Europe 1 with AFP 17:39 p.m., March 27, 2023

Scotland rugby legend Stuart Hogg has announced his retirement from the sport after the World Cup in France. Aged 30, the man with 100 caps, finished third in the last Six Nations Tournament with the XV of the Thistle. He currently plays for English team Exeter.

Scottish rugby star Stuart Hogg announced on Monday that he would hang up his cleats after the World Cup this autumn in France (8 September-28 October), believing that the physical demands of the sport have become too much for him. The full-back, who turns 31 in June, earned his 100th cap in the Six Nations Tournament against Ireland (22-7 loss on March 12), but was injured and missed the last game against Italy.

"I don't think my body can reach the standards I've set for myself for much longer," Hogg explained. "I always wanted to finish at the top of the game. After the World Cup, a new career is coming and I will attack it in the same way as I practice this sport," he added in a statement released via Twitter.

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Best player of the VI Nations in 2016 and 2017

Hogg, who signed his first professional contract with Glasgow Warriors in 2011, made his debut for Scotland the following year in the Six Nations Tournament. He was named the best player in this competition in 2016 and 2017 and has also been selected for a British and Irish Lions tour three times (2013, 2017 and 2021). His 2017 tour was cut short by a broken face, but in 2021 he earned two caps for the Lions against South Africa.

His relationship with Gregor Townsend, the current Scotland coach, has not been easy: after disciplinary problems, he was sacked as captain last October. The Melrose native enjoyed club success, winning the Pro12 in 2015 with Glasgow and signing an English-European Cup double with Exeter in 2020. This year's World Cup in France will be his third if he participates.

"Rugby has allowed me to meet incredible characters, make lifelong friends, travel the world and be part of incredible experiences that I will cherish forever," Hogg said. "Knowing what lies ahead, I really want to play the best and most enjoyable rugby of my career, finishing the season on a high note with Exeter Chiefs before seizing the opportunity for us as a nation in France," he said.