Raynal made a remarkably bold decision in a 2022 Bledisloe Cup match to ping Australia for taking too long to kick a penalty to the touchline in Melbourne. New Zealand used the rarely given time wasting penalty to score a try and win.
In the fallout, Raynal deleted his social media to protect his family from abuse. World Rugby dropped him down the referees list but it has since encouraged refs and passed new laws to speed up the game.
Among the tests Raynal officiated were Ireland’s first win over the Springboks in South Africa in 2016, Ireland’s first win over the All Blacks in 2016 in Chicago, South Africa’s 2021 series-clinching win over the British and Irish Lions, and Italy’s 24-21 win over Wales this month in the Six Nations.
“He has always performed at a high technical level, but he has also been an excellent teammate for the group of match officials, sharing all the knowledge he has gained over more than a decade at the top to help the less experienced match officials progress on the world stage,” World Rugby elite men’s referees manager Joël Jutge said.
“Our group always appreciated his strength of character, his convictions, his leadership, not forgetting his unstoppable sense of humour. He was a great part of our organisation. We are certain that he has inspired young hopefuls who will be keen to follow in his footsteps in the very near future.”
All Blacks tests under Mathieu Raynal
2023 - All Blacks 35 South Africa 20
2022 - All Blacks 25 England 25
2022 - All Blacks 39 Australia 37
2021 - All Blacks 54 Wales 16
2018 - All Blacks 35 Argentina 17
2017 - All Blacks 78 Samoa 0
2016 - Ireland 40 All Blacks 29
