The Toyota Free State Cheetahs are one of the best known South African and international rugby teams that for the first time in 2017 participates in the annual Pro14 Tournament in the UK and Europe and premier domestic competition, the Currie Cup in South Africa. With the newly upgrade Pro14 Tournament in full swing and previous participation the Super Rugby tournament the Toyota Cheetahs has grown to a well-known global Rugby brand.
The Toyota Cheetahs are governed by the Free State Rugby Union and are based at the 46,000 capacity Toyota Stadium in Bloemfontein. With a fan base of roughly 1 100 000 supporters worldwide and widely known as the average South African Rugby Supporters “second favourite” team. The Cheetahs have won the Currie Cup multiple times in 1976, 2005, 2006, 2007 and 2016. The Toyota Cheetahs have also competed in the Southern Hemisphere competition – SuperRugby – for more than 10 years with its best results coming in 2013 when the Toyota Cheetahs ended up playing in the knock out phase of the competition and eventually ended 6th on the log.
Toyota Cheetahs are a proud rugby entity with our existence and success are determined and firmly rooted in our loyal partners and sponsors. The Toyota Cheetahs has embarked on a strategy to establish partnerships with leaders and leading organizations in our region, across SA and all globally to become even more sustainable in our desire to perform.
Cheetahs won the Currie Cup for the first time in 29 lean years in 2005, beating the Blue Bulls in Pretoria and starting a mini-revival for the hard men from Central South Africa. Unlike most of the grounds at the coast and even in places like Johannesburg and Pretoria, the Cheetahs, home base in Bloemfontein, Toyota Stadium, has one of the hardest playing surfaces in the country. It’s fitting really, as the men from the Free State have always been known to play a hard brand of rugby. In their white jerseys with orange trim, the Cheetahs are always formidable at home and have defeated numerous teams in Bloemfontein.