2026 : L'Espagne rejoint la France en demi-finales

Despite bonus points and points difference set to play a big part in where teams finish in the Nations Championship, the Springboks are only focused on the win when they take on Scotland in their round two match at Loftus in Pretoria on Saturday (kick-off 5:40pm).

The Boks top the Southern Hemisphere standings and the overall Nations Championship log thanks to their bonus point win over England last weekend, with Wales, Scotland, New Zealand and Ireland all equal with them on five points, but trailing on points difference.

At the end of the competition’s group stage in November, teams from the Southern and Northern Hemisphere pools will be lined up against each other, so whoever finishes top of each pool will face each other to see who is the best in the game.

Considering the number of high-scoring matches last weekend, and seeing how important points difference and bonus points could become, Bok coach Rassie Erasmus insisted this week the Boks will still only be focused on winning, and nothing else.

“There was a lot of exciting rugby, with nearly all the games opening up. I saw teams often not kicking for touch, yet there were more maul tries scored in one weekend than there were in the whole of the Six Nations,” explained Erasmus.

“When teams got into the opposition 22, it seemed inevitable that they would score, especially in the All Blacks versus France game, which I thought was a thriller.

“I don’t know if they were chasing bonus points or not, but when we go into a Test match, we just want to win it. If you disrespect that, you are probably going to lose it. The win still counts the most for us.”

Inexperienced Boks

The Bok team named to take on Scotland is one of their most inexperienced teams in recent times. And, they are up against an in-form team that did well in the Six Nations and beat Los Pumas in Argentina last weekend, and Erasmus admitted that the Southern Hemisphere teams were still getting up to speed with the teams from the north.

“Argentina, Australia, New Zealand and us are in the same boat (with it the start of the season). The southern hemisphere teams usually take a game or two to get cohesion going. That is what happened to Argentina,” explained Erasmus.

“Scotland played very well. They beat England in the Six Nations, and are a good team. But with the Pumas, very few of their top players play in Argentina, they play in France, England, Japan and other countries.

“It is tough for them, and they did not have a warm-up game. Their flyhalf and the coach had just got back from being with the Barbarians. They probably had only a few training sessions before playing a Scotland side that had a whole Six Nations behind them.”

Novak Djokovic said he expects to play Wimbledon “at least one more time” after the Serb’s bid for an eighth All England Club title was shattered by Jannik Sinner in the semi-finals on Friday.

Djokovic, who will be 40 by the time Wimbledon starts next year, is still chasing a record-breaking 25th Grand Slam triumph.

He suffered a 6-4, 6-4, 6-4 loss to world number one Sinner on Centre Court as he missed out on an 11th Wimbledon final.

“I would like to, at least one more time,” Djokovic said when asked if he would be back at the grass-court Grand Slam.

Djokovic rolled back the years with an epic win over third seed Felix Auger-Aliassime in the longest Wimbledon quarter-final in history on Tuesday, but could not back up that performance against Sinner.

“I’m proud of what I achieved three nights ago,” he said.

“Proven to myself and others that I can still play at the highest level, and I have.

“I reached the last four of Wimbledon. Losing in straight sets against the best player in the world, okay. It is what it is.

“It’s the reality you have to accept. But the tournament was positive in terms of the attitude on the court, the fighting spirit, the dedication.”

No major title since 2023

Djokovic, who last won Wimbledon in 2022, has not clinched a major title since the 2023 US Open.

He has suffered a string of near-misses in his bid to break out of a tie with Margaret Court at the top of the all-time list.

Djokovic lost in the semi-finals at all four Grand Slam events last year, while he was also beaten in the 2024 Wimbledon final and this year’s Australian Open final by Carlos Alcaraz.

“I guess for 99 percent of the players, that would be a very good Grand Slam result,” said Djokovic, who would become the oldest Grand Slam champion in the Open era if he could win another major.

“For me, it’s good but not good enough, because I’m blessed and cursed to be used to something of the highest degree in terms of results and achievements.

“It’s kind of that internal battle really of what I’ve been through for the 20-plus years of my career, what the goals were always, the expectations, and trying to balance it out and really be a little more humble in that sense.”

