Men's Olympic champions Fiji will line-up in the Dubai World Rugby Sevens Series, but women's Olympic champions New Zealand will be absent ©Getty Images

Men's Olympic champions Fiji will seek to start the HSBC World Rugby Sevens Series with victory as the new campaign begins in Dubai.

The two-time Olympic champions will compete in Pool A, where they are set to face competition from Australia, Canada and France.

Argentina, United States, Kenya and Spain compete in Pool B, while South Africa, Britain, Ireland and Japan feature in Pool C.

The top two teams in each pool will advance to the quarter-finals, as well as the two best third placed teams.

New Zealand are the reigning men’s and women’s champions, having triumphed in the 2019-2020 season, but are absent due to travel issues caused by the coronavirus pandemic.

Samoa’s men’s team are also absent.

New Zealand secured the Olympic women’s rugby sevens title at the rescheduled Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games earlier this year, where they overcame France in the final.

France are joined in Pool A by Australia, Brazil, Spain and the United States.

The captains of the teams competing at the HSBC World Rugby Sevens Series in Dubai are looking forward to a new season, although the effects of COVID-19 continue to be felt ©World Rugby
The captains of the teams competing at the HSBC World Rugby Sevens Series in Dubai are looking forward to a new season, although the effects of COVID-19 continue to be felt ©World Rugby

"We’re super excited to be here," said Demi Hayes, Australia’s team captain.

"Having not played on the Series for nearly two years, kicking off in Dubai is really exciting.

"We have a really new team with a lot of opportunities for the young girls.

"It’s a massive year and this is our first stepping stone towards the tournaments at the end of the season, and Paris 2024 will come around really quickly so we have to start hard here in Dubai."

Olympic bronze medallists Fiji headline a Pool B line-up, which includes Britain, Canada, Ireland and Russia.

Britain are participating in the opening two rounds of the series as part of an agreement for the 2021 calendar year, but will revert to England in the women’s series.



Pool matches will begin tomorrow and conclude on Saturday (November 27), when the knock-out stage will also be held.

The pool winners will contest the final, with the second placed teams advancing to the third place match.

Dubai is hosting back-to-back series events, with the second competition set to be held in the United Arab Emirates city on November 26 and 27.

Spain will then host two events in January, with the series also due to have events in Canada, United States, Hong Kong, Singapore, France and England.