South Africa have been done dirty once again
“They cannot represent themselves, they must be represented.” When Karl Marx penned his 1851 essay, The Eighteenth Brumaire of Louis Bonaparte, he did not have rucks and mauls on his mind. But there is an interesting parallel between French coups and class struggles, and a festering imbalance in the world of rugby.
World Rugby, the game’s overlords, saw fit to grant Australia and the United States of America the right to host the next two men’s World Cups in 2027 and 2031 respectively. The latter decision is a laudable one. The US has long been portrayed as a sleeping giant and the commercial appeal is obvious. Win over hearts and minds across the Atlantic and rugby union would reach new heights. We may even get a half decent PlayStation game as a result.
But the former stinks of rugby’s oldest malaise that champions the interests of the bourgeoisie and sidelines the proletariat. And if you’re in any way connected to South African rugby, you’d be forgiven for wanting to storm World Rugby’s headquarters in Dublin and call for a revolution.
The next opportunity South Africa will get to host a tournament they have already won three times will be in 2035. That is exactly 40 years since the last time they did so. Coincidentally, 40 years separates Marx’s aforementioned essay and South Africa’s first rugby match, against the British Lions in 1891. As the German philosopher said, “History repeats itself, first as tragedy, second as farce.”
To put that gap in time in perspective, three of the 2019 World Cup winning Springboks weren’t born when Nelson Mandela handed Francois Pienaar the Webb Ellis Cup in one of the sport’s most enduring moments. As many as 26 of the 33 who triumphed in Japan were under the age of five. Schalk Brits, the most senior figure of the squad, was 14.
How many children were raised on the rainbow tinted mythology of that glorious day in Johannesburg, when a bunch of semi-professionals representing a fractured nation on the mend beat the indomitable All Blacks and took a giant leap towards unity? How many rugby fans in the Republic closed their eyes and knew, deep down in their marrow, that one day they’d get to welcome the world again? Surely it wouldn’t be too long. The door was left on the latch. A place was kept at the table. The guests would be back soon. They promised they would.
That promise was made before the 2023 bid. In 2017 the Rugby World Cup Limited board submitted a comprehensive evaluation report of the three nations in the mix. Based on certain criteria including host cities, tournament infrastructure and commercial commitments, South Africa received a rating of 78.97, edging out France (75.88) and Ireland (72.25). But the winner would be elected by a vote. Despite the governing body’s recommendations, France won the deciding round by a score of 24 to 15.
The news flattened the South African rugby public as well as the country’s government that had stumped up a fortune in ensuring that the bid was successful. Given the decade of waste under the corrupt former president Jacob Zuma, and the economic pitfalls of the Covid-19 pandemic, it is hard to imagine any future leader taking a similar risk.
Incredulous after the defeat, Mark Alexander, president of SA Rugby said, “We are bitterly disappointed at this decision and would like to apologise to the people and government of South Africa for raising their hopes.”
It was not Alexander that owed his people an apology. He had done all he could. Well, almost. He did not account for a knife in the back delivered by unions that had said one thing but had done something else. There were votes promised but undelivered. What’s more, Rugby Africa, the continent’s governing body, voted against South Africa’s bid. Twisting the knife further is the fact that the body’s head offices are in a Cape Town building paid for by SA Rugby.
Rugby Africa perhaps had their head turned by French euros. The Africa Cup, the mini-tournament that will determine the continent’s final representative in the 2023 World Cup, will be staged in France. As South African journalist Brendan Nel points out in New Frame, “France will pay all the costs for the tournament, but it hasn’t gone unnoticed in Africa that there is a desire to have a French-speaking African country represent the continent at the World Cup.”
Money talks louder than loyalty and, even if SA Rugby’s decision makers were so inclined to make backhanded deals and slip envelopes under hotel doors, the country’s struggling rand was never going to prove decisive. The legacies of the Springboks, of Mandela and of 1995 might stir souls, but they don’t grease palms. Avoiding the risk of further embarrassment, World Rugby rescinded the democratic process. World Cups would now be awarded, not earned by a popular vote.
It would be remiss not to mention other factors that count against South Africa. It is a dangerous place. Only blind jingoists would deny this. And though rape and murder statistics are largely confined to areas where tourists generally avoid, every sporting showpiece, from the 2010 Fifa World Cup, to the most recent English cricket tour in 2020, is littered with stories of pickpocketings and violent muggings. Public transport is also a mess which compounds matters, often restricting visitors to secluded oases of privilege.
But the exchange rate is a dream for anyone spending pounds, euros, dollars or yen, the food is sublime, the wine is even better, the natural beauty is breathtaking, the weather is idyllic, the stadiums are world class, the rugby heritage is storied and the fans, those black, white, brown, Zulu, Afrikaans, English, Xhosa fans who comprise the most diverse rugby supporter base anywhere in the world, make it all worthwhile. This shameful snub is not just a loss for South Africa. The entire rugby ecosystem will miss out on something special.
Perhaps I’m biased. I remember the ecstasy of 1995. I was just seven-years-old and spent most of the final playing with friends in the backyard. But even my prepubescent brain could grasp the significance of that moment. I could not comprehend the evils of apartheid and my white skin sheltered me from its horrors, but I could tell we were forging a new identity as a nation. My father’s tears and my mother’s joy conveyed a palpable sense that something momentous had taken place.
For 40 years the only South Africans who will witness a Rugby World Cup will be expatriates or the wealthy. Marx would no doubt be fuming. And so, with this latest insult, those who wear the green and gold must represent the rest of us as we cannot represent ourselves.
