Argentina legend Agustin Pichot has appeared to express his discontent with there being so many English match officials at the World Cup this year.
Twelve referees were named to take control on the global stage in France, and six Englishmen are part of the full list of 26 match officials. The match referees included are Wayne Barnes, Matthew Carley, Karl Dickson and Luke Pearce, while other match officials include Tom Foley and Christophe Ridley.
Barnes, who has 102 Test matches under his belt, tweeted following the announcement, saying: "My fifth Rugby World Cup and being able to share it with five amazing England Rugby colleagues makes it even more special. 121 more sleeps until the opening game!"
Former World Rugby vice-chair Pichot, who narrowly lost out to Bill Beaumont for the top job in 2020, retweeted this, sarcastically saying: "Global game (thumbs up emoji)."
Pichot's retweet has become the subject of much discussion on social media.
One person replied: "Seriously?! Regardless of nationality, at the RWC you want the most experienced refs to ensure games are regulated to a high standard. Should we needlessly overlook highly experienced individuals simply for the sake of diversity? I mean, I get the intention, but being passive aggressive won't solve anything."
Others agreed with Pichot, with one adding: "Completely agree, it’s a shame the pathway isn’t there at the moment for South American referees. Chile v Argentina being refereed by a non Spanish speaker seems ridiculous."
The lack of different languages used by officials on the rugby field has become a talking point in recent years, with non-English-speaking teams arguably at a disadvantage trying to communicate with referees who only speak English in what has become an increasingly complicated sport.
During his playing days Pichot was a world-class scrum-half who plied his trade with the likes of Stade Francais, Racing Metro and Bristol. He also earned 71 caps for Los Pumas.
The 12 referees have 453 Test matches between them, and eight have refereed at the World Cup.
Ireland's Joy Neville is the first female named on the match official panel at a men's Rugby World Cup.
Chairman of Match Officials Selection Committee Graham Mourie said to on rugbyworldworldcup.com: "I would like to extend my congratulations to the 26 match officials selected for Rugby World Cup 2023 in France.
“Like the players, they have earned their place on merit and have worked incredibly hard, making many sacrifices to be in contention for selection.
“I would like to put on record our thanks to them and those who just missed out. It speaks volumes about this group that, like every great team, they have all encouraged each other along the way.
“These men and women are not only representing their nations, they are also representing the global officiating fraternity and truly are ‘everyone’s team’, playing their full part in enabling players to perform to their best at our pinnacle men’s event and we should all get behind them.”
MATCH OFFICIAL NATIONALTIES AT WORLD CUP*
*From 26 match officials.
- ENGLAND - 6
- AUSTRALIA - 4
- IRELAND - 4
- NZ - 4
- SA - 2
- FRANCE - 2
- WALES - 2
- ITALY - 1
- GEORGIA - 1
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