Herbert Mensah backs sevens version to grow Kenya, Africa’s rugby

Rugby Africa wants a special focus to be given to the sevens version of the game, as it believes this will help the sport to grow faster in Kenya and across the continent.

Herbert Mensah, the president of Rugby Africa, noted that sevens rugby is easier to organise as it requires fewer resources and logistics than 15s.

Sevens is a faster-paced, high-intensity game with seven players per side, and matches last just 14 minutes, making it more entertaining. The 15-a-side version is a more tactical, longer game, with players competing for 80 minutes in total, 40 minutes in either half.

“Africa can develop the sport faster through the sevens version because it is more economical than the 15s version,” Mensah told the Nation in an interview.

He announced that Rugby Africa is introducing the Africa Sevens Series on an invitational basis as part of its ongoing efforts to promote the growth of the sport on the continent. Mensah said that Kenya deserves to host a World Rugby Division I event and hopes that the country will perform well in the World Rugby Division II tournament, which is scheduled to take place from February to March next year, in order to strengthen their case.

Following high-level discussions between World Rugby director of competitions, Nijel Cass, and key government officials, he said they are exploring ways of having Kenya stage two major sevens events: the World Rugby Division I and the Africa Sevens Series. As part of Rugby Africa’s strategic plan, the official said they also intend to expand the Elgon Cup and Victoria Cup, contested by Kenya, Uganda, Zambia, and Zimbabwe, into fully-fledged Africa tournaments to improve standards and close the gap with world champions South Africa.

World Rugby

Mensah said that all of this would succeed with combined efforts from World Rugby, Africa Rugby, and the governments of the African countries in which some of the tournaments will be staged.

This could see the Safari Sevens in Kenya either transformed into a World Rugby Division I event or incorporated into the Africa Sevens Series, which, according to Mensah, will attract teams from Europe, America, and Asia.

“We are targeting Kenya, Uganda, Mauritius, Zambia and Zimbabwe for the Africa Sevens Series because they already hold sevens events,” he said.

Mensah continued: “In a few days, we will announce the programme, but Kenya will definitely host the first leg of the World Rugby Division II series, which has three legs.”

When he took over at Rugby Africa in 2023, he said that one of his plans was to change the way that Rugby Africa and World Rugby approached the development of the game in Africa.

He said he had strongly opposed the last-minute change to the World Rugby Sevens Series format that had denied countries such as Kenya promotion to the top league. On May 1, World Rugby changed the format of the World Rugby Sevens Series on the eve of the Los Angeles Sevens, the final event of the 2024/25 series, splitting it into Divisions I, II and III. Kenya Sevens and the Kenya Lionesses, who had qualified for the World Series, were forced to compete in Division II for a place in Division I.

“I strongly opposed the changes. Yes, World Rugby wants to run the sport like a business, which is why they wanted to find a solution to the dwindling returns from the series,” said Mensah. He added that, with sevens forming the bedrock of rugby development in Africa, a new approach was needed.

“Many countries in Africa don’t have the financial resources to run fully-fledged 15s programmes, but they can manage sevens programmes smoothly from age group to national level,” he said. “We should focus on sevens rugby and have that than nothing at all because 15s are too expensive.”

Gaining traction

Mensah said that sevens rugby is gaining traction across Africa, and that it is the best way to sustain the game. He said he vowed not to hold World Rugby Africa qualifiers outside Africa again, as had previously happened, and this was achieved when Uganda hosted the 2027 qualifiers in July this year. The 2023 Rugby World Cup Africa qualifier was held in France.

“The Uganda fully funded the championship, and we are having similar discussions with other African countries to enable them to host championships through partnerships,” noted Mensah, adding that Kenya funded last weekend’s Africa Women’s Rugby Sevens in Nairobi.

“Africa needs to play more rugby, which is why we want to enhance tournaments such as the Elgon Cup and the Victoria Cup, as well as other top regional tournaments. We can’t play two or three high-quality matches a year and expect to grow or match South Africa,” said Mensah,

“My journey across Africa to engage with governments is bearing fruit and gaining momentum, even with a good response from countries like Egypt.”

However, Mensah noted that it has been challenging to encourage members of Rugby Africa to implement better governance systems, reduce internal disputes and adhere to the rules.

“Countries receive as little as 30,000 US dollars, which is insufficient,’ said Mensah, noting that poor leadership and infighting pose a threat to the development of the game in Africa. “Sport is a business, and money doesn’t like noise.”

Mensah said that it had taken Kenya time to understand that squabbles and bad behaviour only hurt the development of the game.

“We are happy they are putting together a constitution for posterity,” said Mensah, explaining that the new Kenya Rugby Union boss, Harriet Okach has brought new dynamism to the sport.

The dynamics in Africa are stupendous in terms of how leagues and national teams are run, hence the need for great investment from respective governments, now that grants from World Rugby are minimal.