World Rugby Chair Election: Candidates and the Future of African Rugby

Abdelatif Benazzi, who was born in Morocco, is among three individuals vying for the position of chair of World Rugby. The upcoming election, scheduled for Thursday, has the potential to significantly alter the current landscape of rugby union, much like other impactful elections observed this year. Benazzi, a native of Morocco, is competing against Australian Brett Robinson and Andrea Rinaldo from Italy for leadership of the sport’s global governing body. In an interview with BBC Sport Africa, the 56-year-old Benazzi expressed his conviction that the sport’s long-standing structure, which has been largely controlled by a small number of influential nations, is “over”. He stated that if he secures the victory, his initial “symbolic” task would involve traveling to the continent where he was born to engage in discussions about expanding the sport there. Benazzi, born in Oudja in 1968, received his rugby training through historical colonial connections with France. At the age of 14, a French teacher introduced him to the sport, instructing him to “get the ball and simply run straight,” a lesson Benazzi has consistently applied throughout his life. In 1988, following his international debut for Morocco, Benazzi was recruited by the French second-tier team Cahors, subsequently moving to Agen, an elite club in France. He changed his national allegiance in 1990 to represent France, eventually captaining Les Bleus, accumulating 78 caps, and competing in three World Cups. Known as a shrewd and aggressive back row and lock forward during his playing career, Benazzi was unafraid to utilize “rugby’s dark arts” on the field. Currently serving as a vice president of the French Rugby Federation, he will need to leverage political acumen to confront what he perceives as an existential crisis confronting the sport. Benazzi remarked, “Everyone is in trouble with finance. I think as a model it’s over,” when discussing World Rugby’s historical dependence on the men’s World Cup as its primary source of funding. He further characterized this approach as “not an honest strategy, it’s not a safe strategy for the future.” Benazzi’s proposed strategy involves identifying methods to enhance revenue generation during the periods between World Cups, which he asserts can only be achieved by fostering “links between big unions and the new regions.” Consequently, Africa holds a prominent position in Benazzi’s considerations. A primary objective on his agenda is the establishment of a new, regionalized international competition, aimed at increasing the quantity of competitive matches played by various nations. He stated, “If we build some original competition, youngsters, ladies, even the higher level, we can have benefits.” Significant scope for enhancement exists within African rugby. While South Africa holds the title of reigning world champions, Namibia, the continent’s subsequent highest-ranked men’s team, is positioned 25th globally, trailing nations such as Chile and Hong Kong. Other African nations within the top 50 include current African champions Zimbabwe (29), Kenya (36), Uganda (37), Madagascar (43), Morocco (45), and Tunisia (47). South Africa, a four-time World Cup champion and the sole African country to achieve global prominence in the sport, secured the Rugby Championship title this year, marking their first win since 2019. Benazzi proposes that the new competition adopt a regional format, citing three justifications: player welfare, cost containment, and environmental preservation. He does, however, anticipate a play-off phase to determine an ultimate champion. Herbert Mensah, who serves as president of Rugby Africa, one of World Rugby’s six regional associations, endorses the proposal and hopes to see the tournament operational by the following year. The Ghanaian official observed, “You’ve got countries like Lesotho, Botswana, who are coming together and saying ‘We’re doing things regionally’ and they started playing matches,” further commenting, “People forget how large Africa actually is.” Regardless of the specific implementation, Camilyne Oyuayo, the team manager for Kenya women, advocates for a tournament structure that ensures a predetermined number of matches each season. She explained, “When you only have one game in a year, you end up losing half or three-quarters of the team,” and added, “In Africa, every year most of the teams are starting all over again.” Benazzi additionally seeks to capitalize on the Olympic success of rugby sevens to draw more Africans into the sport, employing “a new language.” He elaborated, “It’s a kind of rugby we can talk, with this culture and this region, to encourage every youngster to have the hopes to represent [their] country at the Olympics,” further stating, “The rules are easy. [You] can create atmosphere around the stadium with the DJ.” Rugby sevens, already established as a Commonwealth Games sport, made its debut at this year’s African Games in Ghana, though only nine nations competed across the men’s and women’s categories. Kenya scrum-half Judith Auma voiced her displeasure that the Lionesses team did not accompany their male counterparts. She informed BBC Sport Africa, stating, “Girls are not valued as men are valued,” and added, “When there’s no support, there’s no women’s rugby.” This situation exemplifies the potential challenges in persuading individual national associations to embrace rugby sevens as a contemporary and equitable entry point for the sport. Benazzi participated in three World Cups, notably the memorable 1995 tournament held in South Africa, which he intends to reference as an illustration of how African nations can engage with the sport. The Rugby World Cup is frequently regarded as the third most significant global sporting event internationally, following the football World Cup and the Olympic Games. Despite this, only four African countries have ever competed: South Africa, Namibia, Ivory Coast, and Zimbabwe. While the Springboks have secured four championships, the remaining three African nations have collectively failed to achieve a single victory, accumulating a total of 35 losses. Notwithstanding this poor record, Mensah continues to advocate for an additional automatic qualification berth for Africa, a perspective not shared by Benazzi. Benazzi remarked, “I don’t want to see what I saw in 1995 with Ivory Coast,” alluding to the injury sustained by Ivorian Max Brito during a match against Tonga, which resulted in his paralysis. He further commented, “It’s not interesting to have countries in the World Cup losing by 100 points.” Benazzi maintains that progress and player safety should be the foremost considerations, with discussions regarding an additional World Cup slot serving as a potential incentive contingent on positive developments. Kenya has achieved success in rugby sevens, but has not yet attained a comparable level of performance in the 15-a-side format of the sport. The United Nations reports that Africa’s “exploding” population, with an average age of 18, indicates that by the close of the century, two out of every five individuals globally will be African. Mensah observed, “I see what the NBA, NFL and others are trying [to do] to tap into the continent. They can see the potential,” expressing his desire for rugby to adopt a more business-oriented approach following the election. He further stated, “Other sports have recognised they can’t sit back in order to stay alive, they need to grow,” and concluded, “I think that the people who get voted on are critically important here. We can’t just have the same old cliques.” Benazzi, whose candidacy for the World Rugby chair was proposed by France and supported by South Africa, concurs that the sport’s administrative body continues to operate akin to a “country club.” Mensah, who is also campaigning for a position on World Rugby’s executive board, believes that having an African individual in a leadership role would create a “massive difference.” He commented, “He [Benazzi] is very much French, so he gets it in terms of tier one rugby, but he’s also grown up in Morocco.” He added, “You’re not entering as a revolutionary, but as an evolutionary.” Benazzi’s proposals additionally encompass assigning established rugby powers the responsibility for developing the sport in designated partner regions, identifying South Africa and France as potential collaborators for Africa, alongside seeking greater involvement from commercial and non-governmental organizations. He has outlined his strategies, but the question remains whether the influential figures in rugby will vote to adopt his proposed direction for the sport.