| 2024 Ireland rugby union tour of South Africa | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Coach(es) | Andy Farrell | ||||
| Opponent |
| ||||
 South Africa | |||||
| Tour chronology | |||||
| Previous tour | New Zealand 2022 | ||||
The Ireland rugby union team are scheduled to tour South Africa in July 2024, where they will play two test matches against the South Africa rugby union team, as part of the 2024 Summer Internationals. [1] It will be Ireland's seventh tour to South Africa, and their first test series against the Springboks since 2016. [2]
| Date | Venue | Home | Score | Away |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6 July 2024 | Loftus Versfeld Stadium, Pretoria | South Africa |  Ireland | |
| 13 July 2024 | Kings Park Stadium, Durban | South Africa | Ireland | |
| 6 July 2024 17:00 SAST (UTC+02) |
| South Africa | v | Ireland |
| Loftus Versfeld Stadium, Pretoria [3] Referee: Angus Gardner (Australia) |
|
| 13 July 2024 17:00 SAST (UTC+02) |
| South Africa | v | Ireland |
| Kings Park Stadium, Durban [3] Referee: Karl Dickson (England) |
|
The New Zealand national rugby union team, commonly known as the All Blacks, represents New Zealand in men's international rugby union, which is considered the country's national sport. Famed for their international success, the All Blacks have often been regarded as one of the most successful sports teams in history.
The South Africa national rugby union team, commonly known as the Springboks, is the country's national team governed by the South African Rugby Union. The Springboks play in green and gold jerseys with white shorts. Their emblem is a native antelope, the Springbok, which is the national animal of South Africa. The team has been representing South African Rugby Union in international rugby union since 30 July 1891, when they played their first test match against a British Isles touring team. Currently, the Springboks are the number one ranked rugby team in the world and are the reigning World Champions, having won the World Cup on a record four occasions. Incredibly, the Springboks have won half of the Rugby World Cups they've attended. They are also the second nation to win the World Cup consecutively.
The England men's national rugby union team represents the Rugby Football Union in men's international rugby union. They compete in the annual Six Nations Championship with France, Ireland, Italy, Scotland and Wales. England have won the championship on 29 occasions, winning the Grand Slam 14 times and the Triple Crown 26 times, making them the most successful outright winners in the tournament's history. They are currently the only team from the Northern Hemisphere to win the Rugby World Cup, having won the tournament in 2003, and have been runners-up on three further occasions.
The Ireland and South Africa rugby union teams have a rivalry dating back to 1906. The Springboks of South Africa dominated their early meetings, as have the other southern hemisphere giants, with the Irish winning just once against South Africa prior to 2004, but results have since turned in Ireland's favour, winning eight of the twelves matches between the sides since 2004. Following Ireland's tour win over New Zealand in 2022, South Africa are the only major Southern Hemisphere team over which Ireland has not achieved a series victory.
Johan "Rassie" Erasmus is a South African rugby union coach and former player. He was the head coach of the South African national team from 2018 to the end of their 2019 World Cup campaign, doubling up on his duties as the first ever SARU Director of Rugby, to which he was appointed towards the end of 2017. He led South Africa to win the 2019 Rugby World Cup, and he subsequently won the 2019 World Rugby Coach of the Year award.
Heinrich Wilhelm Brüssow is a South African former professional rugby union player. His usual position was as open-side flanker and his most recent club was Northampton Saints in the English Premiership.
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Tendai Mtawarira is a Zimbabwean-South African retired professional rugby union player who last played for Old Glory DC in Major League Rugby and previously for the South Africa national team and the Sharks in Super Rugby. He was born in Zimbabwe and qualified for South Africa on residency grounds, before later acquiring South African citizenship. Mtawarira, a prop, is known by the nickname Beast.
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Cheslin Kolbe is a South African professional rugby union player who currently plays for Tokyo Sungoliath in the Japan Rugby League One and the South Africa national team. His regular position is wing, but he also plays at fullback. He has also recently featured at fly half for Toulouse in the Top 14, and as a scrum half internationally. Kolbe was a member of the South Africa Sevens team that won a bronze medal at the 2016 Summer Olympics. He has won the Rugby World Cup twice with South Africa, in 2019 and 2023. Kolbe was nominated for 2019 World Rugby Player of the Year but lost to teammate Pieter-Steph du Toit. He is widely regarded as one of the best players in the world. He previously played for Toulouse, Toulon, Stormers, and Western Province. He has won the World Cup, Rugby Championship, and Lions Series with the Springboks, the Top14, and Champions Cup with Toulouse, the Currie Cup with Western Province, and the Challenge Cup with Toulon. He is one of the highest paid rugby players in the world, with a reported salary of between ¥130-155 million yen a season.
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Rugby union tours of South Africa | |
|---|---|
| British & Irish Lions | |
New Zealand  | |
Australia  | |
Argentina  | |
England  | |
France  | |
| Ireland | |
Italy  | |
Scotland  | |
Wales  | |
Fiji  | |
Samoa  | |
Tonga  | |
| Various selections |
|