Rugby Canada has announced a deal to keep the popular Rugby Sevens tournament in Vancouver for at least four more years.
The news comes as BC Place gears up to play host to the 2019 event, one of 10 stops on an international circuit, for its fourth consecutive year.
Under the terms of the deal, Vancouver will host the tournament until at least 2023.
“Four years ago, we started this process. We’ve had three previous events, we were kind of a long shot to host. And there was a lot of risk to be perfectly honest. We didn’t know what rugby down the street at the end of Robson would look like,” said Rugby Canada director of commercial and program relations Gareth Rees.
“I can tell you, we’ve been absolutely blown away.”
WATCH: Canada Rugby Sevens preview
Rugby Canada says the event has been a game-changer both for the organization, and for Vancouver as an economic driver.
Canada Sevens board of directors chairman John Furlong said the extension is another chance for Vancouver to showcase its love of the game.
“I think the next step for us is to make sure in the years to come that we continue to see this as a stepping stone for the Canadian team to qualify for the Olympics,” he said.
“That’s the goal, the sporting goal. We know the economic goal, the event goal. This is the sporting goal.”
The top-four teams at the end of the season will automatically qualify for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.
The popular two-day Canadian event has drawn 213,630 spectators in its three years on the circuit. Organizers say they are approaching 70,000 tickets sold, with the two-day capacity of more than 80,000.
Canada’s record in Vancouver is 9-7-1. The country’s men’s team won its first-ever Rugby Sevens tournament in Singapore in 2017.
— With files from The Canadian Press