Nairobi will take centre stage in African women’s rugby on November 7 and 8, 2026, when 12 national teams gather at the RFUEA Grounds for the Africa Women’s Sevens championship, with the coveted continental title and qualification for the World Rugby SVNS 3 competition at stake.

The two-day tournament will give Kenya’s national women’s sevens team, the Lionesses, an opportunity to compete on home soil while facing some of the continent’s strongest emerging rugby sides.

The competition will also serve as the African qualifying event for the World Rugby SVNS 3 pathway, giving participating countries an additional incentive to deliver strong performances as they seek to advance beyond the continental stage.

Kenya has been drawn in Pool B alongside Tunisia, Ghana and Egypt. The Lionesses will need to navigate the group matches successfully before pursuing their ambitions in the later stages of the competition.

Playing in Nairobi could give the Kenyan side an advantage through familiarity with the venue and support from local fans. However, the team will still have to contend with three opponents seeking to make their own mark on the tournament.

The 12 participating teams have been divided into three pools, each containing four countries.

Pool A comprises South Africa, Zambia, Zimbabwe and Rwanda. Pool B features Kenya, Tunisia, Ghana and Egypt, while Pool C brings together Uganda, Madagascar, Mauritius and Burkina Faso.

The pool arrangement sets up several contests between established regional competitors and teams looking to strengthen their positions in African women’s rugby.

South Africa will compete against Zambia, Zimbabwe and Rwanda in Pool A, while Uganda and Madagascar headline Pool C alongside Mauritius and Burkina Faso.

For Kenya, the home tournament presents an important opportunity to build on its recent sevens experience and demonstrate its progress in front of local supporters. The Lionesses will be looking to turn that home advantage into results against their Pool B opponents.

The tournament's qualification component also raises the stakes for teams that have ambitions beyond winning the African championship. Strong performances could provide a route towards the wider international sevens circuit, although each side must first negotiate its group-stage challenges.

The event comes as Nairobi prepares for another major assignment on the international rugby sevens calendar in 2027.

World Rugby has announced that Nairobi's Talanta Sports Stadium will host the opening tournament of the 2027 HSBC SVNS 2 series on January 23 and 24, 2027.

The series will then move to Montevideo, Uruguay, for the February 20–21 leg before concluding in São Paulo, Brazil, on February 27–28. The Brazilian tournament is scheduled to take place at Nicolau Alayon Stadium.

The announcement, made on October 13, 2026, places Kenya's capital on the schedule for another international sevens competition as the sport continues preparing for the 2028 Los Angeles Olympic Games.

With the Africa Women’s Sevens scheduled for November and the SVNS 2 series opening in Nairobi in January, Kenya is set to feature prominently in the regional and international rugby sevens calendar.

For the Lionesses, however, the immediate focus will be on the November championship, where 11 other national teams will challenge for the African crown and the opportunity to progress along the global sevens qualification pathway.

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