The Springboks will return to the Eastern Cape for the first time since 2021 when they take on Italy at the Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium in the second Test of the Castle Lager Incoming Series in July, with SA Rugby confirming the venues of the six local Tests on Thursday.

The back-to-back Rugby World Cup champions will kick their season off against Italy in Pretoria a week earlier, on Saturday 5 July, and will also play in Nelspruit, Johannesburg, Cape Town, and Durban in 2025.

The Boks’ season opener at Loftus Versfeld in Pretoria will mark Italy’s first visit to South Africa since 2013, while it will also be the first fixture between the teams in Gauteng. The two teams will meet again a week later, on Saturday 12 July, at the Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium in Gqeberha, where they last crossed paths in 2001.

The last time the Boks played at the Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium was two Tests against Argentina in 2021, behind closed doors due to the COVID pandemic.

The last Test in the Castle Lager Incoming Series is against Georgia at the Mbombela Stadium in Nelspruit on Saturday, 19 July – only the third match between the sides in history.

The first two matches between the nations were in Sydney during the 2003 RWC and in Pretoria in 2021, with the latter also played in an empty stadium due to COVID restrictions. A second Test between the sides had to be cancelled due to the pandemic.

The Boks will begin their Castle Lager Rugby Championship title defence against Australia at Emirates Airline Park in Johannesburg and the DHL Stadium in Cape Town on Saturday, 16 and 23 August, before travelling to New Zealand for successive Tests against the All Blacks in Auckland (6 September) and Wellington (13 September).

They will then return to South Africa for their final home Test of the year against Argentina at Hollywoodbets Kings Park in Durban on Saturday, 27 September, before the away match against the Pumas a week later at Allianz Stadium, Twickenham in London.

Springbok coach Rassie Erasmus was pleased with the Test venues and said it sparked even more excitement among the coaches for the 2025 season.

“The confirmation of the Test venues always gives us peace of mind from a coaching and management team perspective because it means we can step up our planning, and it also boosts the excitement from the public for the season,” said Erasmus.

“We have played at most of these venues in the last few years and we know them well, although it will be particularly exciting to return to Gqeberha for the first time since 2021.

“We thoroughly enjoy the passionate support we receive from our home crowds throughout the country, and we have no doubt we will enjoy great support at the Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium once again – this time in a packed stadium, which we last experienced in the Eastern Cape in 2018 against Australia.”

Erasmus was content with the hard work done behind the scenes so far as they look to build on a successful 2024 season: “We are already at an advanced stage of our planning from a coaching, logistics, and operations perspective, and it’s exciting to see how everything is coming together ahead of another challenging and exciting season.”

SA Rugby CEO Rian Oberholzer shared Erasmus’ excitement following the confirmation of the Test venues and said: “All six home Tests will be played at top-class venues, and we are pleased that we will see the Boks run out in five different provinces.

“The team enjoys a lot of support throughout the country – we had more than 300,000 fans in attendance at our home Tests last year – and by spreading out the matches, hopefully it allows as many people as possible to see them live in action.”

Details on ticket sales will be announced in due course.

Springbok home fixtures in 2025:

Castle Lager Incoming Series:
5 July: SA v Italy – Loftus Versfeld, Pretoria
12 July: SA v Italy – Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium, Gqeberha
19 July: SA v Georgia – Mbombela Stadium, Nelspruit

Castle Lager Rugby Championship:
16 August: SA v Australia – Emirates Airline Park, Johannesburg
23 August: SA v Australia – DHL Stadium, Cape Town
27 September: SA v Argentina – Hollywoodbets Kings Park, Durban