For a moment, South Africa appeared to have a second Springbok squad.
Twenty-three men stood shoulder to shoulder for an official team photograph. They looked familiar. Very familiar.
There was just one problem.
They weren’t the Springboks.
Instead, they were everyday South Africans who had earned their place in Klipdrift’s Same Same But Klippies #BokSearch squad after being recognised for their striking resemblance to some of the country’s best-known rugby stars.
And if there is one thing South Africans love almost as much as the Bokke, it is a good story about someone who looks exactly like someone else.
Meet South Africa’s other Bokke
The idea behind #BokSearch is simple, but undeniably entertaining.
Klipdrift set out to find South Africans who could pass for Springbok players — people who share an uncanny resemblance with the country’s rugby stars and who enjoy a Klippies & Coke.
The campaign brings together two distinctly South African passions: the Springboks and a Klippies & Coke.
Because while the Springboks cannot enjoy a brandy during a match, their lookalikes certainly can.
What began as a search for individual Bok doubles has now become something much bigger.
After months of entries and nominations, South Africans helped Klipdrift assemble its own matchday 23 — turning a playful hunt for lookalikes into a celebration of the personalities, humour and community that surround rugby culture in South Africa.
And the results are surprisingly convincing.
From Belhar to Durban, the Bok doubles are everywhere
Take Antonio Munnik, a law enforcement officer from Belhar.
He was nominated because of his resemblance to Springbok scrumhalf Grant Williams.
Then there is Zwelethu Maziya, a real estate agent from Durban, whose resemblance to Aphelele Fassi had already become something of an inside joke among his friends.
In fact, his friends were so convinced that he looked like Fassi that they repeatedly sent him the link to the Bok Search scanner and encouraged him to enter.
Then there is Anthony Smit, a construction worker from Paarl, whose resemblance to Springbok lock Eben Etzebeth has produced some unforgettable moments.
One of them happened inside a biltong shop.
According to Smit, a woman was so convinced that he was Etzebeth when he walked in that she fell off her chair.
She eventually realised that he was not the Springbok star.
But somehow, while trying to recover from the embarrassment, she ended up falling off the chair again.
That might just be one of the most South African lookalike stories imaginable.
For Smit, however, the #BokSearch experience became about more than the laughs.
“Meeting the other doubles was amazing. It felt like being part of a provincial rugby team, everyone was ready to play,” he says.
When 23 strangers become a team
The photograph of the 23 doubles is more than a clever campaign image.
It represents months of individual nominations coming together to create something unexpected: a team made up of South Africans who had never necessarily known one another, but who shared the same unusual experience.
They all know what it is like to be told:
“You look just like that Springbok!”
Now, they have 22 other people who understand exactly what that feels like.
For Klipdrift, that sense of connection is central to the campaign.
“Rugby has a way of bringing South Africans together, whether it’s around a screen, at the stadium, at a braai or through the friendly debates that start long before kick-off,” says Donné Wolk, Marketing Head of Spirits.
“With #BokSearch, we wanted to celebrate that connection in a way that felt distinctly South African.”
And the scale of the response appears to have reinforced that idea.
What started as people spotting remarkable resemblances developed into thousands of South Africans taking part and helping build what Klipdrift describes as a second squad.
Seeing all 23 doubles together, Wolk says, reflects the spirit behind Rugby’s Greatest Rivalry.
The search isn’t over
Just when you thought the squad was complete, there is another twist.
The #BokSearch campaign has never been limited to the Springbok men’s squad.
Klipdrift has expanded the search across the wider Springbok family, with the Springbok Women and Springbok Sevens squads also loaded onto the scanner.
That means South Africans can now search for their own remarkable doubles across more of the national teams.
So, if you’ve ever looked in the mirror and thought:
“Hang on… don’t I look a little bit like a Springbok?”
Your moment may not be over.
The starting 23 may have been revealed, but the bench is still open.
Your Bok double could be next
South Africans aged 18 and older can continue entering #BokSearch until the end of September 2026.
Participants have the chance to win a framed Springbok jersey or earn a place as an official Same Same But Klippies squad member.
In other words, 23 places may already be filled, but the final whistle has not yet blown.
And that is perhaps the most entertaining part of this entire story.
South Africa already has its Springboks.
Now, it has a second squad made up of the people who look like them.
No professional rugby contract required.
No Test cap required.
Just an uncanny resemblance, a willingness to join the search and, apparently, a talent for making people do double takes.
Because somewhere in South Africa, there may still be another Bok double waiting to be discovered.
And this time, it could be you.
