Four-time champions and current holders South Africa are looking to become the first team in history to win back-to-back-to-back Men’s Rugby World Cups
South Africa have won more Men’s Rugby World Cup titles than any other nation – and if all goes to plan in Australia, Rassie Erasmus’s charges could become the first team in history to lift the trophy in three consecutive tournaments.
While the Springboks continue to impress in areas such as scrummaging, kicking and defence, they have added another layer to their attacking game in recent seasons.
They will be expected to finish their Pool B matches in Australia against Italy, Georgia and Romania with three wins and take momentum into the knockout phase.
Players to watch
Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu
Feinberg-Mngomezulu made his debut from the bench against Wales in 2024 and has gone on to start some of South Africa’s biggest matches in subsequent seasons.
The young fly-half scored 37 points against Argentina in Durban in 2025 to break Percy Montgomery’s individual South African record. After just two seasons of test rugby, Feinberg-Mngomezulu had nine tries to his name, ahead of Morné Steyn and Handré Pollard for tries scored by a Springboks fly-half.
Cheslin Kolbe
Once considered surplus to requirements due to his diminutive frame, Kolbe has become one of South Africa's most important players.
The winger’s try-scoring exploits have swung big matches in their favour, as seen in the Rugby World Cup 2019 final against England and the decisive match of the 2021 series against the British and Irish Lions. Despite his size, Kolbe is one of the Springboks’ bravest defenders and also plays a key role in their kick-chase game.
Siya Kolisi
Kolisi was first tapped by Erasmus to lead South Africa in 2018. Since then, he has become one of the nation’s most decorated and important captains.
Leadership aside, Kolisi is known for his work-rate at the breakdown, while his ball-carrying strengths have been amplified by the team’s recent shift towards a more attacking approach.
RWC icon
Bryan Habana scored four tries against Samoa in South Africa’s opening match at RWC 2007, and went on to equal Jonah Lomu’s record of eight tries at a single tournament.
Eight years later, in his third global tournament, Habana matched the New Zealand great’s record for the most Men’s Rugby World Cup tries overall (15) after he completed a hat-trick against the USA.
Habana finished his test career with 67 tries – two short of Japanese winger Daisuke Ohata’s all-time record.
RWC cult hero
When Makazole Mapimpi scored a record-breaking try against England in the final of Rugby World Cup 2019, the late isiXhosa commentator Kaunda Ntunja declared the winger had risen “from the most hopeless situation in the history of Springboks rugby” to the very pinnacle of the sport.
Over the years, Mapimpi’s rags to riches story has resonated with many South Africans who have endured similar experiences, and coach Erasmus was moved to tears when he spoke about the player’s journey after the team’s success in Japan.
Head coach
Rassie Erasmus was a member of the South Africa team that won a record-equalling 17 tests in a row over the course of the 1997 and 1998 seasons.
The former flanker made a successful transition to coaching thereafter, working with the Cheetahs, Stormers and Munster – and as a technical advisor to the Springboks.
Since taking on the top job in 2018, Erasmus has guided South Africa to Rugby World Cup titles in 2019 and 2023, a series win against the British and Irish Lions in 2021 and three Rugby Championship crowns.
Most memorable match
While it’s hard to look past the RWC 1995 final against New Zealand – and what that victory meant for South African sport as a whole – the Springboks delivered their most clinical performance at the global tournament in the decider against England in 2019.
They certainly harnessed their traditional scrummaging and tactical-kicking strengths over the course of the contest in Yokohama, yet it was the try-scoring feats of Mapimpi and Kolbe that took the game away from England, and earned the South Africans a record-breaking 32-12 victory.
Pool journey
3 October, 2027 v Italy (Adelaide | Tarntanya)
10 October v Georgia (Brisbane | Meeanjin)
17 October v Romania (Perth | Boorloo)
If South Africa finish at the top of Pool B, they may face Tonga in the Round of 16 – and if they clear the first play-off hurdle, they could meet New Zealand in the quarter-finals.
Did you know...?
South Africa is a multi-cultural nation with 11 official languages, namely Afrikaans, English, isiNdebele, isiXhosa, isiZulu, Sepedi, Setswana, Sesotho, siSwati, Tshivenda and Xitsonga.
The current Springboks squad is a diverse and multi-lingual group, and while English remains the lingua franca in wider South African society, it is a third language for some of South Africa’s leading players and coaches.
RWC history
Champions (4) - 1995, 2007, 2019, 2023
Third-place (2) - 1999, 2015
Quarter-finalists (2) - 2003, 2011
Key stat
South Africa are the only team to have conceded less than one try per match on average in Men’s Rugby World Cups, conceding 45 in 50 appearances in the competition.
RWC Fast facts
- RWC debut: 1995
- RWC best finish: Champions (1995, 2007, 2019, 2023)
- Most RWC appearances: Schalk Burger (20)
- Top RWC try scorer: Bryan Habana (15)
- Top RWC points scorer: Handré Pollard (195)
