (HKCR)
• Matthew Rodden (HKCR)
• Taku Otsuki (JRFU)
• Shuhei Kubo (JRFU)

Television Match Official

• Wang Zheng (Just) (SRU)

How To Watch Asia Rugby Emirates Sevens Series 2026

Matches will be broadcast on RugbyPass TV, subject to territory availability, and usually shown on Asia Rugby social platforms.

Tickets in China to attend are available here. 

Asia Rugby Emirates Sevens Series 2026 Leg 1 Schedule

We have tried to look for any sort of online schedule and results (usually it’s on the Asia Rugby website) but have found none. Hopefully it’s activated; if not, it makes tracking the results cumbersome for anyone following the action over two days.

Day 1

Asian Rugby 7s News 2026

• Asian Games 2026 Rugby 7s Pools & Teams
• Asia Rugby 7s 2026 National Team Tournament Dates & Venues Guide.
• Taiyo Seimei Women’s Sevens Series 2026 Sapporo Grand Final Review.
• Ultimate Sevens Announces Franchise Head Coaches & Player Pool.

---