January 17, 2023 – Major League Soccer (MLS) – San Jose Earthquakes News Release
SAN JOSE, Calif. – PayPal Park, home of the San Jose Earthquakes, will host the Premier Rugby Sevens (PR7s) Western Conference Finals on Saturday, July 15. Premier Rugby Sevens is North America’s top-tier women’s and men’s rugby sevens competition.
With plans to host five tournaments in 2023, each PR7s event will boast a party-like atmosphere with bands, DJs, games, and contests. Tickets for the Western Conference Finals at PayPal Park are now available here. Additional dates and markets will be announced in the coming weeks.
PR7s also announced the name of their new Bay Area franchise: the Golden State Retrievers. The Retrievers will host an open tryout at San Jose State University on Sunday, Jan. 22.
“As our league grows, it was important for us to have a franchise to represent the Bay Area, which has had a tremendous rugby fanbase for many years,” said Owen Scannell, CEO of Premier Rugby Sevens. “We hosted a very successful tournament at PayPal Park last year, and we’re thrilled to return in 2023. The Golden State Retrievers will be part of the Bay Area community throughout the year and highlighted as the hosts of the Western Conference Finals on July 15.”
PR7s tournaments will include a series of eight 14-minute games, rotating between the men’s and women’s competitions on the same day. Each event will crown a men’s and women’s winner. The season-long competition will build towards the 2023 Championship Tournament, where one franchise will take home the 2023 PR7s United Championship – an unprecedented prize that combines the men’s and women’s results. Additionally, the last men’s team standing will take home the A. Jon Prusmack Cup, and the winning women’s team will receive the Kathy Flores Cup, honoring two major pioneers in American rugby.
Before the season, each franchise will run PR7s Open Trials in their home markets to search for talent in their region. On Jan. 22, the Retrievers will host its first Open Trials at San Jose State University located at 1278 S 10th St, San Jose, CA 95112. At Open Trials, franchises evaluate male and female athletes to compete to make a roster alongside Olympians and national team players. The local franchises will have the right of first refusal to draft these players in the upcoming expansion draft. The professional league offers pathways for players to have opportunities to also play internationally.
As a league, PR7s doubled in…
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