The 16-team league, forged from an agreement between PRO14 Rugby and SA Rugby, will start in September.

It will comprise South Africa's four Super Rugby sides - Sharks, Stormers, Lions and Bulls - along with current PRO14 combinations Cardiff, Ospreys, Scarlets, Dragons, Leinster, Munster, Ulster, Connacht, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Benetton and Zebre.

For the first time, and subject to contract terms being finalised with European Professional Club Rugby, South African teams will be eligible to play in the Heineken Champions Cup from season 2022-23.

URC chief executive Martin Anayi claimed the new league would "begin to reshape the world of club rugby," while SA Rugby boss Jurie Roux described it as "a watershed moment in South African rugby history".

The competition format comprises four regional pools of four, with teams playing each other home and away in their group, plus one fixture against each of the other 12 sides.

The top eight teams in a single table after those 18 regular season encounters will then enter a straight knockout phase, culminating in a grand final.

All points won during the URC season will contribute to rankings in the regional pools, and the highest-ranked team in each of the four groups will earn a Champions Cup place for the following season.

The remaining four allocated Champions Cup spots will go to the four highest-placed league teams that have not already qualified through their regional pools.

"Fans have always asked more of our league, and now we are taking it to new heights," Anayi said.

"Forming the United Rugby Championship will begin to reshape the world of club rugby."

SA Rugby chief executive Roux added: "Our teams will be pitting themselves against the leading clubs from four nations, steeped in rugby tradition and folklore.

"They will do it without having to cross time zones or acclimatise, while 100 per cent of matches will kick off in South African prime time."

Australian Associated Press