Ticket sales for the Springboks’ home test matches will go on public sale at noon on 9 March in a unique, coordinated launch.
Hosting venues for the Castle Lager Incoming Series against Wales and the Castle Lager Rugby Championship matches have aligned their on-sale dates for the first time.
Virtual card holding clients of Springbok partner, FNB, will have an “early bird” window to snap up seats on 7 and 8 March, with public sales opening at 12h00 on 9 March for most venues.
In the past, the hosting venues have launched their ticket sales in an ad hoc manner, but this year SA Rugby and the host unions have aligned on a coordinated approach, considering the significance of the season.
The announcement offers light at the end of a long dark tunnel as rugby supporters have been barred from attending home Springbok matches in South Africa for the past two years because of Covid-19 restrictions.
The last time a Springbok fan attended a Test in South Africa was more than two and a half years ago – a 24-18 victory over Argentina on 19 August 2019 at Loftus Versfeld.
The Springboks did not play at all in 2020 because of the pandemic and in 2021 the Castle Lager Lions Series and two tests against Argentina in the Castle Lager Rugby Championship were played behind closed doors.
Fans have been permitted to return to matches in 2022 and the expectation is that the current limit of 2,000 per match will be relaxed over the coming months.
THAT MEANS:
-The Boks’ season opener against Wales at Loftus Versfeld (2 July) will be the first time in six weeks short of three years that home fans will have been able to see the team live;-It will be four years since the Boks played in Bloemfontein (9 July v Wales);
-And the third test against Wales (16 July) will be the first time the team has played at DHL Stadium in Cape Town in front of a crowd.
Those matches are followed by the double header against New Zealand – at Mbombela Stadium and Emirates Airline Park on 6 and 13 August respectively – before the home season closer at Hollywoodbets Kings Park on 24 September.
Tickets are priced within a broad range with all venues offering an entry level price of R150 (R200 at Emirates Airline Park) with top-priced tickets at R1 500 for the mouth-watering mini-series against the All Blacks.
Tickets for the three Welsh tests in Pretoria, Bloemfontein and Cape Town as well as the match against New Zealand in Johannesburg are available from Ticketpro.
Tickets for the All Black test in Nelspruit are available from Computicket.
Tickets for the Castle Lager Rugby Championship match against Argentina in Durban in September will go on sale within the next month.
SA Rugby is hopeful that the current restrictions on crowd size will be relaxed in the coming weeks to bring to life the exciting prospect of seeing the Boks run out once again in front of thousands of cheering fans.
Government’s prevailing health and safety requirements at the time of the matches will be in place and rugby fans are urged to make sure they’re vaccinated to ensure entry into the venues.
Bonga Sebesho, FNB Brand Experience Head, said: “FNB has been a proud partner of the Springboks since 2017. We are super excited to offer pre-sale tickets to our clients before anyone else as part of the Castle Lager Incoming Series and Rugby Championships 2022 tickets, on 7 and 8 March.
“We encourage our customers to grab this opportunity to purchase pre-sale tickets by using their FNB Virtual Cards and RMB Private Bank Virtual Cards to show support to the Springboks and to also enjoy the games live with their loved ones.
“For the match on 6 August against the All Blacks at Mbombela Stadium in Nelspruit, they can also buy tickets with eBucks if they go through the eBucks website,” added Sebesho.
SA Rugby and the host unions again urged supporters to only buy from authorised outlets (Ticketpro and Computicket) and no other ticketing outlets, suppliers or re-sellers, to avoid being ripped off at massively inflated prices. These tickets cannot be guaranteed.
CASTLE LAGER INCOMING SERIES FIXTURES (KICK-OFF TIMES TBC):
Saturday, 2 July: Springboks v Wales – Loftus Versfeld, Pretoria – R150 to R1,000
Saturday, 9 July: Springboks v Wales – Toyota Stadium, Bloemfontein – R150 to R1,000
Saturday, 16 July: Springboks v Wales – DHL Stadium, Cape Town – R150 to R1,250
CASTLE LAGER RUGBY CHAMPIONSHIP FIXTURES (KICK-OFF TIMES TBC):
Saturday, 6 August: Springboks v NZ – Mbombela Stadium, Nelspruit – R150 to R1,500
Saturday, 13 August: Springboks v NZ – Emirates Airline Park, Johannesburg – R200 to R1,500
Saturday, 24 September: Springboks v Argentina – Hollywoodbets Kings Park, Durban – R150 to R800