South African rugby has a defending champion problem. Griquas, who lifted the Currie Cup trophy this year, face the ludicrous prospect of having to qualify for the very competition they’ve conquered.
Currie Cup Premier Division participants are decided when the top four teams from the SA Cup join the Sharks, Bulls, Lions and Stormers. No automatic berth for the defending champion. Just another qualification slog.
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Griquas head coach Pieter Bergh has had enough.
“In the last five competitions in South Africa, Griquas have reached the final every time, three times in the SA Cup and twice in the Currie Cup. We have won three of those finals,” Bergh told Die Papier.
“I feel serious discussions must be held about our position in SA Rugby, because as things stand now, we must, despite being the defending champions, first qualify again next year to play in the Currie Cup.”
Five finals, three trophies, zero security
Griquas’ record speaks for itself. Five consecutive finals across two competitions. Three titles. Yet they enjoy no protection, no guaranteed platform to defend their crown.
The financial implications are brutal. Premier Division teams reportedly receive R6.3 million more from SA Rugby than First Division counterparts. Beyond the direct funding gap, Premier Division status delivers greater broadcast exposure and enhanced sponsorship opportunities, the lifeblood of smaller unions operating on shoestring budgets.
Miss out on qualification, and Griquas don’t just lose prestige. They lose millions. They lose visibility. They lose the ability to attract and retain talent.
A July workshop examined potential changes to domestic competition structure, but no new plans have materialised.
The solution is obvious
If neither the Bulls, Lions, Sharks nor Stormers win the Currie Cup, the defending champion must be automatically included. The SA Cup qualification route should then accommodate only the top three teams, not four.
It’s simple. It’s fair. It respects achievement whilst maintaining competitive pathways for ambitious unions.
Pumas head coach Jimmy Stonehouse, whose side fell to Griquas this year, believes the debate should go further. He advocates for expanding Premier Division to include all unions.
“There are more than enough rugby players in the country. A little effort just needs to be made to improve all the rugby unions,” Stonehouse told SA Rugby Mag. “I truly believe rugby in our country could be 10 times stronger if we had 14 strong unions all competing in the Premier Division.”
It’s an admirable vision. But vision collides with financial reality.
The budget gap nobody wants to discuss
In 2025, Rugby 365 revealed that the Bulls, South Africa’s best-funded franchise, operate at half the budget of European teams ranked 15th or lower. Half. The Bulls, with their Loftus fortress, their talent pipeline, their institutional strength, are financially outgunned by mid-table European clubs.
If the Bulls operate under such constraints, where does that leave the Griquas, Pumas and Cheetahs? And more critically, what hope exists for the Leopards, Border and the Valke, unions at the bottom rung scrapping for survival?
Stonehouse is right that South Africa has the playing talent to support 14 competitive unions. The problem isn’t player depth. It’s financial depth. Without significant investment, expanding the Premier Division risks diluting quality and spreading already-scarce resources even thinner.
South African rugby faces a structural reckoning. The current system sees defending champions qualify from scratch. Smaller unions face financial extinction. Meanwhile, Europe’s spending power widens the gap.
Griquas deserve better than this. They’ve earned their place through performance. Forcing champions to re-qualify isn’t competitive integrity.