Djokovic will now turn his attentions to the American hard-court season and the US Open, where he is a four-time champion and lost to Alcaraz in the 2025 semis.

Les rumeurs entourant l’avenir de Carlos Queiroz à la tête de l’équipe du Ghana ont pris une ampleur considérable ces derniers jours. Pourtant, le technicien portugais a tenu à mettre fin aux spéculations en assurant qu’il n’avait jamais quitté son poste de sélectionneur des Black Stars.

Face aux nombreuses informations annonçant sa démission, Carlos Queiroz a été catégorique. Il affirme n’avoir jamais remis de lettre officielle à la Fédération ghanéenne de football et insiste sur le fait qu’il reste pleinement engagé dans sa mission auprès de la sélection nationale.

Un message mal interprété

À l’origine de cette confusion figure un message publié récemment sur ses réseaux sociaux. Dans cette déclaration, l’ancien sélectionneur de plusieurs grandes nations remerciait le Ghana, ses dirigeants, les joueurs et l’ensemble de son staff pour la confiance accordée depuis sa nomination.

Il y évoquait également une réflexion sur le football, estimant que « le football, comme la vie, nous enseigne une leçon intemporelle : soit vous gagnez, soit vous apprenez ». Ce texte, accompagné de remerciements adressés au président de la Fédération, au conseil d’administration ainsi qu’aux Black Stars, a rapidement été interprété comme un discours d’adieu.

Carlos Queiroz clarifie la situation

Interrogé sur cette polémique, Carlos Queiroz a expliqué que son intention était uniquement d’exprimer sa gratitude envers le peuple ghanéen après une période riche en émotions. Selon lui, son message n’avait jamais pour objectif d’annoncer une démission. Le sélectionneur a également rappelé que l’avenir des Black Stars passe par la création d’un environnement favorable au développement des talents du pays, une vision qu’il continue de défendre.

Cette mise au point devrait mettre un terme aux nombreuses spéculations. Carlos Queiroz demeure bien le sélectionneur du Ghana et entend poursuivre son travail afin d’accompagner les Black Stars vers de nouveaux succès sur la scène internationale.

The post Ghana : Carlos Queiroz dément son départ et affirme « Je n’ai pas démissionné » appeared first on AfricaFootUnited.

Nick Mallett says middle-class South Africans should be able to afford to watch the Springboks play.

SA Rugby was forced to slash ticket prices for the Boks’ first Test of 2026 against England at Ellis Park last week after slow sales, with the cheapest tickets reduced from R950 to R450. It resulted in a crowd of 52,790 at the 62,000-capacity stadium.

While the Test between the Springboks and Scotland at the 50,000-capacity Loftus Versfeld was reportedly heading for a sell-out, on Saturday morning there were still tickets available at Ticketmaster, ranging from R1,050 to R2,500.

Writing in his News24 column, Mallett argues that full stadiums are more valuable than maximising ticket revenue.

“The reality is that tickets are too expensive, and I’ve said that for 26 years now,” Mallett wrote, referring to his criticism of ticket prices in 2000 which cost him his job as Bok coach.

MORE: R4,500 a suite seat to watch Boks

He believes SA Rugby should prioritise TV rights and sponsorship as its primary revenue streams, while using ticket prices to ensure packed stadiums.

“The most important thing about tickets is that you want a full stadium,” he said.

“My view is that you shouldn’t be looking to maximise profit on all three areas – television, sponsorship and tickets.

“You should make sure that your income is enough out of television rights and sponsorship, and with your ticket sales you must make sure that the stadium is full.”

Mallett argued that a packed crowd not only improves the spectacle, but “also positively impacts the sponsorship deals”.

ALSO: Bok fans can’t bank on cheaper tickets

Mallett added that pricing loyal rugby supporters out of Test matches ultimately hurts the game.

“Those people that go to franchise games are paying money to watch, and those are the rugby supporters you would like to have at your international games.

“If you’re pricing them out and they can’t afford to get there, then I don’t think your model is a good one.”

“For a mother and father and two kids to go to the game as a family should be something within the middle-class rugby supporter’s pocket.”

Photo: Johan Orton/Getty Images

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The post Mallett: Make Bok Test tickets affordable appeared first on SA Rugby magazine.