 | |
| Sport | Rugby union |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1992 |
| World Rugby affiliation | 1992 |
| Rugby Africa affiliation | 1992 |
| Headquarters | Cape Town |
| President | Mark Alexander |
| Rian Oberholzer (Interim) | |
| Men's coach | Rassie Erasmus |
| Women's coach | Louis Koen |
| Sevens coach | Sandile Ngcobo |
| Website | sarugby.co.za |
The South African Rugby Union (SARU) is the governing body for rugby union in South Africa and is affiliated to World Rugby. It was established in 1992 as the South African Rugby Football Union, from the merger of the South African Rugby Board and the non-racial South African Rugby Union (SACOS), and took up its current name in 2005.
SARU organises several national teams, most notably the senior national side, the Springboks.[citation needed] SARU consists of 14 regional associations, each of which sends its own team to the Currie Cup, the oldest and most important league title in South Africa. In addition, the SuperSport Rugby Challenge takes place annually.
In addition to the actual national team, the SARU also puts together other teams. The Junior Springboks are the U-20 national team and take part in the Rugby Championship and the World Championships. There are also the Blitzboks, the national team for sevens rugby. Children and young people are introduced to rugby at school and then, depending on their interest and talent, training begins. The most talented players at school level are brought together every year after Craven Week (named after Danie Craven ) in the SA Schools team. Each South African university has its own rugby team, which can take part in the Varsity Cup and the Varsity Shield.
The national championship is superseded by the international championship United Rugby Championship, which is played together with teams from Ireland and Wales, as well as two franchises each from Italy and Scotland. South Africa is represented by four franchises, which are managed by the SARU: the Bulls from Pretoria, the Lions from Johannesburg, the Sharks from Durban and the Stormers from Cape Town. Since the seasons overlap only slightly, many players are used in both professional leagues.