OPINION: South Africa has taken European rugby by storm

South Africa has firmly taken the United Rugby Championship (URC) by storm after the Bulls made sure that the country would host its third straight final in just three seasons of the rebranded competition.

It is testament to the massive impact that South Africa’s four main franchises have had since making the switch to European competitions.

That has included the Stormers winning the URC, the Stormers and Bulls finishing as runners-up, and the Sharks winning the Challenge Cup.

Extremely successful

Those are all fantastic achievements, proving that making the move away from Super Rugby was the correct call and has so far been extremely successful.

However, this is not the first time that South African sides have competed in Europe, after the Cheetahs and Southern Kings took part in the previous iteration of the URC, the Pro 14.

But as they were not among SA’s top four franchises, who were all playing Super Rugby, they were not as successful, with the best finish registered by the Cheetahs in their debut season in 2017/18, ending third on the log and making the quarterfinals.

Main franchises

The arrival of SA’s main franchises has thus revolutionised the URC, with the Stormers finishing second and third on the log in the first two seasons, and the Bulls clinching second on the log this season.

Whatever happens in this weekend’s final between the Bulls and Glasgow, it will still be considered an incredibly successful three seasons in the URC for SA franchises, although odds will be on the Bulls securing a second title for the country.

The next goal for the SA teams will likely be progressing as far as they can in the Champions Cup competition, after the Sharks and Stormers made the quarterfinals last season, while the Bulls made the quarters this season.