World Rugby has confirmed they will look into England flanker Tom Curry's complaint surrounding the 'discriminatory language' used by South African hooker Bongi Mbonambi during the second Rugby World Cup semi-final.
The hooker is accused of calling Curry a 'white c***' during the one point victory, with the Englishmen bringing the issue up with referee Ben O'Keefe.
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"World Rugby takes all allegations of discriminatory behaviour extremely seriously," they said in a statement.
"We can confirm that we are formally reviewing the allegation made by England’s Tom Curry in relation to the use of discriminatory language during the England versus South Africa Rugby World Cup 2023 semi-final on Saturday.
"World Rugby will not be making further comment until the conclusion of the process."
"We always take all allegations related to discriminatory behaviour very seriously, of course. To confirm, we will be reviewing these allegations. I don't think we can make any further comment given it's an ongoing process," Michel Poussau, Tournament Director, added.
The word is very similar to the word 'kant' in Afrikaans, meaning 'side'.
New Zealand defence coach Scott McLeod recognised the importance of Mbonambi to the Springboks as the lone hooker in their squad.
"I learned about it this morning. It is something World Rugby will deal with," he told reporters.
"if anything came of it, it would be a massive dent for them. He is a leader of their team. When Siya [Kolisi, South Africa captain] goes off, he becomes the captain so I imagine it would impact them."
Deon Fourie has been serving as back-up, although has largely played his Rugby as a back-row, where he finished in the semi-final.
The Springboks opted against replacing Malcolm Marx after his tournament-ending injury, rather bringing in Handre Pollard, who proved the hero in the close encounter.
