Updated World Rugby rankings after Springboks win the Rugby Championship
For SA expats, rugby rankings and bonus points aren’t just numbers; they’re threads tying thousands of kilometres to a shared identity.
The Springboks brought the Rugby Championship to London, and every South African expat within the M25 made Twickenham sound like home. Here’s what it feels like to watch your boys defend top spot from thousands of kilometres away.
Living in London for the best part of two decades, you get used to explaining rugby to English mates who think you’re taking the piss when you mention the Springboks still sit top of the world rankings. Then matches like Saturday happen, and suddenly everyone wants to know why half of Twickenham sounds like a braai at Loftus.
The Boks were back in town to face Argentina, and every South African within the M25 had clearly made this their problem.
After that absolute belter in Durban the weekend before (67-30, in case you missed it), expectations were mental. But here’s the thing about watching your boys on foreign soil: it hits different. Every conversion feels personal.
Every scrum becomes a statement about where you’re from.
The rankings nobody else cares about
Try explaining to your English colleagues why you’re obsessed with decimal points on the World Rugby rankings.
They don’t get it. But when you’re thousands of kilometres from home, that number next to South Africa’s name becomes your whole personality for the week.
Here’s how things stand after the weekend’s matches:
| Position | Team | Rating |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | South Africa | 91.62 |
| 2 | New Zealand | 89.45 |
| 3 | Ireland | 89.83 |
| 4 | France | 87.83 |
| 5 | England | 87.64 |
| 6 | Argentina | 84.40 |
| 7 | Australia | 83.50 |
| 8 | Scotland | 81.57 |
Source: World Rugby Rankings, October 2025
The Kiwis have jumped into second after their Perth victory, now just 2.17 points behind us. Ireland’s dropped to third, and the Wallabies have slipped further after losing the Bledisloe Cup. Every test matters. Every bonus point counts.
What was actually at stake
This wasn’t just another test match in September. The Boks needed a bonus point win to retain the Rugby Championship. Simple as that.
You try explaining that pressure to someone who thinks rugby stopped being relevant after England won in 2003.
Walking out of Twickenham into that chilly evening wind (proper Cape Town south easter vibes), surrounded by accents that sounded like home, I remembered why these matches matter beyond the scoreboard.
They’re brief moments where you’re not explaining yourself or your heritage or why you left. You’re just there, part of something bigger, singing Shosholoza with strangers who aren’t strangers at all.
Then Monday arrives and you’re back to being the South African guy at work again. But for those 80 minutes? Magic.
What are the autumn test dates, venues and kick-off times
The Boks are back in November for the proper autumn tests. Here’s when to book your tickets:
1 November, 18:10: Japan at Wembley Stadium, London
8 November, 20:10: France at Stade de France, Paris
15 November, 12:40: Italy at Allianz Stadium, Turin
22 November, 17:40: Ireland at Aviva Stadium, Dublin
29 November, 15:10: Wales at Principality Stadium, Cardiff
All times are GMT. Time to start planning which mates are up for a road trip.