SA Rugby on Friday confirmed that the Cheetahs and Southern Kings have been axed from Super Rugby and will "explore other international competition opportunities".

It was an unsurprising statement after an April meeting of SA‚ New Zealand‚ Australia and Argentina Rugby (Sanzaar) in London took the decision to reduce Super Rugby from 18 to 15 teams.

The Cheetahs opted for a settlement with SA Rugby regarding their Super Rugby participation agreement. They did not take part in the criteria process as they had an agreement in place until 2020‚ but the board of the Cheetahs decided on an amicable settlement with SA Rugby.

The announcement was made before a special general meeting of SA Rugby‚ which will formally confirm SA’s four participants in the competition next season.

The meeting has been called to determine SA’s entrants to fall in line with a Sanzaar decision to reduce the competition’s participants from 18 to 15 teams from next season.

The new structure will consists of four teams from SA‚ five from New Zealand‚ four from Australia and one each from Argentina and Japan. </s> The addition of two South African franchises to the Pro12 competition is closer than ever according to a statement on Wednesday from the league's governing body.

The South African Rugby Union announced earlier this month that the Cheetahs and Southern Kings would be axed from Super Rugby, in accordance with the format changes to the competition announced by SANZAAR which will see Super Rugby reduced from 18 to 15 teams.

Talks have progressed swiftly in order for both teams to be included in the new 'Pro14' for the start of the new season in September.

Currently made up of four Irish and four Welsh provinces, along with two sides from Scotland and two from Italy, the competition is expected to be split into two conferences of seven teams with the addition of the two South African franchises the competition. </s> CAPE TOWN, South Africa — The South African rugby union has confirmed what was already widely expected — the Cheetahs and Southern Kings will be dropped from Super Rugby from next season.

SA Rugby says the two teams have reached agreements with the national union and will explore other “international competition opportunities,” the biggest hint yet that they will join the Pro 12 competition in Europe.

Super Rugby organizer SANZAAR resolved this year to cut the southern hemisphere competition — which features teams from five countries and three continents — by three teams to 15 to help make it more financially viable.

One of Australia’s five teams is also due to be dropped, although the Australian Rugby Union hasn’t yet said which one out of the Perth-based Western Force and Melbourne Rebels will go. </s> CAPE TOWN, July 7 (Reuters) - South Africa's Cheetahs and Southern Kings will explore "other international competition opportunities" after reaching settlement agreements over their future participation in Super Rugby, South African Rugby confirmed on Friday.

South Africa will see it's number of Super Rugby teams cut from six to four in 2018, with the formal announcement of the teams to be ousted set to be confirmed after Friday's Executive Council meeting.

"The board of the Toyota Cheetahs has reviewed the team's future and is extremely positive about the prospect of appearing in alternative international competitions," Cheetahs CEO Harold Verster said in a statement.

The Super Rugby competition is being cut from 18 to 15 teams next year after complaints from broadcasters over the format of the current tournament. Australia will lose the other team, with either the Melbourne Rebels or Western Force facing the axe. </s> South African teams Central Cheetahs and Southern Kings were ditched from Super Rugby Friday amid reports they will seek places in an expanded European Pro12 competition.

An announcement relating to new international opportunities for the dumped teams will be made in due course, South African Rugby said in a statement. Pro 12 currently consists of four Irish and Welsh teams and two from Italy and Scotland and there has been media speculation that the two relegated South African sides would join them.

The axings were expected as the Cheetahs and Kings had the lowest average attendances and poorest overall playing records among the six Super Rugby teams from South Africa.

The other "casualties" will be an Australian team -- either the Melbourne Rebels or the Perth-based Western Force.

Rising costs, exhaustive travel across 15 time zones, dwindling crowds and TV audiences, and a hard-to-understand format are among the reasons for cutting the number of franchises.

Coastal Sharks, Golden Lions, Northern Bulls and Western Stormers will represent South Africa in Super Rugby next season when the competition shrinks from 18 teams to 15.

"I want to thank the Cheetahs and Kings for the mature and professional manner in which they managed the difficult situation," SA Rugby chief executive Jurie Roux said.

