From the field to the vineyard
Founded by Burton Francis to back young rugby players in the Cape Winelands — soil to soul.
From the field to the vineyard
Founded by Burton Francis to back young rugby players in the Cape Winelands — soil to soul.
THE STORY
It started on a thorny rugby field in Paarl.
Burton Francis grew up playing barefoot on cobbled ground. That field taught him grit long before it taught him how to win — and a pro career in South Africa and France followed.
Then came wine: an MBA in Burgundy, a fall for old-world Pinot and Chardonnay, and a vineyard of his own in Hemel-en-Aarde. The academy is where rugby and wine meet — and where the next generation gets their turn.
I want young people to find their own path — whether that leads to a field, a vineyard, or somewhere else.
— BURTON FRANCIS
HOW IT WORKS
Every bottle backs a player.
5% of every bottle of Francis Wines sold goes straight to the academy — no middlemen, no overhead. It becomes the everyday things that decide whether a young player keeps showing up.
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Kit & equipment
Boots, balls, jerseys, match-day gear.
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Wine education
PYDA pathways into the wine industry.
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Transport & tuition
The quiet support that keeps students in.
ON THE FIELD
Klein Nederburg, back-to-back.
Our partner squad — Klein Nederburg Secondary U/19A — has won the Drankenstein derby two years running. The kind of run most schools never manage once.
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2024
Drankenstein derby
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2025
Derby winners
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THE BIGGER PICTURE
More than a winning season.
The vision is broader than the scoreboard. We're raising young men with purpose — players, students, professionals, entrepreneurs — who carry their soil with them wherever they go.
The Francis Foundation, currently in development, will widen the work: more students, more sports, more soil for growth.
