France has confirmed they’ll take an understrength squad to play the All Blacks in New Zealand next year – at the same time the Wallabies tackle the might of the British Lions.
An agreement between the French national union and the country’s top clubs was announced on Wednesday which will see players from the Top 14 final teams excused from the tour to NZ.
This year the final featured Toulouse versus Bordeaux. Three of France’s first-choice backs – superstar scrumhalf Antoine Dupont, No.10 Romain Ntamack and fullback Thomas Ramos – played for Toulouse, while their national teammates Matthieu Jalibert and Damian Penaud lined up for Bordeaux.
New Zealand Rugby officials are reportedly ‘livid’ at the decision, according to Times rugby reporter Will Kelleher.
On the surface, the move seems an improvement from the approach flagged earlier this year by France coach Fabien Galthie.
In June, Galthie told L’Equipe that a premium group of 20 players would be quarantined from the tour and would have to adhere to an eight-week rest period in July and August.
“Players will benefit from four mandatory weeks off and four weeks without matches,” said Galthie.
Wednesday’s statement suggests players who are out of the Top 14 competition at the semifinal stage or earlier should be available for selection.
In 2021, Galthie took a weakened squad to Australia where they lost to the Wallabies.
“We built on trust while adjusting the management of the international season by choosing to rest our ‘premium’ during the summer tours,” Galthie said.
“It was a first step. We want to go even further which will mean that we will go on tour in the summer of 2025 in New Zealand without our ‘premium’ players. It’s been like this for four years. Why change strategy? Because we’re travelling to the All Blacks? You have to be consistent.”
On Wednesday, the French union described the 2025 and 2026 mid-year internationals as “part of a preparation cycle for the 2027 World Cup with an approach focused on managing the most in-demand players and on the gradual construction of the squad.
“An initial group of 42 players will be formed in two stages. In the first stage, 28 available players will be selected after the TOP 14 play-offs (mid-June) to prepare for a first France Développement match on the weekend of the TOP 14 semi-finals .
“This group will then be completed by players from the clubs that lost in the semi-finals, in order to reach a total of 42 players . The finalists of the TOP 14 will not be selected for these international periods.”
The statement also flagged a potential midweek match against a tier 2 nation during the 2025 tour.
“During the July 2025 Tour, the Test matches may be supplemented by a France Development match during the week, thus making it possible to strengthen the experience of emerging players and to organise a match against a nation that is not one of the major countries in world rugby.”