The Springbok-All Black tour series has a new trophy, unveiled in Johannesburg on Wednesday, and it is unlike anything else in rugby. Designed in two independent halves that join through hidden magnets, the piece was conceived to reflect the central tension of the rivalry: two distinct rugby cultures that remain, across generations, inexorably drawn to one another.
The trophy's form is inspired by a blade of grass, with each half representing one nation. Both pieces were precision-machined from solid aluminium and carry artwork commissioned from South African and New Zealand artists respectively. The concept was developed by Strategy Creative of New Zealand in collaboration with both unions.
The public unveiling was performed by the captains of the 1996 series, Gary Teichmann and Sean Fitzpatrick, who brought the two halves together for the first time.
The winning nation in the four-Test Rugby's Greatest Rivalry series, presented by Castle Double Malt, will receive the complete trophy after the final Test in Baltimore on 12 September 2026. If the series ends level, each nation retains one half — a provision that carries historical weight: the first two tours between the sides, in 1921 and 1928, were both shared.
SA Rugby CEO Rian Oberholzer said the split-trophy concept was a deliberate response to the possibility of a drawn series. "This is the eighth time in 12 tours that the series has included four Tests, and if each team has won two tests at the end of 320 minutes of intense rugby, it seemed inappropriate to decide a winner on an arbitrary metric."
New Zealand Rugby CEO Steve Lancaster described the trophy as a fitting representation of a rivalry that has endured for more than a century, noting the combination of deep mutual respect and competitive intensity that defines the fixture.