Is this the end of the Bernard Laporte era at the top of the French Rugby Federation (FFR)? On Wednesday June 14, a page turned in any case: Florian Grill, his number one opponent for several years, was elected president of the body to the detriment of Patrick Buisson, a close friend of the former president, who resigned in January. , with 58.14% of the vote.
A final score, in a poll where 92.65% of the more than 1,900 clubs in France voted. It is also better than the number of votes collected by Mr. Laporte during his re-election at the head of the body, in 2020, against the same Florian Grill (51.47%). As soon as the results are known, the Minister of Sports and the Olympic and Paralympic Games, Amélie Oudéa-Castéra addressed his ” Congratulation “ to the new leader and saluted “a field campaign and a discourse of clarity”.
This election is the culmination of a process that began at the end of 2022 with the conviction of Bernard Laporte by the Paris Criminal Court. In December 2022, the former sports minister and coach of the XV of France was found guilty of several counts, including “passive corruption” and “illegal taking of interests”. At issue: decisions taken during his terms as president of the FFR (2016-2023), in favor of Mohed Altrad, the wealthy owner of the Montpellier club, with whom he had secret business ties. For these facts, he received a two-year suspended prison sentence, a 75,000 euro fine and a two-year ban on exercising any function related to rugby. Mr. Laporte has appealed, so he remains presumed innocent.
His conviction had opened a period of crisis at the FFR, a few months before the World Cup in France (from September 8 to October 28). After having ruled out resigning and after a standoff with the Minister of Sports, the Aveyronnais had consented to a withdrawal, retaining the title of president of the FFR, but abandoning his prerogatives. He then proposed that Patrick Buisson, vice-president in charge of relations with amateur rugby, take on the role of deputy president. The proposal had been submitted to a referendum with the clubs, which had rejected it. Bernard Laporte had no choice but to resign on January 27.
Patrick Buisson had focused his campaign on stability, raising the specter of a weakening of the XV of France, three months from the World Cup. This strategy did not pay off. On the contrary, the ballot confirms the trend of the two previous elections, clearly favorable to Ovale Ensemble, the opposition movement led by Florian Grill. At the end of May, she had obtained eleven of the twelve seats – out of forty – put into play within the steering committee, in particular following several resignations following the Laporte affair.
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