"They took decisions that will not only benefit them, but also South African rugby in general."

Kings host Cheetahs on July 14 in Port Elizabeth in what will be the last Super Rugby fixture for both teams. </s> Europe's Pro12 has confirmed it will add two South African teams dropped from Super Rugby and expand to a 14-team, two-continent competition from this season.

Celtic Rugby, which runs the Pro12, said the Cheetahs and Southern Kings will join straight away for the 2017-18 season starting later this year. The Pro12 is currently made up of Irish, Welsh, Scottish and Italian clubs.

The prospect of northern hemisphere clubs taking on rivals from the southern hemisphere has long been wished for by rugby fans on both sides of the equator, but conflicting seasons in the north and south have previously prevented that.

With the addition of the Bloemfontein-based Cheetahs and Port Elizabeth-based Kings, Pro12 will be rebranded as the Pro14 and change to a two-conference system, instead of a straight league table, before the knockout stages.

Seven teams from the new Pro14 will qualify for the Champions Cup, Europe's top rugby competition, but Celtic Rugby said "at present" the two South African teams won't be eligible for that competition even if they finish in the qualification places. That will, for the moment, avoid the possibility of a South African team becoming the "European" champion.

Pro14 CEO Martin Anayi said the arrival of the Cheetahs and Kings "marks a bold and exciting new chapter for the Pro14 as a global rugby championship."

Celtic Rugby said the inclusion of the Cheetahs and Kings was part of a "long-term" agreement between it and the South African rugby union.

The South African union was forced to cut two teams from the southern hemisphere's leading club competition after Super Rugby decided to downscale from 18 to 15 teams.

The Cheetahs and Kings were dropped as the two smallest of the six South African teams in Super Rugby.

South Africa's main club competition, the Currie Cup, runs July-October, overlapping with the Pro14's traditional September to May season. It's unclear how the Cheetahs and Kings will compete in both during the overlap.

Also, the southern hemisphere's international Rugby Championship is in August, September and October, and the South Africa team tours Europe at the end of every year, also possibly clashing with the Pro14 schedule for international players with the Cheetahs and Kings. </s> South African Rugby have confirmed that the Cheetahs and Southern Kings will be dropped from Super Rugby in 2018, opening the door for them to join the European PRO12 competition, played between clubs from Ireland, Scotland, Italy, and Wales.

Both unions have reached settlement agreements with SA Rugby to end their participation in Super Rugby, and have stated their excitement at exploring "other international competition opportunities", without naming the PRO12 specifically.

SA Rugby's General Council will meet on Friday to ratify the decision, but it is a mere formality.

"The board of the Cheetahs has reviewed the team's future and is extremely positive about the prospect of appearing in alternative international competitions," Harold Verster, CEO of the Cheetahs, said in a media release from SA Rugby on Friday.

Although he did not name the PRO12, the competition heavily assumed to be the next move for the sides, Verster suggested that the future of the Cheetahs was already secure.

"It will be an exciting challenge for our players, supporters and commercial partners, and will be the start of a new chapter for rugby both in our region and in South Africa," he said.

"Also, it will allow the Cheetahs to carve out a new and prominent place on the rugby map in South Africa as well as internationally."

Andre Rademan, president of the Eastern Province Rugby Union that provides a home base for the Kings, also did not provide details of the team's future, but also suggested they would join a new competition soon.

"It has been a roller coaster ride for the franchise for a number of seasons but there is now a clear and viable way forward for rugby in the Eastern Cape to build on the foundations that have been laid - particularly in the past season," he said in a statement from SA Rugby.

"We have enjoyed Super Rugby but the chance to test ourselves against different opposition in different conditions is a mouth-watering one. We are therefore not opposed to joining new competitions."

The Super Rugby competition is being cut from 18 to 15 teams next year, after complaints from broadcasters over the format of the current tournament. Australia will lose the other team, with either the Melbourne Rebels or Western Force facing the axe. </s> (AP Photo/Joseph Nair, File). FILE - In this March 4, 2017 file photo South Africa's Christopher Anthony Cloete of the Southern Kings holds on to the ball during their Super Rugby match against Japan's Sunwolves, in Singapore. Europe’s Pro12 has confir...

