What are the differences between rugby sevens and 15-a-side rugby union? 

During the first stage of the 2023/2024 World Rugby SVNS Series, which took place in Dubai from 2-3 December, neither France nor Australia's men's sevens teams made it to the final. Australia finished seventh in the rankings with France ninth.

The second stage in Cape Town, South Africa, takes place from 9-10 December, but by the third phase in Perth, Australia at the end of January both sides will be joined by the captains of their national 15s teams. Australia's Michael Hooper and Antoine Dupont of France have both opted to face a new challenge: to prepare for Paris 2024.

To do so, they will have to adjust to a new discipline, learn new strategies, and discover a new environment but what are the main differences they will face?

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Different types of rugby

Michael Hooper and Antoine Dupont have opted to move from the traditional format of rugby union to rugby sevens  in a bid for Olympic success.

There are several types of rugby, but sevens has been the only Olympic discipline since Rio 2016, 92 years after the last appearance of rugby at the Olympic Games when a rugby union competition took place in 1924.

Rest assured though, the fundamental rules for sevens (also called 7s) and the 15-a-side version (sometimes known as 15s or XVs), remain the same.

• Score tries by touching the ball down behind a goal line, while only being allowed to pass the ball backwards.
• Each team is awarded five points for scoring a try, while kicking a conversion is worth two and a penalty three.
• Lineouts and scrums are also part of both formats.

So far, so good.

But there are subtle differences.

Rugby union XVs and sevens: Differences on the field

While the size of the field is the same for both disciplines (70x100m), the number of players on the field is different.

As suggested by the name, rugby 7s is played by seven players per team, and rugby 15s by fifteen players on each side.

Playing time is adapted accordingly.

A rugby sevens match lasts 14 minutes, divided in two halves of seven minutes each, with a break of one to two minutes between each half.

The traditional longer form of rugby consists of two halves of 40 minutes each, with a longer 10-15 minute half time depending on the competition.

Rugby union XVs and sevens: Physical aspect

“Rugby sevens is much more physical,” explained French rugby player Pierre-Gilles Lakafia on France Télévisions.

“Playing seven against seven means always being in the action. Anytime there is a break, it means a potential 80-metre counter can occur. But defensively, there are only seven of us to cover the entire field."

Rugby sevens players, therefore, must be quick and reactive.

Offensively, crossing the entire field is par for the course whenever the opportunity arises. Defensively, it requires tackling player after player whenever you can.

In both cases, rugby sevens requires athleticism and leaves little room for defensive error.

“In general, players who go from XV's to 7s lose weight!” jokes Lakafia, who plays both forms of the game.

Rugby union XVs and sevens: The scrum

An emblematic part of the sport, the scrum exists in both rugby 15s and rugby sevens.

But it’s played differently in each.

In the 15-a-side version of the game a whole pack of players, usually 8 from each side, pushing against each other. In  sevens, the three forward players of each team face each other in a single line. The ball is always introduced to the centre of the scrum by the scrum-half and can be contested by both teams who try to use their feet to sweep the ball back to their side.

Rugby union XVs and sevens: The kicking game

In rugby sevens, penalties and conversions are not kicked from the ground using a tee but as drop goals (dropping the ball from hand and kicking it a fraction of a second after the ball has bounced on the ground). Again, speed is of the essence.

In the rest of the sevens game, kicking the ball rarely happens.

Unlike the longer format of rugby union, which often requires a tactical kicking strategy, the priority in sevens is usually to keep the ball.

Rugby union XVs and sevens: Defence

A rugby sevens defence can be organised in a 5-2, 6-1 or 7-0 formation (such as in handball), the highest number signifying the number of defensive players in a line.

Jérôme Daret, coach of the French rugby sevens team, hasn't yet decided where Dupont will play.

“We will ensure that he can also explore his versatility because in sevens rugby you can find yourself with eight players available to finish a tournament and if you have not built versatility beforehand, it becomes quite complicated," he said.

"I consider Antoine Dupont capable of playing from number 1 to number 7 and we will then see what position we will place him in, so he can be of as much service as possible to the team.”

• How to qualify for rugby at Paris 2024

Why both Dupont and Hooper are expected to excel

As former captains of their men's national teams, Dupont and Hooper have all the necessary qualities required to perform in either discipline.

When it comes to Dupont, Daret doesn't doubt his capability to adapt: “When you see the statistics from Antoine Dupont's last [15-a-side] World Cup, he is the player who made the most offloads, with a total of 10.

"He also has the ability to change pace and break that we are looking for. He has a great defence and can catch players 50 centimetres from the line, which is something we expect a lot in rugby sevens.”

There's also little doubt that "Hoops" (Hooper), one of Australia's most-capped players of all time, will also use his incredible skills and experience to help his new teammates.

So with both Australia and France having qualified men's (and women's) teams for the Games in France – the superstar captain who can adapt quickest will have the most impact on their team and therefore more likely to achieve the success they crave on their quest for Paris 2024 glory.

Game on.