Olympic Qualification On The Line As USA Sevens Rugby Makes Its Way To Las Vegas February 12-14

WHITE PLAINS, N.Y. - Feb. 5, 2015 - PRLog -- With Rio 2016 just over a year away, the eyes of the Olympic and rugby world will turn to Las Vegas next week as the  HSBC Sevens Rugby World Series makes its way to the United States for the only time in 2015 with the return of the USA Sevens.  The event, held at Sam Boyd Stadium, is expected to draw over 70,000 people from around the world and bring over $30 million into the local economy, ranking it amongst the biggest weekends for any event that Las Vegas has.  NBC Sports will show the matches live on Saturday, February 12 from  3:30 - 6:00PM ET and Sunday, February 13 from 4:30 - 6:00 PM ET, while Universal Sports swill provide added coverage on February 12 from 2:00 - 3:30 PM, 6:00 - 8:00 PM and 9:30 PM - 1:00 AM and on Sunday, February 13 from 2:00 - 4:30 PM and 6:00 - 8:00 PM. The event  will also be seen globally in over 142 countries with an expected audience of over 330 million people. Rugby Sevens will make its Olympic debut in 2016.

“This event has grown exponentially every year, and with the Olympics now on the horizon for Rugby Sevens we are poised to set records for attendance and engagement,” said Jonathan First, President  of New York-based United World Sports, the promoter and organizer of the event. “Rugby is the fastest growing team sport in the United States, and this will be the best showcase of that growth to date.”

The Las Vegas event will be the fifth global stop in the series for the competing nations, who are in New Zealand this weekend and will arrive in the United States on February 9. At the end of the nine rounds this year of the HSBC Sevens, the top four teams will automatically qualify for the Olympics, with South Africa, Fiji, New Zealand and Australia currently occupying those spots. The United States, led by speedster Carlin Isles (Ashland College/Massillon, OH), Dartmouth  All-American Madison Hughes, captain Nic Edwards, former Arena Football League star Perry Baker (Daytona Beach, Fla.), and Zack Test (University of Oregon/Redwood City, Cal.) are currently in contention for a key North American qualifying spot as well, sitting in ninth place overall but ahead of Canada.  An overall HSBC Sevens World Series champion is crowned at the end of the season based on points accumulated throughout the nine events. There are 15 'core' teams who participate at each round of the Series.

In addition to the USA Sevens, Las Vegas will also concurrently host the Las Vegas Invitational next weekend, the premier amateur rugby event in the United States, featuring athletes and match-ups across a wide-range of rugby divisions and age groups. Sponsors for the event include: Subway, Pepsi, DHL, Five Hour Energy, Qantas, Rhino Rugby and MGM Resorts.

About United World Sports

United World Sports (UWS) is the largest commercial rugby entity in the United States, and the owner and operator of a growing portfolio of dynamic sports, media and apparel brands including, the USA Sevens Rugby international tournament, the largest professional rugby event in North America; the Penn Mutual Collegiate Rugby Championship; and the Penn Mutual Varsity Cup Championship, the 15s national rugby championship. Through its apparel division, UWS owns the exclusive North and South American license for Rhino Rugby, one of the world’s leading rugby apparel and equipment brands. UWS also owns and operates RugbyToday.com, the largest and most widely read media destination dedicated to American rugby. For more information about UWS and its properties, visit: http://www.unitedworldsports.com

About NBC Sports Group

When the Comcast-NBCUniversal transaction was completed in January 2011, the sports assets of the two companies combined to form NBC Sports Group, which serves sports fans 24/7 with premier live events, insightful studio shows, and compelling original programming. The sports media company consists of a unique array of broadcast television, cable television, radio and digital sports assets, including NBC Sports, NBC Olympics, NBCSN (NBC Sports Network), Golf Channel, 11 NBC Sports Regional Networks, NBC Sports Radio and NBC Sports Digital.

Contact: Joe Favorito/201-746-0005/fatherknickerbocker1@yahoo.com