Abdelatif Benazzi, originally from Morocco, is in the running to become the president of Rugby’s governing body, World Rugby. He faces competitors Brett Robinson of Australia and Andrea Rinaldo of Italy in the election which takes place on Thursday, November 14.
Revolutionizing African rugby
In an interview with BBC, Benazzi, 56, expressed his belief that rugby’s current structure, dominated by a few powerful nations, is over. If he wins, he said his first “symbolic” mission would be to travel to the African continent to discuss how to develop the sport.
Born in Oudja in 1968, Benazzi discovered rugby thanks to a French teacher. He made his international debut with Morocco in 1988 before joining French club Cahors, then Agen. He then chose to play for France, where he captained, winning 78 caps and appearing in three World Cups. Today vice-president of the French Rugby Federation, he is aware of the financial crises that threaten sport. He criticized World Rugby’s previous reliance on the Men’s World Cup as a funding strategy, calling it wrong and unsafe for the future.
A new international competition
Benazzi wants to create a new regionalized international competition to increase the number of competitive matches played, particularly in Africa, where he sees great potential to develop. It proposes a tournament similar to an Africa Cup of Nations for rugby, supported by Herbert Mensah, president of Rugby Africa. This reform would aim to improve player well-being, reduce costs and respect the environment while guaranteeing a certain number of matches per season to prevent teams from starting from scratch each year.
Morocco
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