NAI 7s A Flagship Elite Tournament

NAI 7s A Flagship Elite Tournament

A look at the North American Invitational 7s (NAI7s)

Jun 11, 2017 by Alex Goff
NAI 7s A Flagship Elite Tournament
The North American Invitational 7s brings together some of the most accomplished select high school 7s teams in North America at perhaps the best-run tournament in the continent.

Held in Salt Lake City, the NAI 7s will feature elite-level teams that are dedicated to developing athletes who aspire to national team selection. The tournament is also the flagship of a developing network of top HS 7s tournaments around the country. The list of teams competing includes:

Atlantis

Long the standard-bearer for private elite-level programs, Atlantis started out as a touring side for senior USA 7s hopefuls. Over 1,000 players have been through the program, but it's at the U18 and U16 level for boys and girls that the program shines now.

Upright Rugby

The Ontario-based program won the Boys Elite NAI 7s in dramatic fashion last year and plays all over the continent. Their Girls team isn't far behind, finishing runner-up in the Girls Elite bracket last year.

Eagle Impact Rugby Academy
EIRA has split into several regional select teams in 15s and has helped change the face of all-star high school rugby. Their U19 boys team won the LVI and finished second to Upright in the 2016 NAI 7s. Their U16s team won the LVI.

Rhino Rugby Academy

Started as a youth program, Rhino's U16s were a revelation in the 2016 NAI 7s. The Southern-California-based program is getting older and their talent that much more experienced.

Atavus

The Seattle-based program draws athletes from all over through their summer performance camps.

Atavus Rugby Academy Utah

Atavus and the host Utah Lions have joined forces, and the girls will be looking for a repeat of last year's Girls Elite championship.

Those are just some of the teams involved in a tournament that will be live-streamed on FloRugby, and will feature seven different brackets.

See the bracket schedules here:

Boys Elite
Girls Elite
Boys Open
Girls Open
Boys U16
Girls U16
Boys U14