- Dallen Stanford, a Cape Town-born rugby player, transitioned from playing at Rondebosch and UCT to becoming an international Sevens star and renowned commentator.
- After a successful stint in USA Sevens, he retired and pursued a career in sports broadcasting, working on major global rugby events.
- Today, he continues to promote rugby through coaching, broadcasting, and growing the sport worldwide.
When you are an ardent follower of 7s and 15s you are familiar with the voice of commentator Dallen Stanford, a Capetonian now residing in Los Angeles, who not only played rugby for Rondebosch Boys High but also for Ikey Tigers.
People’s Post caught up with him recently to talk about his life in Cape Town, rugby and move to Los Angeles, in the United States of America (USA).
Having studied at Rondebosch Boys’ High School and matriculated in 1997, Stanford played his school rugby with the likes of Gcobani Bobo, Hanyani Shimange, Gareth Wright, Oginga and Samora Siwundla, to name a few. “Our 1997 team finished 8th in the country, with famous wins over Paul Roos, Paarl Boys, Boland Landbou and the sweep of the Southern Suburbs rivals Bishops, SACS and Wynberg.”
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Following his matriculation, Stanford spent a year in England before his return to the Mother City to study marketing and advertising at the Cape Technikon, now known as the Cape Peninsula University of Technology (CPUT) Cape Town campus. At the time, he played centre for the University of Cape Town’s (UCT) u-21A, captaining the side to a “rare undefeated season in 2000”.
“I played outside centre and Brent Russell was one of our electric flyhalves, with him debuting for the Blitzboks that season and then the Springboks in 2002. At UCT I got the opportunity to represent the 1st XV from 2000-2002. We had so many fantastic players in my era at the u-21 level and later the 1ST XV. One of our highlights was an 8-8 Intervarsity draw against Maties inside a packed Danie Craven Stadium in Stellenbosch, then defeating them in a famous 34-24 win on the Green Mile in the return fixture during 2002.
“Another very special highlight was touring the United Kingdom with UCT in 2003 playing both Oxford and Cambridge Universities.”
Move to the USA
In 2003, he travelled to Los Angeles for the first time. He visited a friend who had graduated from UCT. “He set me up at the Occidental Olde Boys Rugby Club, coached by James Walker, who as luck would have it, went to Rondebosch Boys’ High School a decade before me. After six months of enjoying 15s and, especially 7s in California, I returned to Cape Town to explore my future opportunities. The Occidental Olde Boys managed to organise me an 18-month visa to return to the USA, which I did after playing a season with the Tornadoes in the UCT Internal League.”
In 2004 he met his wife Verity at the Springbok Bar & Grill in LA and got married the following year. He made the USA 7s in 2006 following a merger between Occidental Olde Boys 7s team with Belmont Shore. “I was fortunate to be the tournament’s top point scorer and received an invite to the USA 7s trials. This is how I ended up playing three years on the Sevens World Series for the USA from 2007-2009, making 54 total appearances, including the Rugby World Cup Sevens Qualifiers in the Bahamas. I was also a travelling reserve for the 2009 Rugby World Cup Sevens in Dubai.
Retirement
Following his retirement from the 7s, he became the Media Manager for USA Rugby at the 2011 Rugby World Cup in New Zealand and the 2013 Rugby World Cup Sevens in Russia. “Additionally, I was fortunate to win a USA Rugby Club National 15s and 7s title with Belmont Shore and coach Occidental College to a National 7s Championship,” says Stanford.
In 2015, he represented Team USA as a player/coach at the 13th Pan American Maccabi Games held in Santiago, Chile. He was one of three USA flag bearers for the Opening Ceremonies.
Between 2011 and 2017, he served as the Los Angeles Programme Director for the non-profit Play Rugby USA – whose mission is developing youth through rugby, using flag rugby as a vehicle for social change. “We were able to grow the programme from 50 students to 5 000 annually and introduced the sport to over 100 elementary and schools across Los Angeles.”
Broadcasting career
In 2012, he also started his broadcasting career when the City of Glendale, Colorado, started producing rugby matches in RugbyTown USA. “Four years later I was extremely fortunate to make my commentary debut on the Sevens World Series, and this season will be my 10th in the international 7s booth.
he says. “And in particular, broadcasting, which has taken me all over the world, meeting fascinating people and being a small part of so many remarkable events including the 2023 RWC in France, the 2019 RWC in Japan, the 2022 RWC 7s in Cape Town and 2018 RWC 7s in San Francisco. I’ve worked on various networks including Fox Sports, CBS Sports Network, ESPN and Peacock TV and covered events such as the Americas Rugby Championship, Super Rugby Americas, Major League Rugby, Premier Rugby Sevens, Rugby Tens Championship, Rugby Europe Championship, Rugby Europe Super Cup, World Rugby u-20 Championship amongst others.
“Commentating the 2019 Rugby World Cup in Japan alongside Joel Stransky was truly one of the most remarkable experiences, especially as I remember watching the 1995 Rugby World Cup matches at Newlands, and the rest of the matches on TV as a teenager.
Future
Stanford is now working alongside USA 7s legend Perry Baker to promote Flag Rugby X, a tool that rugby teams around the globe can use for fundraising purposes, connecting with alumni, getting new players into the game safely, and enhancing current skills and fitness.
“It’s such a fun game, with plenty of 7s elements, and can help clubs become more sustainable while growing the game.
He is an ambassador for a sports eco-friendly company called Tsunami Sport, which produces teamwear for all sports including rugby. “I’m also an ambassador for the Algarve 7s in Portugal, which is a superb sports festival for social and elite men’s and women’s rugby teams.
“I am also creating content for Rugby Tens, which alternates their massive Rugby Tens Championship between the Strand in the Western Cape of South Africa and California. This November it will be held in the United States, with my last visit to Cape Town happening in November 2023 thanks to the Rugby Tens Championship event.
