The 1995 Springbok captain who worked for FNB and started his own sports company

Francois Pienaar led the Springboks to their first Rugby World Cup victory 30 years ago and has gone on to work at FNB and start his own sports company.

Pienaar was born in Vereeniging into a working-class Afrikaner family. After finishing high school in Witbank, he won an athletic scholarship to Rand Afrikaans University (now University of Johannesburg), where he studied law.

He made his provincial debut for Transvaal Province in 1989 and joined the South Africa squad in 1993 after being readmitted to World Rugby following the end of apartheid.

He would become Springbok captain in his first test following the retirement of captain Naas Botha.

Despite South Africa’s poor international ranking in 1995, the team won the 1995 Rugby World Cup on home soil.

He accepted the Webb Ellis trophy from President Nelson Mandela, who donned his number, and declared that the trophy was for 43 million South Africans.

A week later, Pienaar led 13 Transvaal players on a strike against the Transvaal Rugby Football Union, calling for improved benefits and compensation.

SARFU then fired Pienaar and his fellow strikers, but the decision was quickly reversed, and their demands were met.

His international rugby career would end in 1996 after he was accused of faking an injury. Despite calls for his return, he declined and finished his international career.

Pienaar then moved to Britain, where he became a player-coach for the London-based Saracens.

Life after Rugby

Pienaar retired as a player in 2000 and became the CEO of the Saracens. Around the same time, he co-authored “The Rainbow Warrior,” his autobiography with Edward Griffiths, which was published in 1999.

He was involved in charity work with organisations such as the Sargent Cancer Care for Children at the Royal Marsden Hospital, the Children’s Haematology and Oncology Clinic and the Reach for a Dream Foundation.

He was awarded an Honorary Doctorate from the University of Hertfordshire in 2000. In 2002, he left the Saracens and returned to South Africa, settling in Cape Town with his family.

After returning to South Africa, he joined First National Bank (FNB) as a strategic business development manager.

He played a key role in the group’s various sponsorships and the bank’s involvement in its university and school rugby sponsorship.

In 2004, he was appointed CEO of the Rugby World Cup Bid Committee to secure South Africa’s right to host the event in 2011. South Africa lost out to New Zealand.

He then shifted focus to become the Provincial Chairman of First National Bank in the Western Cape.

With his love of rugby, Pienaar became the CEO of the FNB Varsity Cup, which involves the country’s top rugby-playing universities.

In 2009, he followed his passion for sports, media, and entertainment and started Advent Sport Entertainment and Media (ASEM), while continuing to work on FNB’s sponsorships.

On the media side, he also worked as a pundit for ITV Sport during the Rugby World Cups in 2007, 2011 and 2015.

Oscar-winner Matt Damon portrayed him in the 2009 Clint Eastwood film Invictus, which depicted the South African national team winning the 1995 World Cup.

With his focus on giving back to the community, Pienaar is also the founder and CEO of Make a Difference (MAD).

The company’s scholar support network enables it to provide administrative, medical, and psychological support, as well as opportunities for personal development.

Francois Pienaar photos