Two French rugby players have returned home nearly two months after being arrested and charged with rape while on tour with the national team in Argentina.

Hugo Auradou and Oscar Jegou, both 21, are alleged to have raped and beaten a 39-year-old woman and held her against her will after meeting her in a nightclub in Mendoza in July.

The charges against them - which they deny - remain, but the court has allowed them to return to France.

Auradou and Jegou may attend hearings at the Argentine consulate in France and can be ordered to return to the court in Mendoza.

The maximum sentence for the charges they face is 20 years, with a mandatory minimum term of eight years.

The French Rugby Federation welcomed the decision to allow them to return "with satisfaction".

"The French Rugby Federation wanted to listen to the complainant, but also to constantly called to mind the presumption of innocence of the two players," it said in a statement.

"Today's decision is a further step towards the judicial truth."