Springboks and All Blacks confirm Lions-style tour for 'greatest rivalry'
Jordie Barrett of New Zealand collides with Cheslin Kolbe of South Africa during The Rugby Championship match in Auckland in September (Photo by Hannah Peters/Getty Images)
Springboks captain Siya Kolisi is relishing playing host to a landmark New Zealand tour on the scale of a British & Irish Lions series when the All Blacks visit South Africa next August.
Dubbed “Rugby’s Greatest Rivalry” by promoters, it will be the first of what is planned to be a quadrennial tour alternating between rugby union’s most successful two nations, playing four Test matches as well as tour games against South Africa’s URC franchises across August and September 2026.
Details of the All Blacks’ eight-match, five-week tour were confirmed on Thursday, hours after SANZAAR enshrined the tour model into its four-year calendar to 2030.
New Zealand will kick off against the Stormers in Cape Town on Friday, 7 August and take on the Sharks, Bulls and Lions alongside a four-Test series against the back-to-back world champions, beginning at Ellis Park, Johannesburg next August 22.
It rekindles a touring element to the rivalry between the two nations last played out when the All Blacks visited South Africa in 1996, winning the Test series 2-1.
In the reciprocal 2030 edition, the Springboks will embark on their first professional era tour to New Zealand.
“This is going to be something huge and something this generation will never forget,” Kolisi said. “These are the tours we’ve only heard of. To experience this for the first time, where it’s like a Lions tour, is unbelievable for us as a group.
“I have no doubt the Springbok fans will be there waiting to welcome the All Blacks fans to South Africa. Let’s get excited; let’s get behind it and, people of South Africa, it’s an opportunity for us to show the world once again who we are and what we are about – we certainly can’t wait for it.”
All Blacks captain Scott Barrett said: “This is a huge rivalry, and one that is founded off mutual respect, but for 80 minutes these are two teams that every time they play there’s everything on the line. The intensity is right up there, and it is shaping up to be a heck of a tour. The format will be great, and there will be a whole lot of excited fans watching from home, and travelling with us as well. We are looking forward to it.”
Friday, August 7: Stormers v New Zealand, DHL Stadium, Cape Town
Tuesday, August 11: Sharks v New Zealand, Hollywoodbets Kings Park, Durban
Saturday, August 15: Bulls v New Zealand, Loftus Versfeld, Pretoria
Saturday, August 22: South Africa v New Zealand, Ellis Park, Johannesburg (first Test)
Tuesday, August 25: Lions v New Zealand, Ellis Park, Johannesburg
Saturday, August 29: South Africa v New Zealand, DHL Stadium, Cape Town (second Test)
Saturday, September 5: South Africa v New Zealand, FNB Stadium, Johannesburg (third Test)
Saturday, September 12: South Africa v New Zealand. Venue to be announced (fourth Test)
CONNECT WITH US TODAY
Be the first to know the latest news and updates
