Antoine Dupont arrived at the 2024 World Rugby Awards with an Olympic gold medal among the year’s achievements.
Ellie Kildunne had helped England win every test they played. On November 24, both received player awards at Monaco’s Salle des Étoiles.
It was the fourth time the principality had hosted the ceremony. Since 2017, those evenings have recognized international stars and people working in community rugby, bringing different parts of the sport together in one of Monaco’s established entertainment venues.
Kildunne scored 14 tries in 10 test appearances during England’s unbeaten campaign, earning the women’s fifteens Player of the Year award. South African forward Pieter-Steph du Toit took the men’s prize for the second time, having first won in 2019.
Dupont’s men’s sevens award followed France’s Olympic victory in Paris. He became the first male player to win World Rugby’s player honors in both formats, adding to his fifteens award from 2021.
Australia’s Maddison Levi received the women’s sevens prize after scoring a record 14 tries at a single Olympic tournament. France’s Jérôme Daret became the first sevens coach to receive Coach of the Year.
Casino culture now extends to online sites such as tooniebet casino, while Monaco’s reputation developed around a destination where gaming rooms stood alongside hotels, restaurants and performance spaces. Anyone choosing to gamble should follow local age requirements, set spending and time limits, and seek support if gambling causes harm.
The Casino de Monte-Carlo opened in spring 1863, the year Société des Bains de Mer was established. Hotels, cafés and gardens followed as the surrounding district developed. It received the Monte Carlo name in 1866.
Entertainment became part of its appeal. Sarah Bernhardt performed at the opening of the casino’s theatre in January 1879. Almost a century later, Sporting Monte-Carlo opened on June 22, 1974, with Josephine Baker, Burt Bacharach and Desi Arnaz appearing that evening.
The Salle des Étoiles sits within the Sporting, overlooking the sea. Its opening roof and broad windows make it a distinctive room for an awards ceremony, with a history of hosting performers and gala guests.
Rugby first brought its annual awards to Monaco in 2017. Beauden Barrett and Portia Woodman won the leading men’s and women’s player prizes, while American sevens player Perry Baker began a run of consecutive wins.
Baker received the men’s sevens award again at the 2018 ceremony. That year, Johnny Sexton and Jessy Trémoulière collected the fifteens player honors, and Ireland won Team of the Year.
Among the community recipients were Jamie Armstrong and The Clan, winners of the Spirit of Rugby Award. Their work in unified rugby brought disabled and non-disabled players together. Speaking to Talking Rugby Union in Monaco, Armstrong discussed helping other communities establish the game.
When the ceremony returned in 2022, Josh van der Flier and Ruahei Demant received the fifteens player awards. Ange Capuozzo and Ruby Tui won the breakthrough prizes.
The 2024 selections gave Canadian and American supporters further reason to follow the evening. Alex Tessier was nominated for women’s fifteens Player of the Year after helping Canada beat New Zealand for the first time and win the Pacific Four Series.
American prop Hope Rogers made the women’s fifteens Dream Team. Canada’s Olivia Apps and Americans Kristi Kirshe and Ilona Maher were selected for the sevens lineup. These representative teams, listed in the official awards record, recognize leading players from across the international season.
Earlier in 2024, Monaco had hosted matches deciding Olympic qualification. Stade Louis II staged the final sevens qualification tournament from June 21 to 23, with Canada’s men among the teams competing.
South Africa beat Great Britain 14-5 in the men’s final. China defeated Kenya 24-7 in the women’s decider. Each winner secured the last available place in its Olympic competition, completing the fields for Paris.
By November, attention had shifted from playing for places to recognizing the year’s achievements. The awards supplied the formal occasion, while the matches at Stade Louis II gave Monaco its own part in that rugby year.