The overhaul, which sees the women's draw expanded to eight rounds with six rounds combined with their male counterparts, comes ahead of the 2020 Olympics in Tokyo.

The two additional games will be played in Cape Town and New Zealand while it appears the Kitakyushu 7s has been replaced by the Hong Kong tournament.

Rugby Australia Chief Executive Raelene Castle said it is an exciting opportunity for women's rugby sevens.

“The increase in rounds creates more playing opportunities for our squad and changes the nature of the series by extending its duration," she said.



“It will also provide more broadcast content for fans and more opportunities to grow the game at home.



“Equality between our female and male players is something that Rugby Australia has strived for since we made the HSBC Sydney 7s a combined tournament and it’s fantastic for the global game that there will be more joint tournaments across the Series next season.”

The announcement is a positive for the Australian squad, which is expected to see a more professional environment for athletes to meet the demands of the expanded World Series.

In an effort to deepen the talent pool, Rugby Australia will also look to recruit more athletes to compete in the 2019 Aon University Sevens Series.

“With more rounds means that we can create more professional opportunities for elite players and I look forward to seeing a robust Aon University Sevens Series this year as the competition for spots from old and new players heats up," Women’s Sevens Head Coach, John Manenti said.

The Women’s Sevens World Series will commence in Glendale, Colorado before five straight joint tournaments in Dubai, Cape Town, New Zealand, Sydney and Hong Kong before the

final rounds will be played in Canada and a combined Paris Sevens with the Men’s Series.

The Aussie Women's Sevens side currently sit in fourth place on the current World Series ladder with the Kitakyushu 7s coming up next month.