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France will host the 2023 Rugby World Cup after beating rival bids from South Africa and Ireland.
South Africa had been expected to win the vote after an independent review recommended they stage the tournament.
However, at a World Rugby Council meeting in London on Wednesday, France was chosen to hold the 10th event.
France has staged the competition twice before - in 1991 and 2007 - and won in the second round of voting, with 24 votes compared to 15 for South Africa.
Ireland, one of five joint hosts in 1991, was eliminated after getting eight of the 39 votes in the first round - France picked up 18 and South Africa 13.
South Africa hosted the World Cup in 1995, when the Springboks beat New Zealand 15-12 in the final.
World Rugby chairman Bill Beaumont described the selection process as the "most transparent and comprehensive" in the organisation's history.
"I am delighted for France. They have run a World Cup before and I think it will be an exciting World Cup," he said
"We feel for the first time that within World Rugby we have put the results of our evaluation out to the general public."
Last month, South Africa had ranked highest in the independent review after the three bids were judged on five categories...
From the above criteria, South Africa scored 78.97%, France were second with 75.88% and Ireland were third with 72.25%, however members of the World Rugby Council opted to select France.
Bernard Laporte, president of the French rugby federation (FFR), said: "This World Cup is for all of French rugby. The economic impact will be for them. With the reforms that we have committed, we needed this World Cup."
Japan will host the next World Cup in 2019.
（BBC）
