There it’s finished. Bernard Laporte has thrown in the towel and is no longer president of the French Rugby Federation (FFR). “I can confirm the resignation of Bernard Laporte”, declared the Minister of Sports Amélie Oudéa-Castéra to the journalists present this Friday morning in front of the premises of the FFR in Marcoussis (Essonne). The minister had come to attend the steering committee of the Federation, during which the boss of French rugby, elected in October 2020, made his decision known, while he was physically absent.
Withdrawn since mid-December due to his problems with the law, Laporte suffered a huge snub on Thursday, which precipitated his decision. While he had proposed the name of Patrick Buisson as deputy president, to replace him until we know the result of the appeal of his two-year suspended prison sentence, 51.06% of the clubs consulted voted “no “.
The majority camp could have proposed another name using the same process, but with the (strong) risk of a new disavowal. Head of the list of the Oval Together movement, the main opponent Florian Grill demanded a quick return to the polls on Thursday afternoon. “The steering committee has the power in six weeks to organize elections and that is what will make it possible to turn the page on these repeated cases”, indicated to 20 minutes the president of the Ile-de-France League.
A World Cup prepared in turmoil
The FFR is not ready to get out of this strong zone of turbulence in which it has been plunged for months, as the Six Nations Tournament (February 4 – March 18) and especially the World Cup at home (8 September – October 28).