Europe's Pro12 has confirmed it will add two South African teams dropped from Super Rugby and expand to a 14-team, two-continent competition from this season.

Celtic Rugby, which runs the Pro12, said the Cheetahs and Southern Kings will join straight away for the 2017-18 season starting later this year. The Pro12 is currently made up of Irish, Welsh, Scottish and Italian clubs.

The prospect of northern hemisphere clubs taking on rivals from the southern hemisphere has long been wished for by rugby fans on both sides of the equator, but conflicting seasons in the north and south have previously prevented that.

With the addition of the Bloemfontein-based Cheetahs and Port Elizabeth-based Kings, Pro12 will be rebranded as the Pro14 and change to a two-conference system, instead of a straight league table, before the knockout stages.

Seven teams from the new Pro14 will qualify for the Champions Cup, Europe's top rugby competition, but Celtic Rugby said "at present" the two South African teams won't be eligible for that competition even if they finish in the qualification places. That will, for the moment, avoid the possibility of a South African team becoming the "European" champion.

Pro14 CEO Martin Anayi said the arrival of the Cheetahs and Kings "marks a bold and exciting new chapter for the Pro14 as a global rugby championship."

Celtic Rugby said the inclusion of the Cheetahs and Kings was part of a "long-term" agreement between it and the South African rugby union.

The South African union was forced to cut two teams from the southern hemisphere's leading club competition after Super Rugby decided to downscale from 18 to 15 teams.

The Cheetahs and Kings were dropped as the two smallest of the six South African teams in Super Rugby.

Joining the European competition brings complications for the Cheetahs and Kings, and for South African rugby.

South Africa's main club competition, the Currie Cup, runs July-October, overlapping with the Pro14's traditional September to May season. It's unclear how the Cheetahs and Kings will compete in both during the overlap.

Also, the southern hemisphere's international Rugby Championship is in August, September and October, and the South Africa team tours Europe at the end of every year, also possibly clashing with the Pro14 schedule for international players with the Cheetahs and Kings.

Celtic Rugby says it will release its 2017-18 schedule next week.

Copyright 2017 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. </s> Europe's Pro12 has confirmed it will add two South African teams dropped from Super Rugby and expand to a 14-team, two-continent competition from this season.

Celtic Rugby, which runs the Pro12, said the Cheetahs and Southern Kings will join straight away for the 2017-18 season starting later this year. The Pro12 is currently made up of Irish, Welsh, Scottish and Italian clubs.

The prospect of northern hemisphere clubs taking on rivals from the southern hemisphere has long been wished for by rugby fans on both sides of the equator, but conflicting seasons in the north and south have previously prevented that.

With the addition of the Bloemfontein-based Cheetahs and Port Elizabeth-based Kings, Pro12 will be rebranded as the Pro14 and change to a two-conference system, instead of a straight league table, before the knockout stages.

Seven teams from the new Pro14 will qualify for the Champions Cup, Europe's top rugby competition, but Celtic Rugby said "at present" the two South African teams won't be eligible for that competition even if they finish in the qualification places. That will, for the moment, avoid the possibility of a South African team becoming the "European" champion.

Pro14 CEO Martin Anayi said the arrival of the Cheetahs and Kings "marks a bold and exciting new chapter for the Pro14 as a global rugby championship."

Celtic Rugby said the inclusion of the Cheetahs and Kings was part of a "long-term" agreement between it and the South African rugby union.

The South African union was forced to cut two teams from the southern hemisphere's leading club competition after Super Rugby decided to downscale from 18 to 15 teams.

The Cheetahs and Kings were dropped as the two smallest of the six South African teams in Super Rugby.

Joining the European competition brings complications for the Cheetahs and Kings, and for South African rugby.
In rugby union, the South African Rugby Union confirms that the Cheetahs and Kings will be dropped from the Super Rugby competition effective at the end of the current season.