Many sports have a passionate following in South Africa, although they remains largely divided on ethnic lines and are still largely seen (in the words of a former member of Women and Sport South Africa) as "the domain of men".
In 1997, one writer described "massive gender inequalities in the sporting structures of the country, and a strong association between sport and masculinity"[1].
The South African government is currently attending to this problem by means of a quota system in sport, according to which sport teams members have to be demographically representative.
South Africa was absent from international sport during the apartheid era due to sanctions, but started competing globally after voting to abolish sanctions
History
South Africa was banned from the 1964 Olympic Games in Tokyo due to the apartheid policies.[2]. This ban effectively lasted until 1992. During this time, some sports people (like Zola Budd and Kepler Wessels) left for other countries in order to compete internationally.
The most popular sport among black South African men is soccer. In South Africa, "soccer" is the more common name, used by all cultural groups when speaking English. pite this, the country's national association is called the South African Football Association and "football" might occasionally be used in official contexts.
The domestic first division is the Premier Soccer League. The the national team being nicknamed Bafana Bafana (meaning 'The Boys').
Soccer in the past has tended to be less segregated than white-dominated sports, like rugby union or cricket, though this is no longer the case.
South Africa will be hosting the 2010 World Cup Tournament, the first soccer World Cup to be held in Africa.
Rugby union is one of the most popular sports in South Africa, which is especially popular among Afrikaners.
The Springboks hosted and won the 1995 Rugby World Cup, it was their first appearance at the World Cup. The defeat of the All Blacks in the final is remembered as one of the most famous South African sporting moments. The domestic league - the Currie Cup is also played annually, as well as the international Super 14.
After being tainted by associations with apartheid, the Springboks (or 'Boks') have sought to become part of the 'New South Africa', with President Nelson Mandela wearing the Springbok jersey, once only worn by whites, at the final of the 1995 Rugby World Cup.
