Rassie Erasmus weighs in on plans for South Africa to join the Six Nations

Springbok director of rugby Rassie Erasmus backs plans for a shake-up of the global calendar.

In a wide-ranging interview with the Daily Mail, Erasmus weighed in on the potential addition of South Africa to the Six Nations, as well as whether he would join World Rugby or coach another test team.

In February, reports emerged that South Africa could be joining the Six Nations once their current deal with SANZAAR, the organisers of the Rugby Championship, until 2025. 

‘This is purely my own personal opinion.' Erasmus explained.

'I don’t need to get myself into any more trouble! I’ve always been a massive fan of the Six Nations. Murrayfield is awesome, the Aviva is awesome, Twickenham is awesome. I love the atmospheres and their rich tradition of singing.'

‘Speaking from the South African side of the fence, I would love to see the Springboks in the Six Nations. The style of play, the travel and the time zones would all suit South Africa.'

'You could fly in overnight on Thursday, play on a Saturday and fly back on Sunday. It would be easy. When we go to Australia or New Zealand, you wake up at 2am and don’t know what day it is! 

‘We are locked in with the Rugby Championship until 2025, so for now it is still hypothetical. Just please don’t mistake this for me saying the Rugby Championship is bad. I love New Zealand, I love Australia and I love Argentina. Gus Pichot is a legend.

‘If someone with proper research showed me that South Africa joining the Six Nations would make the Rugby Championship weaker and damage the growth of the global game, then we shouldn’t do it. But right now, speaking as a South African, I think joining the Six Nations would be awesome.’

Erasmus went on to address the concerns that South Africa joining the Six Nations would go against the traditions of the tournament.

‘I read the comments underneath Sir Clive’s article,’ he explains. ‘People were saying, “We don’t want Rassie Erasmus making a two-hour video after every game” and “What about tradition?” Of course tradition is important but I don’t think we can hang everything on that.

‘Traditionally, the Six Nations was the Five Nations. Traditionally, the Rugby Championship was the Tri Nations. People say, “What about the Lions tour?” The Lions tour is unique; we can still do Lions tours. If the six countries say it would not benefit them then that’s cool, we carry on as we are.