One of rugby union’s most storied rivalries is about to take the global stage this week, as reigning world champion South Africa (the Springboks) and New Zealand (the All Blacks) launch a groundbreaking four-test tour that revives a decades-old tradition of extended cross-national series, while also breaking new ground by hosting a final match in the United States.
The tour kicks off Friday with a series of warm-up matches in Cape Town, where the All Blacks will face South Africa’s top domestic franchises the Stormers, Sharks, and Bulls before their first full test against the Springboks on August 22 in Johannesburg. After a warm-up against the Lions franchise, the two nations will clash in three consecutive tests across South Africa and the U.S. from August 29 to September 12: matches are scheduled for Cape Town, Johannesburg, and finally Baltimore, Maryland, 12,700 kilometers from the tour’s starting point.
This historic series marks the first extended tour between the two global rugby powerhouses in 30 years. The pair between them hold seven of the 10 Rugby World Cup titles ever awarded, including the last four consecutive championships, won back-to-back first by the All Blacks and then the current title-holding Springboks. Entering the series, South Africa holds the number one world ranking, with New Zealand close behind at second. The 1995 tour, the last extended series between the two in South Africa, ended in a 2-1 series win for the All Blacks — their only series victory on South African soil in six attempts.
Branded the “Greatest Rivalry”, the quadrennial tour will become a regular fixture on the global rugby calendar going forward, with New Zealand scheduled to host the next edition in 2030. The high-profile series has come at a cost for the annual southern hemisphere Rugby Championship, however: the 2025 edition of the annual six-nation round-robin tournament featuring Australia and Argentina alongside the two top-ranked sides has been canceled to accommodate the tour. South Africa has scheduled standalone test matches to fill the gap, facing Argentina this Saturday in Buenos Aires and Australia on September 27 in Perth.
While the historic series has generated enormous excitement among global rugby fans, it has also sparked significant criticism on two key fronts: steep ticket pricing in South Africa and the controversial decision to host the fourth test in Baltimore.
South Africa is currently grappling with a severe national cost-of-living crisis, and earlier this year, the Springboks struggled to fill stadiums for three July Nations Championship matches, leaving more than 25,000 total seats empty across games against England, Scotland, and Wales. For the England test in Johannesburg, ticket sales only spiked after organizers cut prices: the highest-tier original ticket price of 3,000 rand ($185) was eventually reduced to 1,800 rand ($110) for the Durban test against Wales. The South African Rugby Union (SARU) has since pledged to conduct a full review of ticketing pricing ahead of next season. Despite the controversy, demand for the first two Springboks-All Blacks tests in Johannesburg and Cape Town has outstripped supply, with both matches reportedly sold out.
The decision to move the fourth test to Baltimore has also drawn pushback, including from South African media and former All Blacks players. Jeff Wilson, an All Blacks wing who toured South Africa with the 1995 team, told a New Zealand broadcaster that the series would have been “absolutely perfect” with three matches all hosted in South Africa, arguing the fourth test in the U.S. was unnecessary. SARU chief executive Rian Oberholzer defended the decision, framing it as a critical commercial and strategic long-term move for the organization. “To create financial stability we must take our brand beyond South Africa. America is a very important market leading up to 2031, when the World Cup will be staged there,” he explained.
As of the opening of the tour, neither side has revealed full details of their test squads or game plans. Springboks head coach Rassie Erasmus noted that the squad for the series would only be confirmed after South Africa’s standalone test against Argentina this weekend, saying “We have not done a lot of analysing when it comes to the All Blacks.” All Blacks head coach Dave Rennie, who took over the role in March, praised Erasmus’s work leading the Springboks, saying “We are well aware of the task ahead.”
South Africa enters the series on a formidable hot streak, holding an 11-match consecutive test winning streak. The Springboks have also won five of the last six head-to-head matches against the All Blacks, including a dominant 43-10 win in Wellington earlier this year.