The FNB Varsity Cup is an annual South African tournament that involves the top nine rugby-playing universitiies in the country. The tournament was was founded in 2008, with the inaugural competition being won by the University of Stellenbosch (FNB Maties). FNB Maties won the competition from 2008 to 2010 and then in 2018-19, while University of Pretoria (FNB UP-Tuks) won it in 2012, 2013 and 2017. FNB UCT (2011 and 2014) are two-time winners, while FNB UFS Shimlas (2015) and FNB NWU (2016) are the other teams to have claimed the sought-after trophy.
The scores in the finals thus far has been:
2008 FNB UCT 10-16 FNB MATIES @ Danie Craven Stadium*
2009 FNB MATIES 11-6 FNB NWU @ Danie Craven Stadium
2010 FNB MATIES 17-14 FNB UCT @ Danie Craven Stadium
2011 FNB UP-TUKS 16-26 FNB UCT @ Tuks Stadium
2012 FNB UP-TUKS 29-21 FNB MATIES @ Tuks Stadium
2013 FNB MATIES 5-44 FNB UP-TUKS @ Danie Craven Stadium
2014 FNB NWU 33-39 FNB UCT @ Fanie du Toit Sports Ground
2015 FNB UFS SHIMLAS 63-33 FNB NWU @ Shimla Park
2016 FNB MATIES 6-7 FNB NWU @ Danie Craven Stadium
2017 FNB UP-TUKS 28-21 FNB MATIES @ Tuks Stadium
2018 FNB MATIES 40-7 FNB NWU @ Danie Craven Stadium
2019 FNB MATIES 34-12 FNB UP-TUKS @ Danie Craven Stadium
*Having finished top of the log, FNB UCT were the designated home team even though the final took place at FNB Maties' home ground
In 2011, a second tier was added to the tournament, called the FNB Varsity Shield.
Seven university teams participate in FNB Varsity Shield after three new universities joined the competition in 2017.
In 2012, a new competition in the under-20 league was added to form part of the competition setup and is known as the FNB Varsity Young Guns. This competition is played between the Under-20 teams of the nine Varsity Cup universities.