SA Rugby confirms teams for future Super Rugby participation

The Bulls, Lions, Stormers and Sharks have been confirmed as South Africa’s four Super Rugby competitors from 2018, SA Rugby announced on Friday.

The Cheetahs and Souther Kings have earlier informed SA Rugby of their intention to explore alternative playing opportunities in other international competitions.

The announcement was made following a Special General Meeting of SA Rugby which took place in Cape Town, which formally confirmed South Africa’s participants in the competition next season.

The meeting has been called to determine SA’s entrants to fall in line with a SANZAAR decision to reduce the competition’s participants from 18 to 15 teams from next season.

The new structure will comprise four teams from South Africa, five from New Zealand, four from Australia and one each from Argentina and Japan, with the Bulls, Lions, Stormers and Sharks South Africa’s competitors.

Jurie Roux, CEO, of SA Rugby, said that Friday’s General Meeting still had the constitutional responsibility to confirm SA’s entrants in the competition.

“I want to thank the Cheetahs and the Kings for the mature and professional manner in which they approached and managed this difficult situation. They took decisions that will not only benefit them, but also SA Rugby in general,” said Roux.

Announcements relating to new international competitive opportunities for the two teams will be made in due course.