Springboks season officially up and running with CT alignment camp

The Springboks officially kicked off their 2026 international programme on Tuesday with a three-day alignment camp in Cape Town, where the players were exposed to the expectations of them on and off the field this season.

The group of 49 players, including 11 new faces, assembled in the Mother City on Tuesday and had their first session later that evening, which dealt with the macroplan and logistics for the 2026 international season.

This was followed by a gym visit on Wednesday morning and a series of boardroom sessions throughout the day presented by the coaches, led by head coach Rassie Erasmus.

The camp will continue on Thursday and will conclude with the SA Rugby Awards, before the players return to their provincial unions on Friday.

The sessions covered the details of how a training and Test week operates, as well as the demands on them each week in national camp, and what they need to focus on individually to play their way into the national team.

Further camps

This camp will be followed by a virtual alignment camp with 21 overseas-based players, before a second alignment camp is set to be hosted in May.

The Boks will kick off the season with a fixture against the Barbarians in Gqeberha in June, followed by three local matches in the Nations Championship, against England in Johannesburg, Scotland in Pretoria, and Wales in Durban, all in July.

They will then meet Argentina in Buenos Aires in early August, before taking on the All Blacks in four Tests in the Rugby’s Greatest Rivalry series in August and September.

This will be followed by an away Test against the Wallabies in Australia at the end of September, before the second leg of the Nations Championship kicks off in Europe, with matches against Italy, France and Ireland, before the finals weekend in London, over November.