South Africa's grip on No. 1 isn't under serious threat, but it's not ironclad either: a loss to Scotland by more than 15 points, combined with a New Zealand win over Italy, would hand the All Blacks top spot. Beyond that Bok-specific scenario, the weekend's Nations Championship and Nations Cup fixtures could produce meaningful reshuffling across the top 10 — Scotland could climb to a historic high of third or fourth with a win, while Japan could crack the top 10 for the first time in nearly two years. Wales are also in reach of a top-10 return. The full permutations matrix from World Rugby is worth scanning if you want to know exactly what combination of results affects any given side.
AnalysisSpringboksRugby365 · Planet Rugby· updated
Boks can lose top spot this weekend — here's how the rankings could shift
South Africa hold top spot going into the weekend but could lose it to New Zealand if they're beaten by Scotland by more than 15 points. Several other top-10 shake-ups are also in play across the Nations Championship and Nations Cup fixtures.
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