The 2026 SANZAAR Under-20 Rugby Championship returns to Gqeberha next week, marking the second consecutive year that the Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium will host this prestigious southern hemisphere tournament.
The competition serves as a critical high-intensity preparation for the Junior World Championship, which takes place in Georgia later this June.
Tournament Overview
Host City: Gqeberha, South Africa
Venue: Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium
Teams: South Africa (Junior Springboks), New Zealand, Australia, and Argentina
Format: A round-robin “double-header” format played across three match days.
Match Schedule
All matches are scheduled as double-headers, meaning one ticket grants access to both games on that day.
| Date | Time | Match |
| Monday, 27 April (Freedom Day) | 14:00 | New Zealand vs Australia |
| 16:10 | Junior Boks vs Argentina | |
| Sunday, 3 May | 14:00 | New Zealand vs Argentina |
| 16:10 | Junior Boks vs Australia | |
| Saturday, 9 May | 14:00 | Argentina vs Australia |
| 16:10 | Junior Boks vs New Zealand |
The Junior Boks
Head coach Kevin Foote recently announced a 31-man squad led by lock Riley Norton. The squad is a blend of experienced winners and fresh talent:
Norton, Siphosethu Mnebelele, Oliver Reid, and Vusi Moyo are all returning members from the side that won the Junior World Championship in Italy last year.
The squad includes promising youngsters like Markus Muller (centre) and Kai Pratt (prop), who have already caught the eye of senior Springbok coach Rassie Erasmus.
The Junior Boks enter the tournament as defending World Champions, though they will be looking to avenge last year’s narrow 48-45 loss to New Zealand in the TRC U20 final.
Tickets
Priced from R35 per person per day, available exclusively through Ticketmaster.
Given the rich rugby culture in the Eastern Cape, organizers are expecting significant crowds, particularly for the Freedom Day opener and the final round clash against New Zealand.
This tournament is essentially a “laboratory” for future stars. Many of the players you see on the field next week will likely be household names in the senior Rugby Championship within the next three to four years.
