Antoine Dupont pulls out of France's Nations Championship

Antoine Dupont is a shock withdrawal from France’s Nations Championship squad due to a late injury sustained in the knockout stages of Toulouse’s victorious run to the Top 14 title.

The scrum-half has been ruled out of the new competition between the Northern and Southern Hemispheres, which starts this coming weekend.

While he was already unavailable for France’s opening match against the All Blacks on July 4th, he could have been available for selection against Australia on July 11th and Japan on July 18th.

A brief press release sent by the French Rugby Federation (FFR) on Monday, a few hours before departure, confirmed the news: “Antoine Dupont is out. Paul Graou joins the French XV for the 2026 Nations Championship.”

There was huge anticipation around the 29-year-old halfback playing his first competitive Test games outside of Europe since 2017, but sadly it’s not to be.

It’s the first time in years France have sent a squad close to their full-strength side.

The reason for his withdrawal was not initially specified by the FFR, but the specialist media outlet Midi Olympique suggests a calf injury, which would cap off a physically challenging season. He had picked up the knock in the semi-final but it seemed fine, though he started limping two minutes after the break in the final against Montpellier at the Stade de France on Saturday night in Paris.

Dupont himself confirmed as much on Instagram, saying: “An MRI carried out this morning, following pain felt since the semi-final, has revealed a calf injury. It is therefore with a heavy heart that I must withdraw from selection for the matches against Australia and Japan. I wish the squad all the best for this tour.”

Dupont was among the nine finalists called up to reinforce the French XV, including six from Toulouse: Romain Ntamack, hooker Peato Mauvaka, second row Manny Meafou, flanker Alexandre Roumat, and centre Kalvin Gourgues.

It was the first time since 2017 that Dupont had the opportunity to participate in summer matches with the French national team, outside of World Cup preparation. His only experience in this area dates back to 2017 during a tour of South Africa.

Since then, he has consistently been rested due to a packed schedule.

But this season, the French captain has only played 21 matches for a total of 1,159 minutes because of injuries, including a ruptured cruciate ligament in his right knee against Ireland during the 2025 Six Nations.

His replacement, Paul Graou, comes in his stead and is set to make his debut. The 28-year-old started in 20 out of 31 games for Toulouse this season.

This is the second withdrawal announced for Les Bleus even before the start of the Nations Championship: international second row Joshua Brennan (24 years old, 3 caps) had been called up before withdrawing a few hours later and being replaced by Alexandre Roumat.

The French team will face Argentina, Fiji and South Africa in France in the autumn, before the finals scheduled for London at the end of November.