Kenya’s national women’s rugby sevens team, the Lionesses, have landed safely in Alicante, Spain, marking the start of a crucial phase in their 2026 campaign.

Touching down on Tuesday, the squad immediately shifted focus to a high-performance training camp designed to sharpen their edge ahead of the highly-anticipated HSBC SVNS 2 series, which kicks off on home soil in Nairobi on February 14-15.

Under the guidance of head coach Simon Odongo, the Alicante camp offers more than just physical preparation. It is a statement of intent. The Lionesses are using the European base to fine-tune fitness, cohesion, and tactical execution, knowing that the Nairobi leg presents both opportunity and pressure. Playing at home at Nyayo National Stadium brings passionate support, but also the expectation to deliver.

The Lionesses are not alone in this high-performance push. Kenya’s national men’s side, Shujaa, recently completed their own intensive camp in South Africa, signaling a unified, system-wide effort by Kenya to get to the sport’s top tier. Both squads are targeting strong performances in HSBC SVNS 2, a fiercely competitive three-leg league that serves as the gateway to the global elite.

Following Nairobi, the circuit moves to South America, with legs scheduled in Montevideo, Uruguay, and São Paulo, Brazil. For the Lionesses, the women’s competition features heavyweights and rising forces alike: Kenya, Spain, China, South Africa, Argentina, and Brazil.

On the men’s side, Shujaa will battle the USA, Germany, Uruguay, Belgium, and Canada. Notably, South Africa (women) and Canada (men) arrive with momentum, fresh from securing promotion after winning HSBC SVNS 3 in Dubai.

The stakes could not be higher. Only the top four teams at the end of HSBC SVNS 2 will earn promotion to the prestigious SVNS World Championship Series. There, they will collide with eight teams from HSBC SVNS 1 across three global showpieces in Hong Kong, Valladolid, and Bordeaux, culminating in the crowning of the annual world champions.

As the Lionesses train under the Spanish weather, Alicante becomes the launchpad for a journey defined by ambition, belief, and the relentless pursuit of rugby’s highest stage.