Comments on RugbyPass
🤦♂️🤣 who cares who’s the best . All I know is the All Blacks have the star coach but have few star players now …
27 Go to commentsJe suis sûr que Farrell est impatient de jouer avec Lopez et Machenaud et d’être entraîné par Collazo… 🤭
1 Go to commentsAn on field red (aka a full red) in SRP must surely carry a bigger suspension than a red card given by the bunker as that carries a 20 minute team punishment. Had Damon Murphy abdicated his responsibility as a ref and issued both Drua players a yellow, which would have been upgraded to a 20 minute red by the bunker, that would have killed Australia and New Zealand’s push for the 20 minute red to be trialled globally from July this year.
11 Go to commentsEver so often you all post a Danny Care story that isn’t the announcement that he has finally re-signed for one more, victory tour season at Quins and I’m just like, “well you fooled me again!” My absolute favorite player ever, we need to make his final year at the Stoop (and Twickers) official already. I know he supposedly snubbed France but I won’t feel better until he signs.
1 Go to commentslate hit what late hit it wasn’t at all late and can clearly see he was committed before the tackle
1 Go to commentsChristian Lio -Willies 2 try perfomance was a standout. As was captain Scott Barrett. Up front was where the boys won it.They are a great team and players. Fantastic Crusades , you can keep going.
1 Go to commentsI don't know how the locals feel about that? I guess if you call yourselves the Worcester Wasps that might be appease. But really we need more teams in the Premiership in my view so they are not padding it out as they are at the moment. It might curtail so many players going abroad as well
5 Go to commentsNZ 😭😭😭is certainly rivaling England for best whingers cup!😭😭😭 !!!
27 Go to commentsYup. New Zealand won 3 out of 10 world cups played. SA 4 out of 8 attempts 30 Vs 50 per cent.🤔🤔
27 Go to commentsShould've done this years ago. Change Saturday kick off times to around 11am. Up and off and back home before 3pm, limit travel time too. Allows players to actually do something else with their Saturday that's family oriented or being rugby fans they could ‘watch’ pro rugby. Increases crowds etc. How can anyone that enjoys grassroots and pro rugby have to choose between the two on Saturdays?
9 Go to commentsI bet he inspired those supporters just as much.
1 Go to commentsBen Smith Springboks living rent free in his head 😊😂
67 Go to commentsGood to hear he would like to play the game at the highest level, I hadn’t been to sure how much of a motivator that was before now. Sadly he’s probably chosen the rugby club to go to. Try not to worry about all the input about how you should play rugby Joey and just try to emulate what you do on the league field and have fun. You’ll limit your game too much (well not really because he’s a standard athlete like SBW and he’ll still have enough) if you’re trying to make sure you can recycle the ball back etc. On the other hard, you can totally just try and recycle by looking to offload any and everywhere if you’re going to ground 😋
1 Go to commentsThis just proves that theres always a stat and a metric to use to justify your abilities and your success. Ben did it last week by creating an imaginary competition and now you did the same to counter his argument and espouse a new yardstick for success. Why not just use the current one and lets say the Boks have won 4 world cups making them the most successful world cup team. Outside of the world cup the All Blacks are the most successful team winning countless rugby championships and dominating the rankings with high win percentages. Over the last 4 years statistically the Irish are the best having the highest win rate and also having positive records against every tier 1 side. The most successful Northern team in the game has been England with a world cup title and the most six nations titles in history. The AB’s are the most dominant team in history with the highest win rate and 3 world cups. Lets not try to reinvent the wheel. Just be honest about the actual stats and what each team has been good at doing and that will be enough to define their level of success.
27 Go to commentsHow is 7’s played there? I’m surprised 10 or 11 man rugby hasn’t taken off. 7 just doesn’t fit the 15s dynamics (rules n field etc) but these other versions do.
9 Go to commentsPick Swinton at your peril A liability just like JWH from the Roosters Skelton ??? went missing at RWC
14 Go to commentsLike tennis, who have a ranking system, and I believe rugby too, just measure over each period preceding a world cup event who was the longest number one and that would be it. In tennis the number one player frequently is not the grand slam winner. I love and adore the All Blacks since the days of Ian Kirkpatrick when I was a kid in SA. And still do because they are the masters of running rugby and are gentleman on and off the field - in general. And in my opinion they have been the majority of the time the best rugby team in the world.
27 Go to commentsHaving overseas possessions in 2024 is absurd. These Frenchies should have to give the New Caledonians their freedom.
21 Go to commentsBell injured his foot didn’t he? Bring Tupou in he’ll deliver when it counts. Agree mostly but I would switch in the Reds number 8 Harry Wilson for Swinton and move Rob Valentini to 6 instead. Wilson is a clever player who reads the play, you can’t outmuscle the AB’s and Springboks, if you have any chance it’s by playing clever. Same goes for Paisami, he’s a little guy who doesn’t really trouble the likes of De Allende and Jordie Barrett. I’d rather play Carter Gordon at 12 and put Michael Lynagh’s boy at 10. That way you get a BMT type goalkicker at 10 and a playmaker at 12. Anyways, just my two cents as a Bok supporter.
14 Go to commentsThanks Brett, love your articles which are alway pertinent. It’s a difficult topic trying to have a panel adjudicating consistently penalties for red card issues. Many of the mitigating reasons raised are judged subjectively, hence the different outcomes. How to take away subjective opinions?
11 Go to comments