The South African Rugby Union will not be permitted to host or bid for any major international tournament after failing to meet transformation targets, according to the country's sports minister Fikile Mbalula.
Mbalula confirmed the news on Monday with the decision set to be reviewed next year.
The news came off the back of Mbalula receiving the annual transformation report from the eminent persons group (EPG).
While football has met the target, Mbalula said of other sports: "I have resolved to revoke the privilege of Athletics South Africa (ASA), Cricket South Africa (CSA), Netball South Africa (NSA) and South African rugby (SARU) to host and bid for major and mega international tournaments."
This decision will be reviewed when considering the results of the 2016/2017 Transformation Barometer. #EPGreport
— RSA Min of Sport (@MbalulaFikile) April 25, 2016
The news could affect South Africa's plans to bid for the 2023 Rugby World Cup after they were confirmed as one of four interested parties alongside Ireland, Italy and France. SARU CEO Jurie Roux said the organisation will seek further clarification from Mbalula over the implications of Monday's announcement.
"We understand and support the Minister's urgency in addressing the issue of transformation," Roux said. "There is no question that we have more work to do and we could be moving faster, but our sport has undergone a major overhaul in how we do business and how we measure ourselves in the past two or three years and we have definitely made great progress.
"Transformation is a key strategic imperative for SA Rugby to remain competitive and to survive in the sports landscape in our country. Our barometer for 2015 shows that we have achieved our target in 11 out of 13 dimensions as agreed with government.
"We have made further progress on and off the field in 2016 to date and over the coming months our commitment to transformation will become even more evident. We are confident that the suspension will be lifted at the next reporting of the EPG."
The winning bid for the 2023 World Cup will be confirmed in May 2017 but Monday's announcement will not impact on existing international events such as Super Rugby, the June Test series, the Rugby Championship Test programme or the HSBC Cape Town Sevens.
SARU banned from bidding for major tournaments
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