Kenya Chase Historic SVNS Promotion as Blitzboks Lead Africa’s Charge in Spain and Women Open Against Australia

Tomorrow, South Africa Women open against Australia, Kenya target HSBC SVNS promotion, and the Blitzboks begin their campaign against Great Britain as the relegation battle looms in Spain.

VALLADOLID, Spain – Defending champions South Africa Men will lead Africa’s charge at the final two legs of the HSBC SVNS World Championship series in Europe, starting in the Spanish city of Valladolid this weekend, 29-31 May.

The Blitzboks are accompanied at these tournaments by their female South African counterparts as well as Kenya Men.

Following their victory in the top-tier division of the 2025-26 HSBC SVNS Series, the South Africans continued where they left off last season in the World Championship, winning this year’s first leg in Hong Kong in April.

South Africa defeated holders Argentina 35-7 in the final to clinch their first-ever Hong Kong title and move ahead in this year’s three-tournament World Championship series, which concludes in Bordeaux, France, next weekend.

After breaking the hoodoo in Hong Kong, the Blitzboks are now looking to put some daylight between themselves and the chasing pack in this season’s World Championship.

The Blitzboks – who will face Great Britain, Kenya and Australia in Pool A at the Estadio Jose Zorrilla – have once again named a strong squad for the final two legs in Europe.

"We do not prepare for specific teams in mind; it is more about what we want to go out and achieve on the field of play," head coach Philip Snyman told South African media.

"We learned some lessons in Hong Kong and adjusted accordingly in our sessions since then and I think we are in a good space. The big squad resulted in very competitive training sessions, so we leave here well prepared.

"We know there is a target on our back in every match we play, so we need to be ready. We saw in Hong Kong how easy you can trip up if you’re not ready from the very first game, so we made the necessary changes in our approach to prevent a slow start."

While the Blitzboks were on cloud nine in Hong Kong in April, their female compatriots endured a disappointing campaign, finishing in 12th place out of 12 teams.

A series of injuries played a part in that forgettable showing in Hong Kong, but now Springbok Women’s Sevens head coach Cecil Afrika is predicting a turnaround in Europe over the next two weekends.

“There is a big difference between our preparation for Hong Kong, where we had to replace four injured players and blood some youngsters in the week before departure,” Afrika told the SA Rugby website.

“We had a very good month of preparation and from our review sessions following Hong Kong, I could see the confidence and belief in the squad growing as we get ready to face Australia, USA and Fiji in our pool.

“We are still going there to get into the knock-out stages and to improve our overall ranking and this team has the ability to deliver.”

Meanwhile, Kenya’s men’s team, Shujaa, are competing in the HSBC SVNS World Championship Series, with their focus on securing core status for the 2026–27 SVNS season.

Shujaa finished eighth in Hong Kong, earning important ranking points in their push to avoid finishing in the bottom four of the core standings, as teams in those positions face relegation to the developmental HSBC SVNS 2 series for the following season.

But with several other teams also gunning for promotion, the Kenyans know they must be at their very best in Valladolid and Bordeaux.

“We have had a very good 10-day camp at Kasarani, focusing heavily on attack, defence, speed and situation awareness,” Shujaa head coach Kevin Wambua told The Standard of Kenya on Friday.

“We’ve analysed our performances, especially moments like the South Africa quarter-final loss in Hong Kong, and worked on improving our decision-making in key moments.

“The boys now have better clarity and understanding of the opponents we’ll face, and we believe we are better prepared.”

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Match Day 1: Friday 29 May 2026 (GMT)

Women

• 08:22 – South Africa vs Australia
• 12:29 – South Africa vs USA

Men

• 10:12 – Kenya vs Australia
• 10:34– South Africa vs Great Britain
• 15:08 – South Africa vs Kenya

Match Day 2: Saturday 30 May 2026 (GMT)

Women

• 08:00– South Africa vs Fiji

Men

• 11:01– Kenya vs Great Britain
• 11:23– South Africa vs Australia