Sir Kevin Sinfield announces Australia and New Zealand challenge after final 7 in 7

The legendary Rugby League player and his team have raised more than £13million for Motor Neurone Disease (MND) charities since December 2020, with the seventh and final UK and Ireland 7 in 7 challenge bringing an extraordinary six-year fundraising journey to a close.

But Kevin has already set his sights on an even more ambitious chapter.

In 2027, he plans to take the 7 in 7 concept to Australia and New Zealand, running seven marathons in seven venues across seven days.

Precise dates and venues have yet to be confirmed, but he hopes the new challenge will bring together supporters from across the sporting world and shine an even greater spotlight on MND.

The announcement came after the final UK and Ireland challenge was completed at the Super League Grand Final at Old Trafford, where the scale of the achievement was reflected by a crowd of around 70,000.

Since the first challenge in 2020, Sinfield and his team have travelled the length and breadth of the UK and Ireland, running routes from Dundee in Scotland to Brighton on England's south coast, as well as Cork in the Republic of Ireland and Ipswich in East Anglia.

Along the way, they have visited countless cities, towns and villages while raising vital funds and awareness for people living with MND and their families.

What began as “a run for a mate with a mate”, inspired by Sinfield's friendship with former Leeds Rhinos team-mate Rob Burrow CBE following Burrow's MND diagnosis in December 2019, has developed into a nationwide movement.

Reflecting on the completion of the final challenge, Kevin said: “Saturday was a beautiful culmination for our 7 in 7 team. To raise so much money and awareness has been wonderful, but the most important thing has been to show the MND community that they are loved.

“I have always said I am committed to this cause for life. There will come a time when I can’t run anymore but until then I am always thinking of ways I can do more.”

He paid tribute to the team who have supported him throughout the six-year journey, stressing that the decision to finish the UK and Ireland series was driven partly by the huge commitment required behind the scenes.

“I have been part of the best team I have ever been in over the last six years and I could not have achieved what I have without our incredible team behind me,” he said.

“But seven felt like the right number to finish this chapter. Everyone involved volunteers their time, we don’t have a marketing or events company running things behind the scenes, our team are doing this in their spare time alongside their day jobs.

“That includes the long weeks of training and months of planning and preparing, so it would be wrong for me to assume everyone would want to go again. I hope we can but the next challenge has to look different and go to new places.”

The decision to head to Australia and New Zealand has also been influenced by the growing MND community in both countries and the strong connections Kevin has developed across the Rugby League and Rugby Union worlds.

He pointed to recent diagnoses affecting Australian Rugby League star Jai Arrow and former Rugby Union international Nathan Charles, while also paying tribute to former Australian Football League star Neale Daniher, who dedicated years to raising awareness of MND in Australia before his death earlier this year.

He hopes the 2027 challenge can bring together athletes and supporters from different sporting codes.

“We have seen recently in Australia, with the news that both Rugby League star Jai Arrow and Rugby Union international Nathan Charles have been diagnosed with MND, that more needs doing,” he said.

“Former AFL star Neale Daniher did an incredible job in raising the profile for the disease in Australia before his passing earlier this year and hopefully we can pull all the football codes together with our week-long challenge.

“We have lots of friends in New Zealand, from both codes of Rugby, who have sent me messages of support down the years and it would be wonderful to go there too.”

The scale of the proposed challenge means Sinfield knows it will require significant support.

“It is obviously a massive undertaking and we will need the help of partners to deliver it but we are confident we can continue to bang the drum for MND,” he added.

For Sinfield, the final 7 in 7 may mark the end of one remarkable chapter, but it is clearly not the end of his commitment to the MND community.

After six years, seven challenges and more than £13 million raised, the next journey is already taking shape — this time on the other side of the world.