Bhubaneswar: Bhubaneswar based franchise team Kalinga Black tigers among the six teams will take part in the Rugby Premier League (RPL)—the world’s first franchise-based Rugby 7s league being organised by Rugby India in partnership with GMR Sports. The tournament will take place in Mumbai at the Andheri Sports Complex, from 1-15 June.
Four Odisha players Sambit Pradhan (Hyderabad Heroes), Asis Sabar (Kalinga Black Tigers), Ganesh Dhangada Majhi (Mumbai Dreamers) and Shanawaz Ahmad (Chennai Bulls) will take part in the first edition of RPL.
Six teams will represent major Indian cities—Mumbai Dreamers, Delhi Redz, Bengaluru Bravehearts, Hyderabad Heroes, Chennai Bulls, and Kalinga Black Tigers (Bhubaneswar).
RPL will welcome 30 marquee international players from powerhouse Rugby 7s nations, including New Zealand, Australia, South Africa, Fiji, Argentina, Great Britain, Ireland, USA and Spain. Additionally, 18 international players from Canada, Hong Kong, and Germany will feature, enhancing the league’s competitive depth.
The league will also feature 30 Indian players selected from an auction pool of 71, providing them with a historic platform to compete alongside international legends.
Speaking on this path breaking development, Rahul Bose, President of Rugby India, said “This is a league that’s been six years in the making, but we wanted to do everything right. The first extraordinary development came thanks to World Rugby, who gave us a 15-day window in which no international rugby 7s would be played anywhere in the world. This made the best global rugby players available to us”.
