Laporte to join government after World Cup

France coach Bernard Laporte will move from the trainer's bench to a government desk after the World Cup ends in October following his appointment by President Nicolas Sarkozy as a junior minister for sport. The 42-year-old Laporte, renowned in France...

France coach Bernard Laporte will move from the trainer's bench to a government desk after the World Cup ends in October following his appointment by President Nicolas Sarkozy as a junior minister for sport.

The 42-year-old Laporte, renowned in France for his blunt, confrontational style and his distinctive southwestern accent, said last year that he would step down after the World Cup to go into business.

But his long-standing links with Sarkozy appear to have made a political career more attractive.

Laporte, a solid club professional as a player, has steered the French rugby team to a Six Nations grand slam in 2002 and 2004 and also the title in 2006 and 2007.

He took France to the 2003 World Cup in Australia, where they were eliminated by the ultimate champions, England.

The World Cup will be held in France from Sept. 7 to Oct. 20.

Sign up to our free newsletters

Get the best updates straight to your inbox:

You can unsubscribe at any time by clicking the link in the footer of our emails. We use Mailchimp as our marketing platform. By subscribing, you acknowledge that your information will be transferred to Mailchimp for processing.