the heavy implications of Abdelatif Benazzi after his failure in the election?

Freshly re-elected as president of the FFR, Florian Grill now hoped to see Abdelatif Benazzi take the helm of World Rugby. It didn't come down to much for the former French international, but it was ultimately Brett Robinson who was elected.

When people say it was a “close” decision, it's really “a narrow” decision. Here are the results of the second round (knowing that the total votes were 52 within the World Rugby Council): 25 you for Benazzi, 27 for Robinson. And in an interview with Rugbyrama, the ex-Blue spoke about this election and his campaign, seemed to clearly indicate that certain maneuvers took place behind the scenes to avoid his election.

I feel like, on the program and as a man, I was the person who could win. But I came up against a system (…) I was present alongside President Chirac in Singapore for the 2012 Olympics and I remember how it went, with negotiations during the night. I had anticipated my arrival in Dublin. If anything happened, it's in the last 24 hours. I knew that maneuvers could take place. My message got through but it was politics that turned things around (…) I'm not saying that the system is indestructible but this election had been prepared for a long time, compartmentalized in a sense, with the next World Cup in Australia (Brett Robinson is Australian, editor’s note).

“I wanted to break this office citadel”

There was even talk of betrayal concerning Abdelatif Benazzi. But the unsuccessful candidate nevertheless sees the glass half full because he put a little kick in the anthill, according to him, and his program was strongly supported. This will make it possible to change things in the decision-making process at World Rugby, he is convinced of this.

I was heard, I upset this system, I worried them (…) In a short time, I met with the support of several historic nations and my global development program was praised (…) I wanted break this office citadel, this thing in place. We will continue to work with them, to raise our voice. Decisions between three and four guys are over.

Florian Grill strongly supported the election of Abdelatif Benazzi to strengthen France's voice on the international scale, a voice that he considered to be too little heard, to have too little weight. Is the election of Brett Robinson a setback in the strengthening of the French system? Not at all for Benazzi. “The values ​​that I have carried and the French model will continue to weigh: we have the best commercial rights in the world, the best players want to come to France… All the statistics place us at the top”he proclaims.