SA Rugby president Rian Oberholzer has confirmed that the union has hit its ticket sales target for the Rugby Championship opener between the Springboks and Wallabies.
The Test match between the double World Cup winners and Australia at Ellis Park Stadium in Johannesburg is not a sell-out but has hit SA Rugby’s benchmark of 85%.
Ellis Park failed to sell out
The Springboks‘ matches against Italy in Pretoria and Port Elizabeth, as well as the clash versus Georgia in Nelspruit, were reportedly all sell-outs, but the same cannot be said for the meeting with the Wallabies.
Much of this is due to the pricing of the tickets, which range from R1,050 to R4,000 (around £44 to £167) for general entry – a stark increase from the 2024 prices and one that many South Africans cannot afford.
This comes after SA Rugby took over control of the ticket sales from the hosting franchises and stadiums for the 2025 international season.
While the 62,000-capacity stadium won’t be packed to the rafters, Oberholzer says that their targets have been met.
“We’ve hit our targets in terms of budgeting for the event,” SA Rugby’s boss told News24 at the launch of Vodacom’s new telecoms sponsorship deal with the union at Loftus Versfeld on Thursday.
“When we did our forecasts, we worked on an 85% capacity. We’re well over that, and after the United Rugby Championship, we’ll review our programme and how we drove it.
“If we’ve made any mistakes, we’ll rectify them before the season starts next year.”
Springboks v Wallabies: How to watch the Rugby Championship opener
Tickets are still available for the second Test match between the Springboks and Wallabies in Cape Town next week, with the remaining tickets starting at R1 750 (about £74) and rising to as much as R3000.
South Africa have one more home match for 2025 after the meeting with Australia in the Western Cape when they host Argentina at the Kings Park Stadium in Durban in round four of the Rugby Championship.
Their tournament will conclude in Twickenham against Los Pumas, with over 50,000 ticket said to have already been sold for the match in the United Kingdom.
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Springboks Rugby Championship fixtures
South Africa v Australia
Date: Saturday, 16 August
Venue: Emirates Airline Park, Johannesburg
Local kick-off: 17:10
GMT kick-off: 15:10
NZL kick-off: 3:10 (Sunday, 17 August)
AUS kick-off: 1:10 (Sunday, 17 August)
RSA kick-off: 17:10
ARG kick-off:12:10
South Africa v Australia
Date: Saturday, 23 August
Venue: DHL Stadium, Cape Town
Local kick-off: 17:10
GMT kick-off: 15:10
NZL kick-off: 3:10 (Sunday, 24 August)
AUS kick-off: 1:10 (Sunday, 24 August)
RSA kick-off: 17:10
ARG kick-off: 12:10
New Zealand v South Africa
Date: Saturday, 6 September
Venue: Eden Park, Auckland
Local kick-off: 19:05
GMT kick-off: 7:05
NZL kick-off: 19:05
AUS (AEST) kick-off: 17:05
RSA kick-off: 9:05
ARG kick-off: 4:05
New Zealand v South Africa
Date: Saturday, 13 September
Venue: Sky Stadium, Wellington
Local kick-off: 19:05
GMT kick-off: 7:05
NZL kick-off: 19:05
AUS (AEST) kick-off: 17:05
RSA kick-off: 9:05
ARG kick-off: 4:05
South Africa v Argentina
Date: Saturday, 27 September
Venue: Hollywoodbets Kings Park, Durban
Local kick-off: 17:10
GMT kick-off: 15:10
NZL kick-off: 4:10 (Sunday, 28 September)
AUS (AEST) kick-off: 1:10 (Sunday, 28 September)
RSA kick-off: 17:10
ARG kick-off: 12:10
Argentina v South Africa
Date: Saturday, 4 October
Venue: Twickenham Stadium, London
Local kick-off: 14:00
GMT kick-off: 13:00
NZL kick-off: 2:00 (Sunday, 5 October)
AUS (AEST) kick-off: 23:00
RSA kick-off: 15:00
ARG kick-off: 10:00