Agustin Pichot vividly recalls the contempt he used to harbour as a player for the blazer brigade of the International Rugby Board who denied Argentina a place at rugby’s top table for so long.

As vice- chairman of the rebranded World Rugby, Pichot now finds himself among the sport’s kingmakers, the very definition of a “suit” he once despised. Which is why the former Argentina captain, the heartbeat and firebrand of the team that finished third at the 2007 World Cup, makes a point of wearing trainers with his new work attire. His choice of footwear is not a fashion but a political statement.

“It reminds you of who you are,” Pichot told The Daily Telegraph. “It is a symbol that I would never be fully comfortable in a suit. I am a rebel at heart.”

Working alongside chairman Bill Beaumont, Pichot admits he has received an eye-opening education into the hidden machinations of rugby’s governing body. What has surprised him most is how the camaraderie from the changing room has spiltspilled over into corridors of power. It’ has also forced him to revise his opinion of what being a bureaucrat entails.

“Wearing a suit is just one part of an administrator,” Pichot said. “It gives you the chance to change the game and you have to change the game for the players. That’s where the suit becomes part of your playing kit. If you use the suit to go to royal boxes and take first-class flights around the world then I don’t need that.