Nations Championship · Round 1
South Africa
England
Ellis Park Stadium, Johannesburg (1,753m altitude)
Championship Standings
This is the opening round of the inaugural World Rugby Nations Championship — a 12-team, cross-hemisphere competition split into two groups of six, so there is no combined league table. Teams play a full round-robin against the opposing group (three southern-hosted Tests in July, three northern-hosted in November) with the group finishing positions seeding a Finals Weekend at Allianz Stadium, Twickenham. Points are 4 for a win, 2 for a draw, plus bonus points for four tries and for losing by under eight — but with no matches played yet, every side starts on zero. The rows below list the two groups seeded by current World Rugby ranking.
| Pos | Team | P | W | L | PD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rest of World | ||||||
| 1 | South Africa | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 |
| 2 |  New Zealand | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 |
| 3 |  Argentina | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 |
| 4 |  Australia | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 |
| 5 |  Fiji | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 |
| 6 |  Japan | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 |
| Europe | ||||||
| 1 |  Ireland | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 |
| 2 |  France | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 |
| 3 | England | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 |
| 4 |  Scotland | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 |
| 5 |  Italy | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 |
| 6 |  Wales | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 |
South Africa
W5The Springboks arrive as the world's No. 1 side on a scarcely-interrupted roll. They closed 2025 with a clean-sweep European tour — France, Italy, Ireland and Wales all beaten away, capped by a staggering 73–0 evisceration of Wales in Cardiff — then blew away the Barbarians 80–31 in a June run-out. This is their first competitive Test of 2026, so rust is a factor after a six-month layoff, but the trajectory is emphatic: four of the six Home Nations put to the sword inside eight months.
England
W1, L4England's 2026 Six Nations was a slow-motion collapse. After thrashing Wales 48–7 on opening night they lost four in a row — beaten in Edinburgh, dismantled 42–21 at home by Ireland, and then, most damningly, edged 23–18 by Italy in Rome for a first defeat to the Azzurri since 2022. The 48–46 loss in Paris at least showed attacking teeth, but a side that has conceded 151 points across five games and lost to Italy is travelling to altitude in poor competitive nick. The autumn — when they beat New Zealand, Australia, Fiji and Argentina — feels a long time ago.
Head-to-Head Record
15 – 1 – 5
South Africa wins · Draws · England wins (last 21 meetings)
South Africa (15)South Africa own this fixture, winning 15 of the last 21 meetings — including the 2007 and 2019 World Cup finals and the 2023 semi-final, a 16–15 knife-edge in Paris. England's most recent win was a 27–26 thriller at Twickenham in 2021; since then the Boks have taken four straight, all by tight margins bar the 32–12 in the 2019 final. Crucially, the sides last met in South Africa in the 2018 series, which the Boks took 2–1 — England have not won a Test on South African soil since 2018, and never at altitude in Johannesburg.
Recent Results
| Date | Competition | Result |
|---|---|---|
| Nov 2024 | Autumn International | England 20–29 South Africa |
| Oct 2023 | Rugby World Cup SF | England 15–16 South Africa |
| Nov 2022 | Autumn International | England 13–27 South Africa |
| Nov 2021 | Autumn International | England 27–26 South Africa |
| Nov 2019 | Rugby World Cup Final | England 12–32 South Africa |
| Nov 2018 | Autumn International | England 12–11 South Africa |
Average score in the last 6 meetings: South Africa have won four of the last five and average roughly 25 points a game in that run. The margins are usually slim — 16–15, 27–26, 29–20 — but the Boks find a way, and doing it at Ellis Park with a full week's altitude advantage skews it further their way.
Extended Form
South Africa13W, 2L
Over the last 12 months: a Rugby Championship title featuring a 43–10 demolition of New Zealand and a 67–30 rout of Argentina, a Grand Slam November tour (France 32–17, Italy 32–14, Ireland 24–13, Wales 73–0), a 61–7 win over Japan and an 80–31 Barbarians run-out. The only blemishes were a 38–22 loss to Australia in Perth and a 27–29 defeat in Argentina.
