The Rugby Africa Cup has been played since 2000, with the 2024 edition set to be the 19th of the competition.
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The competition has had different names including Africa Top Six, Africa Top Ten, Top 9, Confederation of African Rugby and Rugby Africa Gold Cup.
In the first edition, held in 2000, five teams participated in the event in Casablanca, Morocco. The teams included Morocco, Tunisia, Namibia, Zimbabwe, and South Africa Amateurs. South Africa u23 won the edition with a 44-14 victory over Morocco.
Rugby Africa Cup 2001
They defended the title in 2001 following a 36-20 win over Morocco. The South Africa Amateurs u23 also reclaimed the title in 2006 by beating Namibia 29-27 in Windhoek.
Kenya Simbas train at Kyadondo. Photo/Uganda Rugby Union
Namibia are the record winner of the competition with nine titles. Their first came in 2002 when they were crowned champions thanks to tries scored after tying 43-43 with Tunisia. They won the first leg 26-19 in Windhoek but lost the second leg played in Tunis 24-17.
They were beaten by Morocco in 2003 with a score of 27-7 but reclaimed the title in 2004 by defeating the Moroccans 39-22.
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Namibia relinquished the title in 2005 when the event was held in France, finishing third alongside South Africa Amateurs as Morocco beat Madagascar 43-6 in the final.
In 2006, South Africa Amateurs, making their fifth appearance, beat Namibia 29-27 in Windhoek for their third title.
#RugbyAfricaCup facts ahead of the 2024 Edition#RugbyAfricaCup2024 #RugbyAfricaCupUg #Rugby #RugbyKe pic.twitter.com/VLGUycG90A
— Scrummage Africa (@Scrummageafrica) July 16, 2024
In 2007, Uganda claimed their lone title following a 42-11 victory over Madagascar in Antananarivo, Madagascar.
Namibia were back at it in 2008, winning the title with aggregate results of 40-23. The 2010 Africa Cup had no outright winner declared. Morocco beat Tunisia 29-6 in the final of the north section, while Kenya won the 2010 Victoria Cup in the south.
Kenya Simbas won their first title in 2011 by beating Tunisia 16-7 after several sides withdrew.
#RugbyAfricaCup winners since 2000
Namibia have the most titles. Kenya Simbas and Morocco have two titles.#RugbyAfricaCup2024 hosts Uganda have one title. pic.twitter.com/310Nxkg47H— Scrummage Africa (@Scrummageafrica) July 16, 2024
A year later, Zimbabwe also bagged their first title by beating Uganda 22-18 in Jemmal, Tunisia, with Simbas finishing third.
The Simbas, under coach Jerome Paarwaters, went on to lift their second title in 2013 following a 29-17 win over Zimbabwe in Antananarivo, Madagascar.
Dalmus Chitiyu goes down for a try for Kenya Simbas. Photo Courtesy/ Rugby Afrique.
From 2014 to 2018, the round-robin format was adopted, and Namibia went on to win five straight titles in a row.
In 2019, the competition was cancelled due to a lack of funding, brought on by the loss of broadcast sponsor Kwese Sports.
Did you know that Simbas won their first Rugby Africa Cup title under Coach Michael Tank Otieno in 2011?
and their 2nd title was under Jerome Paarwater in 2013.
They will be eyeing their third tile in Uganda this month. #RugbyAfricaCup2024 #RugbyAfricaCup #SupportSimbas pic.twitter.com/QO7wnEDX8M— Scrummage Africa (@Scrummageafrica) July 16, 2024
It also failed to kick off in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The 2021/22 edition adopted the pools and knockout format, with Namibia beating Simbas 36-0 in Aix-en-Provence, France.
List of Rugby Africa Cup winners
- 2000: South Africa Amateurs
- 2001: South Africa Amateurs
- 2002: Namibia
- 2003: Morocco
- 2004: Namibia
- 2005: Morocco
- 2006: South Africa Amateurs
- 2007: Uganda
- 2008-09: Namibia
- 2010: No winner declared
- 2011: Kenya
- 2012: Zimbabwe
- 2013: Kenya
- 2014: Namibia
- 2015: Namibia
- 2016: Namibia
- 2017: Namibia
- 2018: Namibia
- 2019: Cancelled
- 2019-20: Cancelled after the qualification stage due to the COVID-19 pandemic
- 2021-22: Namibia
Rugby Africa Cup Facts
- Namibia have nine titles in the competition.
- Namibia have the most consecutive titles in the competition, with six in a row from 2014 to 2022.
- South Africa Amateurs have three titles.
- Kenya Simbas have won two titles.
- Zimbabwe have one title, won in 2012.
- Uganda have one title, won in 2007.
- Morocco have won the competition twice
- The competition has faced cancellations twice, in 2019 due to funding issues and in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
