Relief! Springboks get green light from World Rugby as Bongi Mbonambi cleared of all allegations
World Rugby on Thursday cleared Springbok hooker Bongi Mbonambi of all allegations, freeing up the player to take his place in South Africa’s team to face the All Blacks in the Rugby World Cup final this weekend.
Ahead of the Rugby World Cup championship match between the Springboks and the All Blacks in Saint-Denis on Saturday, World Rugby said in a statement released on Thursday that there is not enough evidence to move further with any charges against Springboks hooker Bongi Mbonambi.
World Rugby added in the statement that it has also looked into an additional complaint pertaining to the player from the previous year.
The entire declaration is as follows:
“World Rugby has reviewed the claims made by England’s Tom Curry regarding the racist remarks made by South Africa’s Mbongeni Mbonambi during Saturday’s Rugby World Cup 2023 semi-final between England and South Africa. Additionally, there has been additional allegations made in the past few days regarding a previous Autumn Nations Series 2022 match.
We take all accusations seriously.
“World Rugby takes any accusations of prejudice very seriously and needs to conduct a full investigation. The governing board has decided that there is not enough evidence at this time to move forward with charges after taking into account all of the relevant information, including audio, video, and evidence from both teams throughout the match. Therefore, unless new information becomes available, the case is considered closed.
It’s crucial to note that World Rugby acknowledges that Tom Curry made the accusations in good faith and that there is no evidence to imply that the claim was made with malice or with the intent to mislead.
“The hatred both players have received on social media this week obviously worries World Rugby. The world rugby organization calls on supporters to uphold the integrity, unity, and respect that characterize the game. Discrimination, abuse, and hate speech have no place in rugby or society.
“World Rugby has decided that there isn’t enough evidence to pursue charges at this time.”
The Springbok team for their match against New Zealand was also revealed on Thursday by Director of Rugby Cassie Erasmus and Coach Jacques Nienaber.