Rugby union in South Africa Rugby union in South Africa Rugby union in South Africa is a very popular team sport, along with cricket and football, and is widely played all over the country. The National team is among the strongest in the world and has been ranked in the top seven of the World Rugby Rankings since its inception in 2003. The country hosted and won the 1995 Rugby World Cup, and won again the 2007 tournament in France. Given South Africa's history, as with much else in South Africa, the organisation and playing of rugby has been entangled with politics, and racial politics
1999 Rugby World Cup win the Webb Ellis Cup twice. The cup was presented by the queen to Australian captain John Eales. The overall attendance for the tournament was 1.75 million. British television rights holders ITV acted as the host broadcaster for the tournament, with coverage shown in 209 countries, to an audience of 3.1 billion viewers. In Australia, the event was broadcast by Seven Network. 1999 Rugby World Cup The 1999 Rugby World Cup was the fourth Rugby World Cup, the quadrennial international rugby union championship. It was principally hosted by Wales, and was won by Australia. This was the first Rugby World