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BUOYED by demand that is likely to sell out the Sydney Sevens in its first year, organisers have set their sights on stealing the mantle — and the money — from Hong Kong’s world famous tournament.
The inaugural Sydney Sevens is on track to hang the “house full” sign at Allianz Stadium early next month after Australia’s leg of the World Sevens series was shifted to the city by the ARU from the Gold Coast last year.
The Gold Coast event struggled to pull crowds for years but in a matter of months Sydneysiders swarmed on tickets to the two-day event on February 6-7, and a total crowd of more than 70,000 is forecast.
Approximately 2000 seats are left for sale — making the season’s first footy event a rival to the BBL for the tag of the summer’s hottest ticket in Sydney.
The ARU can continue to thank the Wallabies for their code-reviving success at the World Cup but the strength of interest in the Sydney Sevens was still surprising given the event had little public promotion until recent weeks.
Tickets flew out well before an ARU marketing push, led by high-profile player signings for Australian sevens such as Quade Cooper and Nick Cummins, even began.
“We’ve been pleasantly surprised that tickets have sold so well,” ARU general manager of professional rugby Rob Clarke said.
“It doesn’t shock us because we always believed Sydney, as a city which knows how to put on a great party and with its rugby heritage, would host an international class event.”
The 2015-16 World Sevens Series will serve as preparation for the Olympics in August, and Sydney will be one of the first places where big Test stars with Rio aspirations such as Cooper, Henry Speight and Sonny Bill Williams will be sighted.
A 70,000-plus crowd at Allianz Stadium would more than double Australia’s previous record attendance for sevens and go close tomatching Hong Kong’s celebrated party tournament.
Read more: http://www.news.com.au/sport/rugby/r...8297e628d018f2
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