| Rugby union in South Africa | |
|---|---|
 Springbok Percy Montgomery weaves his way towards the try-line against Samoa on 9 June 2007 | |
| Country | South Africa |
| Governing body | South African Rugby Union |
| National team(s) | South Africa national rugby union team South Africa women's national rugby union team South Africa national rugby sevens team South Africa women's national rugby sevens team |
| Nickname(s) |
|
| First played | 1862, Cape Town |
| Registered players | 651,146 (total) 121,663 (adult) 204,119 (teen) 325,364 (pre-teen)[1] |
| Clubs | 1,526 |
Club competitions | |
International competitions | |
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Rugby union in South Africa is a highly popular team sport, along with cricket and soccer, and is widely played all over the country. The national team is among the strongest in the world and has been ranked in at least the top seven of the World Rugby Rankings since its inception in 2003.[2] The country hosted and won the 1995 Rugby World Cup,[3] and won again in 2007,[4] 2019 and 2023.
As with much else in South Africa, the organisation and playing of rugby has been entangled with politics, and racial politics in particular.[5]
- ^ "International Rugby Board – SOUTH AFRICA". irb.com. Archived from the original on 24 June 2012. Retrieved 26 February 2014.
- ^ "World Rugby Rankings". World Rugby. 28 June 2015. Retrieved 4 July 2015.
- ^ World Cup final, 24 June 1995 (24 September 2003). "BBC SPORT | Rugby Union | Rugby World Cup | History | time for SA". BBC News. Retrieved 26 February 2014.
{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link) - ^ Kevin Mitchell at the Stade de France. "Rugby World Cup final: England 6–15 South Africa | Sport | The Observer". Theguardian.com. Retrieved 26 February 2014.
- ^ "Welcome to Yale University Graduate School of Arts & Sciences". Yale.edu. Archived from the original on 1 March 2014. Retrieved 26 February 2014.