The French Rugby Federation and the French National League want World Rugby to lower the legal height of a tackle to waist level.

During a meeting in Paris between the three governing bodies, French rugby bosses, including FFR president Bernard Laporte, also suggested banning tackles by two players and head-on-head tackles.

The FFR have offered to trial the laws in their amateur competitions.

The conference was organised following the recent death of Stade Français teenager Nicolas Chauvin, who died in hospital after suffering a broken neck, which triggered a heart attack during a match in Bordeaux.

Bernard Laporte, president of the FFR said: ‘The health of our players is an absolute priority for us. Our game must evolve fundamentally and rugby must become a game of movement where avoidance overrides the impact. For this, it is important to change attitudes and change the rules, especially on tackling.

‘First by informing and training our players on the rules of the game, and beyond the technique, make them aware that they are also the actors of their own safety.

‘The FFR and the NRL have therefore proposed to World Rugby an evolution of the rules by lowering the line of plating at the level of the belt, prohibiting the two-player tackle and tackle head-to-head.

‘The tackler will have to bend if he comes to tackle, at the risk of being penalised. We have also proposed to World Rugby to experiment with these new rules in our amateur competitions.’