Rugby's been having a major moment lately, with some seriously big wins making waves. South Africa's young guns just smashed it at the U20 World Championship, finally grabbing the title after 13 long years. That final against New Zealand was nail-biting stuff, ending 23-15 for the Junior Springboks.
Meanwhile, the British & Irish Lions got their tour of Australia off to a solid start with a key win in the first Test. And get this - Zimbabwe's rugby team just qualified for the World Cup after being out of it for over three decades. That's huge for them.
All this went down while the usual top teams were doing their thing, showing why they're always in the mix. It's been one of those stretches where every match seems to matter, you know? The kind that reminds you why people love this sport so much.
Man, that final was tense. South Africa got ahead early and went into halftime up 13-5. Things got tougher for New Zealand when their prop Sika Pole got a red card in the 22nd minute, leaving the Junior Boks with an extra player for most of the game. The Kiwis fought hard, but South Africa's fullback Gilermo Mentoe put it away with a late try. Classic South African rugby - strong forwards and tough defense got them the win.
Before the final, South Africa took down Argentina in the semis while New Zealand got past France. In the other games, Argentina barely edged out France for third place, and Australia had a shootout with England to finish fifth.
Lions Roar in Brisbane to Take Series Lead
The Lions kicked off their 2025 tour in Australia with a bang, grinding out a tight 27-19 win over the Wallabies in Brisbane. Not gonna lie, it was one of those games that had you on the edge of your seat the whole time.
Suncorp Stadium was rocking as the Lions came out hot, with Tuipulotu, Curry, and Sheehan all crashing over early. Finn Russell was dialed in with his kicks too, just nailing everything. But the Aussies weren't about to roll over—Jorgenson, Tizzano, and McDermott kept punching back to make it a real scrap. In the end though, the Lions' defense stepped up when it counted. Now the pressure's on the Wallabies to bounce back next week, or this series could slip away fast. Gonna be fun to see how they respond.
So Zimbabwe's rugby team, the Sables, just did something pretty amazing. They're going to the Rugby World Cup for the first time since like forever ago, back in 1991. They pulled it off by beating Namibia in this nail-biter of a game, 30-28, to win the Africa Cup.
That match was wild. Zimbabwe was hanging on at the end when Namibia almost came back. After three decades of not making it, they finally got there. They had to take down Morocco and Kenya just to get to the final, then faced Namibia, who've been regulars at the World Cup. The way Zimbabwe stayed tough and closed it out had everyone losing their minds when it was over. Big moment for them and for African rugby in general.
Namibia's gonna have to battle through the playoffs if they want that shot at Australia in 2027. Wild how things can change so fast in sports, right?
Meanwhile, England wrapped up their summer tour with a solid 40-5 win over the USA in D.C. They put up six tries, which isn't too shabby for a younger squad finding their feet.
Over in New Zealand, the All Blacks finished strong with a clean sweep against France, taking the last game 29-19 in Hamilton. Even with some fresh faces stepping in, they showed why they're always tough to beat.
Scotland wrapped up their Pacific tour with a solid win, putting seven tries past Samoa in Auckland for a 41-12 final score. Over in South America, Argentina had no trouble handling Uruguay, turning up the heat in the second half to cruise to a 52-17 victory. And South Africa’s Springboks? Yeah, they did what world champs do, smashing Georgia 55-10 without breaking much of a sweat.
On the news side, the BBC just locked down the UK rights for the 2025 Women’s Rugby World Cup in England. Every single match will be on their platforms, which is huge for growing the women’s game. Pretty cool move if you ask me.
So Jasper Wiese got slapped with a four-game ban after that nasty tackle against Italy. Not great timing for the Springboks, you know? Meanwhile, South Africa's still hanging onto that number one spot in the rankings, but it's getting tight. The other teams are right on their heels, which should make the Rugby Championship pretty interesting this year. Things could get messy in a good way.