A one-off showdown in Buenos Aires
There will be no Rugby Championship in 2026. So on Saturday night at Estadio Jose Amalfitani in Velez, Argentina and South Africa meet just once this year. Kick-off is 21:00 French time. The Copa Visa Galicia is on the line, along with a slice of history: it is 40 years since the Pumas first ran out on this pitch.
The record at the ground leans one way, hard. The two sides have met there four times. Four Argentine defeats. Across all meetings, the Springboks lead 35 wins to 5. The stage is set.
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Argentina weakened against the South African machine
Felipe Contepomi has picked a side that barely resembles his best XV. Thirteen changes, four uncapped players in the 23, and no first-choice fly-half: Tomas Albornoz is serving a four-match ban after confronting referee Angus Gardner following the test against England. The Pumas arrive off a messy run, beaten by Scotland and England, with only one bright spot against Wales.
South Africa are rotating too, but out of sheer depth. Siya Kolisi is back as captain for his first test of the year, with Eben Etzebeth, Lood de Jager and Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu all returning from injury. The bench, the famous Bomb Squad, ends with Handre Pollard. Between them, the 23 Boks carry around 717 caps. Argentina name four players with none at all.
The real battle will be at the breakdown
Contepomi knows it. His plan will live or die at the rucks. Slow South Africa’s ball, deny Feinberg-Mngomezulu space, turn every tackle into a fight. Pablo Matera, Argentina’s most capped player with 124 appearances, has been picked for exactly that job. For half an hour, with a fired-up Velez behind them, the gamble might just work.
The question is whether it can last. An inexperienced half-back pairing and a scrum against the best in the world rarely end well over 80 minutes. The Boks arrive unbeaten in 2026 and already have one eye on their series against the All Blacks on 22 August at Ellis Park. This test sits right in the middle of that build-up. The Pumas will want to prove they are more than a stop along the way.
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