The Springboks are the most complete side in the world — a ferocious set piece, the game's most feared bench, and an increasingly expansive attacking layer behind. Both defeats came on the road in dead-rubber or rotation contexts. At home, at altitude, against a struggling opponent, they are heavy favourites.
England8W, 4L
A perfect summer tour of the Americas (two wins in Argentina plus a 40–5 win over the USA) and a flawless November (England beat New Zealand 33–19, Australia 25–7, Fiji 38–18 and Argentina 27–23). Then the wheels came off in the Six Nations: beat Wales, then lost to Scotland, Ireland, Italy and France.
The split personality is the story. England were arguably the form autumn side in the Northern Hemisphere, then delivered one of their worst championships in years — a loss to Italy the nadir. Borthwick has leaned into an expansive, ball-in-hand approach, but the results say a side still searching for consistency, now facing the world champions away from home.
South Africa XV
Rassie Erasmus names a heavyweight side captained by Siya Kolisi, with milestone 50th caps for both Cheslin Kolbe and Damian Willemse. Manie Libbok gets the 10 jersey with Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu ruled out by an ankle injury, and Handre Pollard — long an England tormentor — is left out entirely. The pack is close to first-choice: Ox Nche, Malcolm Marx and Thomas du Toit up front, Eben Etzebeth and Ruan Nortje locking (Franco Mostert and Lood de Jager unavailable), and a Kolisi–Pieter-Steph du Toit–Jasper Wiese loose trio. The matchday 23 carries a combined 1,099 Test caps, with Cobus Reinach, Andre Esterhuizen and Canan Moodie loaded onto a typically explosive bench.
England XV
With Maro Itoje rested for July, Jamie George captains England from hooker, flanked in leadership by Ellis Genge and Ollie Chessum. Fin Smith runs the game at fly-half — Marcus Smith drops to the bench for a finishing role — and Jack van Poortvliet gets the nod at scrum-half. The headline call is up front: Tom Curry and Ben Earl start in a specialist back row, with Henry Pollock, one of the breakout names of the season, held back on the bench at 21. George Martin returns from a lengthy injury lay-off to partner Alex Coles in the second row, and a young back three of Cadan Murley, Immanuel Feyi-Waboso and George Furbank carries the strike threat.
Key Matchups
The match is likely decided in two places: the set piece and the lungs. South Africa's front five — Nche, Marx and Thomas du Toit with Etzebeth behind — is a level above, and at 1,753m the collision and scrum toll compounds on a touring pack in the final quarter, exactly when the Bok bench arrives. England's genuine edge is the back row: Curry and Earl are relentless over the ball and, with Pollock in reserve, England can win the breakdown battle and disrupt Bok ball. Fin Smith's tempo and a dangerous young back three give England a puncher's chance if the game opens up. But Libbok's goal-kicking has wobbled before, and if the Boks squeeze the set piece and starve England of quick ball, the altitude does the rest.
Match Forecast
South Africa should win this, and win it up front. The scorecard leans heavily green — a dominant Bok set piece (+3), a five-game winning streak against England's Six Nations freefall (+4 form), and the compounding effect of Ellis Park at altitude on a touring side (+4 home). England have not won a Test in South Africa since 2018 and have never won at altitude in Johannesburg; add a bench carrying Reinach, Esterhuizen and Moodie against tiring legs in the final 20, and the platform for a clear home win is obvious.
The caveat keeps this from being a rout. England's back row of Curry and Earl, with Pollock in reserve, is genuinely world-class at the breakdown and can strangle the quick ball South Africa's expansive game now relies on. Fin Smith is a smart tempo-setter and the recent H2H record — 16–15, 27–26 — is a reminder these games are usually tight, not blowouts. If Libbok's goal-kicking misfires and England's set piece holds, the margin shrinks fast. But rusty or not, the Boks at home with this pack are the wrong side to back an out-of-sorts England against.
Springboks by 15–20 — the altitude and the set piece tell late, but England's back row keeps it competitive for an hour.