Bulls, Stormers, Sharks and Lions to join Edinburgh and Glasgow in Pro14

South Africa’s top sides to quit Super Rugby

Super Rugby giants the Stormers and Bulls are to join the Pro14.

The South African Rugby Union has decided to pull its top club teams out of Super Rugby in favour of playing in the Guinness PRO14, and blamed New Zealand for the sudden breakup of the southern hemisphere competition.

The decision was made after a vote of SARU's provincial unions and the defection could come into effect as soon as next year if an agreement is reached with PRO Rugby Championship, which runs the PRO14. It would mean the top four teams in South Africa - the Bulls, Stormers, Sharks and Lions - will play their domestic rugby against clubs from Scotland, Ireland, Wales and Italy instead of their traditional rivals in New Zealand and Australia.

South Africa's Cheetahs and the Southern Kings joined the Pro14 in 2017 but their participation was recently suspended due to the Covid pandemic. The future of the Kings remains uncertain.

The world champion Springboks would still play tests against New Zealand, Australia and Argentina in the four-nation Rugby Championship, SARU said. Realistically, however, South Africa's participation in that championship might also be reconsidered once its top domestic teams' seasons align with the northern hemisphere.

SARU called Tuesday's move a vote for a "northern hemisphere future."

SARU also said it was forced by New Zealand's "unilateral" decision to organize its own domestic competition, or possibly a trans-Tasman competition involving Australian and other teams for next year. That appeared to be because of uncertainty over if a traditional Super Rugby tournament could go ahead amid the coronavirus pandemic.

Still, SARU said it considered it a slight to not be consulted.

"Our members are excited about the prospect of closer alignment with PRO Rugby Championship and seeking a northern hemisphere future, but we would not have been taking this decision but for actions elsewhere," SARU chief executive Jurie Roux said.

"We will advise our SANZAAR partners of the general meeting's decision."

Despite Roux's comments blaming New Zealand, there have been strong rumours for years that South Africa was seeking to leave its southern hemisphere partnership and play in European competitions. There are seemingly two clear advantages for South African rugby: Similar time zones that would lessen the impact of traveling and, perhaps crucially, access to a much richer television market.

South Africa may still have one team in a reduced future Super Rugby tournament, it said. SARU would negotiate with SANZAAR, the body that runs Super Rugby, to put the Bloemfontein-based Cheetahs in any new version of the tournament. The Cheetahs have been part of the PRO14 since 2017 after being cut from Super Rugby but will go the other way and rejoin Super Rugby if an agreement is reached between SARU and SANZAAR.

The departure of the top four South African teams is a body blow for Super Rugby and SANZAAR. South Africa, with a population of 58 million, is by far the biggest television audience for Super Rugby, leading some to conclude it is the most important member of the southern hemisphere partnership despite the fact that New Zealand teams have dominated on the field.

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