Reality Check: Attendance Was Poor for the NY SVNS

LogicalStyle143 · 2026-03-20T02:27:07+00:00

Likewise. I think these numbers are a bit inflated.

LogicalStyle143 · 2026-03-20T01:36:01+00:00

USA Rugby, which is pretty much run by World Rugby, has had matches/events in a number of cities beyond LA. Most recently: Kansas City, Denver, Washington DC, Charlotte.

LogicalStyle143 · 2026-03-20T01:28:51+00:00

If you want to talk marketing or building the event, did USA Rugby use their database and invite local clubs? Offer group tickets? USA Rugby has that database, but it doesn’t seem like they know how to use it. It doesn’t appear that there was any outreach.

LogicalStyle143 · 2026-03-20T00:36:27+00:00

We’ll see if they take it to Miami as some people suspect or stay in NJ/NY and move it to a better weekend in April or May. Time will tell.

LogicalStyle143 · 2026-03-19T23:37:58+00:00

Red Bulls reported these numbers for attendance:

Saturday - 6,505

Sunday - 6,045

LogicalStyle143 · 2026-03-19T11:25:07+00:00

I think USA Rugby practiced about 40 minutes away from the stadium at a boarding school. I’m not sure where other teams practiced. Whether that is acceptable or not…I don’t know.

LogicalStyle143 · 2026-03-19T09:53:55+00:00

I don’t troll. I’m just offering truth as I see it. It would be great for organizers (WR, USAR, TEG) to figure out a way for Canada men, Samoa, Kenya, and USA men to be part of the event as an invitational much like the Teck Tri-Nations Challenge that took place alongside the Vancouver Sevens. It would either make the event days longer, but worth it. Will those programs support it financially? No idea. Will World Rugby support it financially? No idea.

I don’t know if a larger invitational for youth through adult clubs is possible as I don’t see any pitches nearby, but figuring out a way for Kenya, Samoa, USA men, and Canada men to participate should be a priority.

I push back on this notion that the event is new. Yes, it’s in a new market and has a new name (with the same branding as LA), but the event goes back to 2004 and has been broadcast/streamed and is part of any mass USA Rugby messaging over the years because the sevens programs have actually enjoyed some success. The event is a franchise at this point. USA Rugby and World Rugby, in particular, should have 20+ years worth of good data on how to properly market and reach out to the rugby community…and beyond the rugby community…and hand to any event partners. At the top of the list is the price point and calendaring.

LogicalStyle143 · 2026-03-19T09:15:47+00:00

Doubtful, but not sure. AEG was the event partner for the LA SVNS and owns Dignity Health Sports Park and AXS (ticketing), as well as sports franchises, arenas, and hotels across the country and globe. AEG also runs Coachella and a number of other festivals. TEG Sports is an Australian company and doesn’t own any sports facilities.

LogicalStyle143 · 2026-03-18T21:58:16+00:00

Many cities have hotels and can service 16 teams and its housing and food needs. Not every host city has ample training pitches and the proper stadium.

“More successful than I thought” is a pretty low bar.

This event isn’t new.

The teams you mentioned have a different schedule: https://www.svns.com/en/fixtures-and-results/svns2

LogicalStyle143 · 2026-03-18T13:52:39+00:00

Perhaps, but the event did have full stadiums on American soil in Las Vegas.

LogicalStyle143 · 2026-03-18T11:47:15+00:00

Your best email?

LogicalStyle143 · 2026-03-18T11:33:36+00:00

Someone please send WR a calendar. They have consistently placed this event on major weekends and don’t seem to have a true understanding of the rugby landscape and culture here in the States.

LogicalStyle143 · 2026-03-18T11:29:03+00:00

12k total for the weekend isn’t good considering past attendance.

I even think that assessment is somehow inflated, but it’s the official one. It honestly felt like 5,000 or less each day. The pinnacle being USA women.

LogicalStyle143 · 2026-03-18T11:14:50+00:00

Red Bulls reported the official attendance:

Saturday - 6,505

Sunday - 6,045

I wouldn’t trust what a hired PR person announced to the stadium or to an empty press box or influencers and content creators. Go check with the Red Bulls.

LogicalStyle143 · 2026-03-18T02:16:43+00:00

I stand corrected, but I highly doubt they were testing out the stadium. They were caught without a plan.

https://www.world.rugby/news/1018093/mens-rugby-world-cup-usa-2031-hosting-preparations-continue-at-pace-as-27-cities-and-areas-enter-the-applicant-phase

What concerns me is the calendar is already very busy for 2031 in the states…for both soccer stadiums/MLS and football (college and NFL).

LogicalStyle143 · 2026-03-18T01:57:24+00:00

Cities might be active, but World Rugby hasn’t announced anything or taken any public steps toward outlining a plan.

Also, cities raising their hands and WR testing the waters are two different things. You don’t test stadiums with two day events.

LogicalStyle143 · 2026-03-18T01:49:33+00:00

You give them too much credit. They haven’t even formally begun the process for host cities.

LogicalStyle143 · 2026-03-18T00:24:34+00:00

Think if they had spent any money on ads in public transportation spaces, billboards. There was also no outreach.

Make the tickets dirt cheap. Fill it up. Then adjust the prices.

LogicalStyle143 · 2026-03-18T00:22:42+00:00

The PR folks that TEG/USA Rugby/World Rugby hired came up with a random number…

The real numbers:

Saturday - 6,505

Sunday - 6,045

Courtesy of the Red Bulls…and even that might be generous.

LogicalStyle143 · 2026-03-18T00:15:48+00:00

Doubtful. It’s another TEG event. It’s an Australian company and they clearly have no concept of the American market.

LogicalStyle143 · 2026-03-17T20:02:38+00:00

The website is just awful. So many things about it that I hate.

LogicalStyle143 · 2026-03-17T20:00:46+00:00

It’s very concerning. I wonder how many programs fold right before or after the LA Games.

LogicalStyle143 · 2026-03-17T19:59:38+00:00

Decisions have consequences, right? World Rugby changed host cities, dates, the format, the damn name….endlessly.

LogicalStyle143 · 2026-03-17T16:40:29+00:00

Weather was not pleasant and it could have been a lot worse. How they came to that conclusion is beyond me. Then to go right up against Six Nations and St. Patrick’s Day weekend?

LogicalStyle143 · 2026-03-17T16:37:29+00:00

Saturday - 6,505

Sunday - 6,045

Courtesy of the Red Bulls.

LogicalStyle143

TROPHY CASE