The Epic Clash: A History of the All Blacks vs Springboks Rivalry

In 2026 the traditional Rugby Championship is on pause, but a nostalgic tour is taking centre stage as New Zealand’s All Blacks head to South Africa for an eight‑match extravaganza, including four Test encounters with the Springboks, all broadcast live on Sky Sports. Marketed in both nations as the "Rugby’s Greatest Rivalry Tour," the series is designed to honour more than a century of battles between the two most successful rugby powers.

The All Blacks have already opened the tour with convincing wins over the Stormers (38‑21 in Cape Town), the Sharks (54‑0 in Durban) and the Bulls (50‑19 in Pretoria). The four Test matches are slated for August 22, August 29, September 5 and September 12, with the final showdown taking place at M&T Bank Stadium in Baltimore, USA. **A Brief Chronology of the Rivalry** The first meeting between New Zealand and South Africa occurred on 13 August 1921 at Carisbrook in Dunedin, when the Springboks toured New Zealand.

The All Blacks edged a 13‑5 victory, but the Boks answered a week later with a 9‑5 win at Eden Park, and the series concluded with a 0‑0 draw in Wellington. Since that inaugural trio of games, the two sides have clashed in roughly 110 Test matches. New Zealand leads the head‑to‑head with 63 wins, South Africa has 43 victories, and four matches have ended level.

When the games are split by venue, the picture becomes even more nuanced. In South Africa, 54 Tests have been played: the Springboks have won 28, the All Blacks 25, with one draw.

In New Zealand, 48 Tests have taken place, yielding 34 All Blacks wins, 11 Springbok victories and three draws. **World Cup Drama** The rivalry has produced some of the most dramatic moments in Rugby World Cup history. South Africa triumphed over New Zealand in two finals – the iconic 1995 showdown in Johannesburg and the 2023 final in France – and also defeated the All Blacks in the 1999 third‑place playoff. Conversely, New Zealand has bested South Africa in the 2015 semi‑final, the 2003 quarter‑final and the 2023 pool stage.

**The Interwar and Post‑War Years** After the 1921 series, the two nations met again in 1927 when New Zealand toured South Africa. That series finished level at 2‑2, with each side securing two wins.

The Boks then dominated the next two encounters, winning a 2‑1 series in New Zealand in 1937 and sweeping a 4‑0 series at home in 1949. New Zealand reclaimed some ground in 1956, winning a 3‑1 home series, but South Africa answered with a 2‑1 series win on New Zealand soil in 1960.

**Apartheid and Sporting Isolation** From 1948 to 1994 South Africa’s apartheid regime imposed strict racial segregation, extending to sport. The South African government refused to allow mixed‑race teams, prompting New Zealand to exclude Māori players from several tours. Protests erupted during the 1960 tour, and by the mid‑1960s South Africa faced increasing isolation: barred from the 1964 Tokyo Olympics, expelled from the IOC in 1970, and excluded from international tennis.

Rugby proved one of the last sports to act. In 1965 the Springboks toured New Zealand, winning three of four Tests, but the Halt All Racist Tours (HART) movement was founded in 1969 to oppose further contacts. The 1970 All Blacks tour of South Africa ended in a 3‑1 series loss for New Zealand. A planned 1973 New Zealand tour was cancelled amid global boycotts, yet matches still occurred in 1976 (a 3‑1 Springbok home series win) and 1981 (a 2‑1 All Blacks series win) – the latter marred by massive protests, fence‑ripping demonstrators, and even flour‑bomb attacks on the field.

The 1985 series was called off following a New Zealand court ruling that such tours were incompatible with the NZRFU’s purpose of promoting rugby. South Africa missed the first two Rugby World Cups (1987, 1991) because of the boycott. **Rebel Tours and the End of Isolation** In 1986 a non‑official New Zealand side, the Cavaliers, toured South Africa.

Participants were heavily sanctioned, with many banned from future Tests. After apartheid fell, South Africa re‑entered international rugby with a 1992 Test against New Zealand, narrowly losing 27‑24 at Ellis Park. Nelson Mandela’s 1994 presidency encouraged all South Africans to rally behind the Springboks, a sentiment that helped the nation host the 1995 Rugby World Cup. Despite being ranked ninth globally, South Africa stunned the world by defeating the heavily favoured All Blacks 15‑12 after extra time.

Controversy still swirls around that final, with theories of food‑poisoning and alleged sabotage, but the fact remains that a large portion of the New Zealand squad fell ill before the match. **Professional Era and Dominance Shifts** The All Blacks toured South Africa in August 1996 seeking revenge after the 1995 final.

Having already clinched the inaugural Tri‑Nations, they won the first two Tests (23‑19 in Durban, 33‑26 in Pretoria) and secured the series with a third Test win in Johannesburg. From 2001 to July 2004 the All Blacks went unbeaten against the Boks, winning 13 of 17 encounters. New Zealand’s dominance continued with Tri‑Nations titles in 1997, 1999, 2002, 2003, a four‑year streak from 2005‑2008, and further runs in 2010‑2013 and 2016‑2018. They added Rugby World Cup trophies in 2011 and 2015, the latter team often hailed as the greatest ever assembled.

South Africa’s high points came with World Cup victories in 1995, 2007 and 2019, and Tri‑Nations (now Rugby Championship) wins in 2004, 2009, 2024 and 2025. After a disastrous 2017‑2018 period, coach Rassie Erasmus revitalised the Springboks, culminating in a surprise 36‑34 win in Wellington (2018) and a 2019 World Cup triumph over England. **The Current Landscape** Since the 2019 World Cup, the Springboks have held a slight edge in head‑to‑head Tests, winning seven of the last eleven.

They captured the 2023 World Cup, albeit against a depleted All Blacks side reduced to 14 players. Meanwhile, New Zealand is in a rebuilding phase under new head coach Dave Rennie after the dismissal of Scott Robertson.

Rennie has described the upcoming eight‑match, six‑week tour – featuring four Tests against the Springboks – as “the toughest tour in rugby,” emphasizing both the competitive challenge and the unique bonding opportunities such a tour provides. **Tour Schedule Recap** - 7 Aug: Stormers 21‑38 All Blacks (Cape Town) - 11 Aug: Sharks 0‑54 All Blacks (Durban) - 15 Aug: Bulls 19‑50 All Blacks (Pretoria) - 22 Aug: 1st Test – South Africa vs New Zealand, Ellis Park, Johannesburg (16:10 BST) - 25 Aug: Lions vs All Blacks, Johannesburg (18:00 BST) - 29 Aug: 2nd Test – South Africa vs New Zealand, Cape Town (16:10 BST) - 5 Sep: 3rd Test – South Africa vs New Zealand, FNB Stadium, Johannesburg (16:10 BST) - 12 Sep: 4th Test – South Africa vs New Zealand, M&T Bank Stadium, Baltimore (22:00 BST) Fans can follow every minute of the eight‑match journey live on Sky Sports throughout August and September, reliving the storied rivalry that has shaped the very soul of international rugby.