“Mooi Man,” Springboks Coach Rassie Erasmus Celebrates Blitzboks Topping World Rugby Sevens Rankings
- The South African Sevens team has achieved a historic milestone, reaching the pinnacle of the World Rugby Sevens rankings
- Springboks head coach Rassie Erasmus publicly celebrated the team’s success, sparking nationwide pride and excitement
- Fans across South Africa have flooded social media with messages of admiration and joy for the Blitzboks’ accomplishment
South African rugby is enjoying tremendous success, with the Springboks being back-to-back Rugby World Cup winners in 2019 and 2023.
Source: Getty Images
In 2025, they retained the Rugby Championship for the first time, finishing the season with an 85% winning rate. This ensured South Africa ended the year on top of the World Rugby rankings. The Junior Springboks also lifted the World Rugby Under-20 Championship in July 2025, capping an outstanding year for South African rugby.
Blitzboks rise to the top of Sevens rankings
Three months into 2026, the South African Sevens Rugby team is delivering exceptional performances, playing some incredible rugby that has catapulted the team to the summit of the Sevens rankings. In the 2025 SVNS World Championship in Los Angeles, the Blitzboks beat Spain in the final to lift one of the biggest trophies on the sevens calendar. They also defended their Cape Town SVNS title unbeaten, turning around tough situations to close out matches.
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At one of the early events in January 2026 in Dubai, South Africa topped their pool and looked sharp in the opening group matches, signalling their intent from the start. In Perth, Australia, the Blitzboks finished second in Pool A and progressed to the semi-finals after wins over Spain and Argentina, showing depth and resilience even when results did not go entirely their way.
Source: Getty Images
South Africa lifted the trophy in Vancouver, going unbeaten throughout the weekend and beating Spain in the final to continue their strong run of form. The Blitzboks then defeated Fiji 10-7 in a dramatic final at the HSBC SVNS New York, clinching both the tournament and the overall 2026 World SVNS Series title. That final victory was critical as both teams had been neck-and-neck in the series standings, and South Africa’s win secured the championship.
Springboks head coach Rassie Erasmus celebrated the Blitzboks’ rise to the top with a warm post on X on Wednesday, 18 March, captioned,
"Mooi man."
The full rankings show South Africa at the apex with 106 points, followed by Fiji with 104 points, Australia in third with 82 points, and New Zealand in fourth with 80 points.
See the rankings on Rassie Erasmus's post on X below:
Rassie Erasmus celebrates as Blitzboks top the world
Fans joined Erasmus in celebrating the moment:
@57_andwei:
"Top 4 from the Southern Hemisphere. Class is south of the equator."
@JZozo17:
"Dankie Oom Rassie, the man who turned the dark to South Africa's favourite son ❤️❤️."
@gronumsmith:
"And they did it without scrums!"
@miss_a_dawson:
"Bunch of winners! 👏🏾👏🏾"
Erasmus and the Springboks will be encouraged by the Blitzboks’ form as they approach one of the most gruelling calendar seasons. They are set to open with a warm-up against the Barbarians in July before hosting England.
Kolisi ready to compete for Springboks place
Briefly News earlier reported that Siya Kolisi is prepared to fight for his place in the Springboks squad ahead of the 2026 season.
The Boks captain is aware of the competition in the South African national team with the 2027 Rugby World Cup also approaching.
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Source: Briefly News
