Former Wales boss lands Benetton job ahead of South African rivals

The 63-year-old New Zealander has coached in both the northern and southern hemisphere at club and Test level, and also led both Fiji and Wales on the international scene.

His contract with Benetton runs until June 30, 2028, but there's also the option for Pivac to extend for a further two seasons as the club shows their commitment to him.

Starting out his coaching career at Northland in 1997, Pivac took over at Auckland from 1999 to 2003 before Fiji came calling in a tenure that ran from 2004 until 2007.

Upon returning to New Zealand, he coached North Harbour and later Auckland in the National Provincial Championship before travelling to Wales to lead the Scarlets.

A period of exciting rugby would follow, culminating in the Welsh side lifting the PRO12 title in 2016/17 thanks to a 46-22 win over Munster in the May final in Dublin.

The following season they reached another PRO14 final and a Champions Cup semi-final, and he was recognised for this feat by being handed the Wales job in July 2018.

Pivac led Wales to Six Nations glory in 2021, but would leave the job a year later, and in 2023 he began his most recent gig in Japan with NEC Green Rockets Tokatsu.

According to recent reports, former Springbok head coach Jake White was linked to Benetton, while Cardiff coach Corniel van Zyl also admitted to holding talks with them.

But the URC side has opted for Pivac as their next head coach, and the New Zealander is delighted to have signed the contract and is looking forward to getting to work.

"I couldn't say no to the opportunity to coach Benetton after facing them in Treviso with the Scarlets," said Pivac.

"I enjoyed every trip: the matches, the stadium, the people and the Italian lifestyle. The challenge of taking the team to the next level and giving continuity to the work done by previous coaches is exciting."

He added: "Being able to work with some incredibly talented Italian players and contribute to their development is an additional source of motivation for me.

"To all our stakeholders, sponsors, and of course, our fans, I want to say that I'm delighted to join the Benetton Rugby family. I want to see the team play a style of rugby that excites both the players and you, the fans."

Benetton Rugby President Antonio Pavanello admitted they had scoured the world looking for their next head coach and is delighted to have landed the New Zealander.

"The selection of our head coach was the result of a thorough and structured process, involving 18 international profiles, all with experience in the world's top leagues," he said.

"After an initial analysis phase, we developed a shortlist, and after a careful technical and design evaluation, Wayne Pivac proved to be the ideal candidate to lead our sporting project."