Members of South Africa's national rugby team have basked in victory parade celebrations after claiming their second straight World Cup for a record fourth crown.

The Springboks edged past New Zealand's All Blacks 12-11 in the final of the tournament in France on Saturday.

The squad started their trophy tour of South Africa in the administrative capital, Pretoria, on Thursday.

Euphoric fans also lined the parade routes in Johannesburg and Soweto. They danced and called out the names of the players as they passed by on their open-top double-decker bus.

In the past, people in South Africa tended to view rugby as a white person's sport. This was largely due to apartheid, a now defunct system of segregation and discrimination against the nonwhite majority under white-minority rule.

But successes by Black players, such as national team captain Siya Kolisi, have propelled rugby's popularity among nonwhites.

A parade spectator voiced her happiness, saying people of all races are congratulating the team and sharing in the joy. Another said the team has united people in South Africa and showed they can overcome various challenges and difficulties if they join hands.