Rassie Erasmus becomes the most-capped Springbok head coach in history on Saturday, sending out the team for a record 55th time when South Africa host Scotland in Pretoria — surpassing Jake White's previous mark of 54 Tests set between 2004 and 2007.
The milestone arrives across two separate head coaching spells (2018-2019 and 2024 to present), and Saturday also represents the 94th Springbok match played under his broader guidance since rejoining SARU in 2018, a period that includes his tenure as director of rugby alongside Jacques Nienaber.
The numbers behind the record are formidable. In 54 Tests as head coach, Erasmus has posted a 75.93% win rate — 41 wins, one draw, 12 defeats — compared to the 62.5% historical winning rate he inherited when the Springboks were ranked sixth in the world and coming off a series of record defeats. Since resuming the head coach title, the winning average has climbed to 85.7% across 28 matches, with only four defeats.
White, whom Erasmus now displaces at the top of the list, won 66.67% of his 54 Tests, a record that included the 2007 Rugby World Cup. Erasmus has since added a further two World Cup titles to South Africa's total.
The top five Springbok coaches by Tests in charge:
- Rassie Erasmus: P54 W41 D1 L12 | Win rate 75.93%
- Jake White: P54 W36 D1 L17 | Win rate 66.67%
- Heyneke Meyer: P48 W32 D2 L14 | Win rate 66.67%
- Pieter de Villiers: P48 W30 D0 L18 | Win rate 62.50%
- Jacques Nienaber: P39 W27 D0 L12 | Win rate 69.23%
Erasmus has been awarded the Order of Ikhamanga in Gold for his contribution to South African sport. Characteristically, he declined to make the occasion about himself. "When players reach milestones we don't talk about it in the build-up to matches and the same applies this week," he said. "It's a nice thing to know but the most important and only thing this week is performing against a very dangerous Scotland team."
Tickets for Saturday's Test at Loftus Versfeld remain available.