Event Publishing

CLIENT

Hong Kong Rugby Football Union

EVENT

The Cathay Pacific/Credit Suisse Hong Kong Sevens – widely recognised as the best rugby sevens tournament in the world, combining exotic location with a festive, sell-out crowd and non-stop action over two-and-a-half days. The 2006 edition marked the tournament’s 30th anniversary.

THE BRIEF

To write, design and publish the 2006 tournament’s official souvenir programme and for it to be available to sponsors at least a week before the event.

OBJECTIVES

To produce a publication that would serve as both an essential guide to the tournament and as a long-lasting souvenir from a landmark event.

While keeping the programme up-to-date and full of information relevant to the 2006 event, to also incorporate an archive section looking back at the previous three decades of the tournament.

To meet an early deadline so that the programme could be distributed to sponsors and sold in the Sevens Shop, while still including last-minute information such as names and shirt numbers of the players in each of the 24 teams.

TOOLS

Two Up Front opted for the hugely successful dual-publication formula it had devised for the Rugby World Cup Sevens 2005, an event that was staged in Hong Kong.

An A4-sized, 100-page, glossy souvenir programme – packed with relevant information, team previews and feature articles – that could meet early deadline requirements and be available to sponsors.

A handy-sized, 64-page pocket guide – to be sold WITH the programme at the stadium – but with a later deadline. This would contain a goldmine of trivia, statistics, off-beat interviews and humorous articles. Crucially, it would also include fill-in scorecards so fans could write down results and the deadline would be late enough to include all the team line-ups.

PROGRAMME

Planning for the souvenir programme began in early December 2005, almost four months before the tournament, with the commissioning of articles from top rugby writers around the world. In addition, Two Up Front researchers, using a variety of sources that included newspaper and HKRFU archives, compiled a year-by-year history of the Sevens from the inaugural tournament in 1976 to the present day. Photographs were sourced from the HKRFU, local newspapers and freelance photographers.

The 2006 Sevens programme, delivered to the HKRFU some 10 days before the tournament, was widely praised as the finest in the event’s history. It contained a tear-out coupon that fans could redeem for the pocket guide upon arrival at the stadium.

COVER

This featured eye-catching black and silver lettering and photographs from past Sevens, reproduced in black and white to emphasise the tournament’s history and vintage.

The main photograph was a classic shot of the Barbarians in action during the 1981 Sevens, which they won. Overlaid were two film strips of photographs from down the years.

The only concessions to colour were the two International Rugby Board and tournament logos and the film strip photograph of Fiji’s Waisale Serevi and New Zealand’s Eric Rush in action – a subtle tribute to the two greatest players in the history of the Sevens.

HIGHLIGHTS

A 24-page "30 Years of the Sevens” section containing details of every past tournament, the covers of every official programme, trivia from the world of news and sport down the years, interviews with famous players and features about classic moments, all lavishly illustrated with vintage photographs.

Features on Sevens heavyweights England, Fiji and New Zealand by expert rugby writers from each of those nations.

An exclusive team-by-team guide written by world renowned rugby writer and IRB Sevens expert Nigel Starmer-Smith.

Easy-to-read timetables of matches and other attractions such as mini rugby and musical entertainment.

POCKET GUIDE

Planning for the pocket guide began in early January 2006, almost three months before the tournament, with the idea that "seven” should be a constant theme throughout the booklet. Production work began immediately after the tournament draw took place on 23 February, when the 24 teams were divided into eight pools and a schedule of matches was drawn up. The later deadline meant that printing could be delayed until just a week before the tournament, after all competing teams had submitted their final line-ups.

COVER

This was designed in the same style as the programme – black and silver lettering and classic black and white photographs from past Sevens – to emphasise the link between the publications. This time, the only colour photograph was of two spectators in fancy dress, underlining the point that the pocket guide was supposed to be fun, fact-filled and for the fans.

HIGHLIGHTS

A complete list of fixtures and kickoff times, from the opening match to the Cup final.

A 25-page section containing details of every pool and every team, including line-ups, fixtures and statistical information, with fill-in score brackets and standings.

"Seven Questions For…” – a series of quick-fire interviews with seven people involved in the tournament, from players to officials, staff to spectators.

"Extra Time” – a mine of information about what to do and where to go after the games had finished, including rugby-themed pubs, sight-seeing and interesting facts about Hong Kong.

SUMMARY

The Hong Kong Sevens programme and pocket guide were widely hailed as the best publications in the event’s 30-year history, with positive feedback from the HKRFU and International Rugby Board, sponsors, players and fans.