In 1996 and 1997 South Africa was represented in the Super 12 by their four top unions rather than franchises, and Natal qualified and competed both years.

The 2012 season saw the Sharks struggle in the first few weeks, but a run of good form saw them lose only one of their last seven games to sneak into the playoffs in 6th position.

They then had to travel another 11 000 km back to Cape Town to face the Stormers, they were not given much of a chance after having crossed the Indian for the second time in as many weeks, but again they prevailed 26–19.

Gold only lasting one year at the team, however the Sharks managed a four-year run of quarter final finishes between 2016 and 2019.

The tournament was heavily affected by the pandemic and several games were cancelled, nonetheless the Sharks managed a third-place finish.

[1] Due to the pandemic still causing problems for international travel another temporary regional tournament was announced, called the Pro14 Rainbow Cup.

[2] In 2021 it was announced that an American consortium under the name 'MVM Holdings' in partnership with Roc Nation, an entertainment agency owned by rapper JayZ, would buy a 51% majority stake in the Sharks franchise.

[4] After being informally called the Banana Boys or Piesangboere for a substantial length of time it was decided in 1995 that Natal would go ahead with new branding – The Sharks.

To achieve this a substantial budget was allocated to refine this vision that would include the match facilities, the pre-and post-match activities and the team.

The local press at first were very hesitant to accept the new name and branding and fans were polarised by the radical proposed change that flew in the face of rugby tradition and convention.

After much controversy in the media (which very rapidly brought the proposed brand to everyone's attention) and a very successful season supported by great products and promotions, the Sharks were embraced by all.

The Sharks are well supported across South Africa, with sizable fan bases in all major cities including Johannesburg, Pretoria, Port Elizabeth and Cape Town.

This lasted until 2005, when the Eastern Cape attempted to launch their own Super Rugby franchise, the Southern Spears.

That meant that the Border Bulldogs and Mighty Elephants teams were aligned with the Spears (and later Southern Kings) franchise and the Sharks were effectively affiliated with one provincial union only, namely KwaZulu-Natal.

Muir took The Sharks to the 2007 Super 14 final at home and was later seconded as an assistant coach to Peter de Villiers with the national side.

John Plumtree took over as full-time coach in 2008 where he found immediate success, taking the Sharks to their first Currie Cup title since 1996 when they defeated the Blue Bulls in Durban.

Following their Super Rugby Final's appearance in 2012, the Sharks produced a lacklustre season in 2013, finishing 8th on the combined log and 4th of 5 teams in the South African division.

Plumtree's final season as Sharks coach was marred by a roster depleted of injuries and perceived tactical challenges.

Du Preez would lead the Sharks to the quarter-finals of Super Rugby for three consecutive years, but did not manage to progress beyond that stage.

For the 2020 season, du Preez stepped down and Sean Everitt was appointed head coach,[6] with David Williams (backline and attack) and Brent Janse van Rensburg (forwards) as his assistants.

This marked the first time in franchise history the Sharks had failed to score a single point in a home game.

[7] The following day it was announced that then head coach Sean Everitt would be stepping down with immediate effect, and director of rugby Neil Powell would take over all of the responsibilities.