Markus Muller will play for the Springboks in 2026

Markus Muller will play for the Springboks in 2026. Good enough is old enough, and Springboks coach Rassie Erasmus has never had an issue picking a young one or an old one.

Muller and SA under 20 captain Riley Norton are experiencing the Springboks culture in Cape Town this week as part of Erasmus’s first national alignment camp for the season as the Boks coach counts down the 21 matches (20 Tests and the Barbarians season opener) before the start of the 2027 Rugby World Cup in Australia.

The Boks, their four World Cup golds the most in the 10 tournament history, would make history in winning a third successive World Cup. They won the 2019 and 2023 World Cups, a back-to-back feat only achieved once before by Richie McCaw’s All Blacks in 2011 and 2015.

Here’s a piece I did on Muller for the Sunday Times.

Markus Muller, the schoolboy sensation from Paarl Gimnasium, needs backing more than protection from the hype.

And that is exactly the endorsement he got from Springboks coach Rassie Erasmus earlier this week with inclusion in the Springboks alignment camp, in Cape Town, next week.

Muller, 18 years-old, signed with the Stormers in 2026 and has already trained with the senior squad. He played for the SA under 20s against Georgia last weekend.

He is an exceptional talent, and age has never been a consideration for talents of his ilk. They transition straight onto the biggest stages

Canan Moodie made his Springboks Test debut in 2022 as a 19-year-old winger against Australia in Sydney. He was superb. A year later he was a World Cup winner.

Frans Steyn made his Test debut against Ireland in 2006 as a 19 year-old winger and was South Africa’s Player of the Match. A year later he was a World Cup winner.

Muller has the potential and pedigree to write a similar script, given the next World Cup is in Australia in 2027.

Erasmus has never referenced age as a negative in his selections. He picked hooker Schalk Brits (38) for World Cup duty in 2019 and entrusted the then 37 year-old Deon Fourie with a multi-faceted role at the 2023 World Cup. Brits and Fourie are World Cup winners.

Some of the sport’s iconic backs were playing Test rugby in their teens. John Kirwan, Jeff Wilson and Jonah Lomu were all All Blacks wingers as 19 year-olds. James O’Connor played wing for the Wallabies as an 18 year-old and the midfield duo of Tim Horan and Jason Little were Wallabies as 19 year-olds.

Muller, comfortable wearing No 12 and No 13, scored more than 50 tries in his Grade 11 and 12 years playing for Paarl Gim, Western Province and SA Schools.

He also kicked many points and in 2025 he scored 43 points in one match.

Having watched him through SuperSport’s Schools broadcasts and seen several of his matches live, his point of difference is not in size, but in a rugby IQ that complements a physical presence.

He is a back, who in his final schools’ year, relished joining the forwards in a lineout maul, as much as he did running a try-scoring support line as a midfield back.

I can see him developing into a hybrid player as he physically evolves.

His try-scoring headlined most of his school matches, but his assists were even more impressive. He is not a one-trick pony who dominated schools rugby because of superior size.

He is a player with an understanding of the nuances of the sport and a natural appreciation that rugby is a team sport.

Erasmus has recognised his on-field quality and will get to experience the youngster’s energy up close. Culture is the essence of Erasmus’s World Cup-winning Springboks.

If a player doesn’t fit in, no matter his pedigree, he won’t get selected.

Muller will fit in and there is no ‘if’ about him playing for the Springboks; the only question is when he plays for the Springboks.

STORMERS SNAP UP MULLER