Only 1,300 tickets had been sold for the third leg of the World Rugby Sevens Series, in Wellington on January 28-29, according to a report.

That number was said to have been hit by mid-December, with Stuff saying it is just four percent of the capacity at Westpac Stadium.

Wellington Sevens general manager Steve Dunbar stressed that ticket sales have increased since then, but there have been calls for locals to get behind the event, which in the past has seen the venue packed out to create a great atmosphere for the competing nations.

“At some stage that would have been right but it is definitely not the case now,” he said, before adding that sales are ahead of last year.

“That’s encouraging. Each year we listen to fans and to change the market approach. We are gearing up for that now.”

Dunbar added on the marketing side of the tournament: “We are doing all we possibly can. I hope people come out and have a good time.”