Vodacom URC: all you need to know

The United Rugby Championship is about the clash of the Titans. It is about rivalries as much as it is about friendships. The URC is not just a rugby league but an arena that screams ‘fight night’.

It is about players fighting for the right to win and fighting to be number one. It is about players fighting to avenge results and fighting to create new results. It is about player values and the value of every contest.

The fight is that which comes from the heart of the players and speaks to the soul of the millions of supporters. 

The URC is about rivalries, about diversity and inclusivity. It is about respect and reverence. 

This is a league featuring the world’s best players and it is a league that makes many champions but each season crowns only one.

It is about the northern hemisphere versus the southern hemisphere. Old versus new.  151 matches, played by 16 clubs across five territories.

Journey with us from Cardiff to Cape Town, from Parma to Edinburgh and from Galway to Kwazulu-Natal. Every club has a story to tell and each of the cities is a glorious weekend away.

The rugby will be spectacular, and the spectator experience will be just as good.

Whether it is Dublin or Durban, Glasgow or Johannesburg, Belfast or Swansea, the United Rugby Championship is about the occasion, and it is about you, the supporter. 

Everyone is welcome. Everyone is respected. Everyone is the collective heartbeat of the URC. United We Rise.

The 2022-23 season broke every league record, in viewership, attendance and social media numbers. The 2023-24 season will again be record-breaking.

Watch as players write a new chapter of URC history and new heroes are born.

WHERE TO WATCH

Catch the majority of Vodacom URC on the SS Rugby channel (211) or consult our TV Guide if there are matches played concurrently.

All matches will also be played out live on our DSTV Stream service.

TOURNAMENT FORMAT

The tournament consists of 21 rounds; 18 rounds of regular season play, followed by three rounds of play-offs.

There are four regional pools: The Irish Shield pool (featuring the four Irish teams), the Welsh Shield pool (featuring the four Welsh teams), the South African Shield pool (featuring the four South African teams) and the Scottish/Italian 'Azzurri/Blue' Shield pool (featuring the two Italian and two Scottish sides).

Teams play six matches against their regional pool rivals home and away. The remaining twelve matches are made up of a single round-robin, consisting of an even number of six home and six away matches against all the sides from the other pools.

For the Championship itself, there is one main league table. The top eight sides in the table will qualify for the quarterfinals, followed by semi-finals and a grand final, with teams seeded 1 to 4 with home advantage for the lowest-seeded side. The Regional Shield pools have no direct link to the play-offs and by extension the Championship itself, and it is technically possible to win a Regional Shield but not contest the playoffs

SOUTH AFRICAN TEAMS

Emirates Lions

Head coach: Ivan van Rooyen

Home ground: Emirates Airline Park

URC 2022-23: 9th

URC 2021-22: 12th

SA Shield 2022-23: 4th

SA Shield 2021-22: 4th

New signings: Erich Cronje (Zebre Parma), Zander du Plessis (Griquas), Richard Kriel (Zebre Parma), Conraad van Vuuren (Cheetahs), Kade Wolhuter (DHL Stormers, loan).

Opening matches: DHL Stormers (h), Edinburgh (a), Benetton (a).

The Emirates Lions finished the 2022-23 strongly but fell just short of the Final Eight, missing out by three points. Full-back Kriel joins from Zebre Parma and will add depth to the Lions' three-quarters. Van Rooyen will hope the Lions can make the progress that will see them reach the end-of-season play-offs for the first time.

Hollywoodbets Sharks

Head coach: John Plumtree

Home ground: Hollywoodbets Kings Park

URC 2022-23: Final Eight

URC 2021-22: Final Eight

SA Shield 2022-23: 3rd

SA Shield 2021-22: 3rd

New signings: Vincent Koch (Stade Français), Siya Masuku (Cheetahs), Diego Appollis (Pumas), George Cronje (Cheetahs), Ig Prinsloo (Pumas), Coenie Oosthuizen, Aphiwe Dyantyi (unattached), Francois Hougaard (Saracens).

Opening matches: Munster (a), Leinster (a), Ospreys (a)

The Hollywoodbets Sharks just made it into the play-offs last season and will hope the arrival of South Africa international prop Koch gives them more of a platform up front, although the departure of Springboks captain Siya Kolisi to Racing will be a blow to their set-piece. Experienced scrum-half Hougaard will offer cover with Jaden Hendrikse and Grant Williams at the World Cup.

Vodacom Bulls

Director of Rugby: Jake White

Home ground: Loftus Versfeld

URC 2022-23: Final Eight

URC 2021-22: Runners-up

SA Shield 2022-23: 2nd

SA Shield 2021-22: 2nd

New signings: Wilco Louw (Harlequins), Jannes Kirsten (Exeter Chiefs), Henry Immelman (Edinburgh), Sebastian de Klerk (Pumas), Sergeal Petersen (Shimizu Koto Blue Sharks), Jaco van der Walt (Edinburgh), Mpilo Gumede (Hollywoodbets Sharks), Khutha Mchunu (Hollywoodbets Sharks), Akker van der Merwe (Sale Sharks), Willie le Roux (Toyota Verblitz), Devon Williams (Pumas), Deon Slabbert (Pumas).

Opening matches: Scarlets (h), Ulster (a), Zebre Parma (a)

The Vodacom Bulls have had a busy summer reshaping their squad, highlighted by South Africa international Le Roux returning home from Japan. White will look for Le Roux's flair to see the Blues make strides after their sixth-placed finish last season following their runners-up performance in the inaugural URC campaign.

DHL Stormers

Head coach: John Dobson

Home ground: DHL Stadium

URC 2022-23: Runners-up

URC 2021-22: Champions

SA Shield 2022-23: 1st

SA Shield 2021-22: 1st

New signings: Sti Sithole (Emirates Lions), Lizo Gqoboka (Vodacom Bulls), Ben Loader (London Irish), Hendre Stassen (unattached), Courtnall Skosan (Northampton Saints), Warrick Gelant (Racing 92).

Opening matches: Emirates Lions (a), Scarlets (h), Glasgow Warriors (a)

The DHL Stormers will be disappointed they could not make it back-to-back titles last season following a narrow defeat to Munster in the final. The departure of prop Steven Kitshoff to Ulster will be a blow but the return of Gelant from Racing 92 is a major boost in their bid to reclaim the crown.