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French rugby is on the crest of a wave and they know they can afford to take an understrength squad to Japan and rest their biggest names
The France national rugby union team, also known as ‘Les Tricolores’ or ‘Les Bleus’ due to their iconic jerseys are one of Europe’s leading international sides. They currently compete in tournaments including the Rugby World Cup and the Six Nations and are also a largely successful side, boasting a number of titles and an impressive win ratio of 54% in all their 776 test matches.
Read on to learn more about the France national rugby union team. Here, you’ll find the team’s latest results and fixtures, as well as all the latest France Rugby news.
French rugby is on the crest of a wave and they know they can afford to take an understrength squad to Japan and rest their biggest names
The first bombshell has dropped on the 2023 Rugby World Cup, with reports of alleged ‘bullying’ of staff.
The France national rugby union team, also known as ‘Les Tricolores’ or ‘Les Bleus’ due to their iconic jerseys are one of Europe’s leading international sides. They currently compete in tournaments including the Rugby World Cup and the Six Nations and are also a largely successful side, boasting a number of titles and an impressive win ratio of 54% in all their 776 test matches.
Read on to learn more about the France national rugby union team. Here, you’ll find the team’s latest results and fixtures, as well as all the latest France Rugby news.
Rugby was first introduced to France back in 1872 but the first official international test match didn’t take place until 1906, where France played against New Zealand in Paris. France also competed in the Olympic games of 1920 and 1924, narrowly missing out on gold medals against the United States.
It was in the Five Nations of the 50s and 60s where the France national rugby union team really came into their stride, winning their first outright Five Nations title in 1959 and getting a Grand Slam in 1968. The following decades so even more success with several Grand Slams and finishing runners-up in the first Rugby World Cup in 1987.
Fastfoward to the present and the France national rugby union team has yet to better this result, despite being involved in all World Cup competitions. The closest they came was a third place finish in 1995. Although they are set to host the next event in 2023, giving them a home advantage. France now also have 17 Six Nations wins to their name, with 9 Grand Slams in total.
With such a prolific history in terms of achievement, it should be no surprise that the France national rugby union team has seen its fair share of quality players in the past. So far there are 10 former players inducted into the World Rugby Hall of Fame, including fullback Serge Blanco and centre Philippe Sella.
The current squad also features a variety of popular players, the majority of which play in France on a domestic level. This includes scrum-half Antoine Dupont, team captain and Toulon back row Charles Ollivon and Stade Français centre Gaël Fickou.