French Rugby Union strongly oppose World Rugby's 20min red card plan

The FFR - which manages France's national team, and the LNR - responsible for clubs and the Top 14, issued a statement on Monday.

The FFR, LNR and Provale strongly oppose the adoption of the 20-minute red card rule and call on World Rugby to rely on evidence before changing such a crucial sanction, particularly regarding the impact on player safety.

Indeed, testing this rule change in four competitions with insufficient data cannot be considered a compelling reason for improvement to consider global implementation. For example, at the U20 World Championship, only three red cards were issued, making the findings insignificant.

The impact on the game

Although some believe that this rule will promote a more fluid game, the statistics provided by the FFR to World Rugby show that a red card is not systematically synonymous with defeat for the penalised team. Indeed, the analysis based on 480 TOP 14 matches and Tier 1 international matches, shows that only 60% of teams sanctioned with a red card lost at the end of the match.

Maintaining safety and rugby values

For the FFR, the LNR and Provale, the red card is a crucial tool that deters unsportsmanlike behavior and protects the physical integrity of players. Transforming this sanction into a temporary expulsion could encourage dangerous behavior, thus compromising the safety of players, which must remain the absolute priority.

French professional clubs and national team management teams stress the need to maintain a firm attitude towards foul play. The red card as a collective sanction aims to preserve balance and fair play, and its reduction to an individual sanction would weaken this essential function.

Furthermore, this rule would mark an unacceptable step backwards on the measures put in place over the last few years to reduce head impacts and encourage players to have greater technical mastery in contact.

Risks to the image of sport

Rugby is followed by millions of fans worldwide. The implementation of this rule could encourage more aggressive play or create controversies related to the tactical exploitation of the rule, thus negatively impacting the image of rugby.

Finally, in view of the elements put forward, the FFR will speak out against the entry into force of this experiment of this rule of the game at the meeting of the World Rugby Council on 14 November 2024.

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