France head coach Fabien Galthié has named a 33-man squad for the inaugural Nations Championship, with Antoine Dupont not picked for the Southern Series.
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Les Bleus are set to face New Zealand, Australia and Japan throughout July. The in-form Bordeaux-Begles scrum half Maxime Lucu takes his place, with Nolann le Garrec and uncapped Mathis Ferte filling out the half-back ranks.
The squad features a blend of established internationals and emerging talent, with experienced stars including Damian Penaud, Matthieu Jalibert, Maxime Lucu, Jefferson Poirot and Yoram Moefana joined by a host of exciting young prospects.
Among those earning call-ups are Stade Français prop Moses Alo-Emile, Bayonne flanker Esteban Capilla, Clermont hooker Barnabé Massa, Perpignan back Théo Forner and Section Paloise centre Aaron Grandidier Nkanang, who are all yet to make their senior international debuts.
Players involved in the Top 14 final on the 27th June, including Antoine Dupont, will not link up with the France squad until after the opening match of the tournament, making them unavailable for the first fixture on 4th July.
France squad for the 2026 Nations Championship
Forwards- Moses Alo-Emile (Stade Français) – Uncapped
- Hugo Auradou (Section Paloise) – 12 caps
- Demba Bamba (Racing 92) – 31 caps
- Pierre Bochaton (Bordeaux-Bègles) – 2 caps
- Esteban Capilla (Bayonne) – Uncapped
- Sipili Falatea (Bordeaux-Bègles) – 14 caps
- Marko Gazzotti (Bordeaux-Bègles) – 1 cap
- Mickaël Guillard (LOU Rugby) – 18 caps
- Oscar Jegou (Stade Rochelais) – 13 caps
- Maxime Lamothe (Bordeaux-Bègles) – 3 caps
- Barnabé Massa (Clermont) – Uncapped
- Temo Matiu (Bordeaux-Bègles) – 1 cap
- Régis Montagne (Clermont) – 7 caps
- Boris Palu (Bordeaux-Bègles) – 2 caps
- Jefferson Poirot (Bordeaux-Bègles) – 36 caps
- Thomas Staniforth (Castres) – Uncapped
- Tevita Tatafu (Bayonne) – 2 caps
- Killian Tixeront (Clermont) – 3 caps
- Réda Wardi (Stade Rochelais) – 18 caps
- Théo Attissogbe (Section Paloise) – 13 caps
- Fabien Brau-Boirie (Section Paloise) – 2 caps
- Nicolas Depoortere (Bordeaux-Bègles) – 9 caps
- Mathis Ferté (RC Toulon) – Uncapped
- Théo Forner (USA Perpignan) – Uncapped
- Émilien Gailleton (Section Paloise) – 13 caps
- Aaron Grandidier Nkanang (Section Paloise) – Uncapped
- Antoine Hastoy (Stade Rochelais) – 10 caps
- Matthieu Jalibert (Bordeaux-Bègles) – 39 caps
- Nolann Le Garrec (Stade Rochelais) – 14 caps
- Maxime Lucu (Bordeaux-Bègles) – 30 caps
- Yoram Moefana (Bordeaux-Bègles) – 39 caps
- Damian Penaud (Bordeaux-Bègles) – 59 caps
- Max Spring (Bayonne) – 1 cap
France’s Nations Championship schedule
- July 4: New Zealand vs France – Christchurch
- July 11: Australia vs France – Brisbane
- July 18: Japan vs France – Tokyo
France will depart for Brisbane on June 23 before travelling to Christchurch for their tournament opener against the All Blacks. Following their clash with Australia, Les Bleus will finish their Nations Championship campaign against Japan in Tokyo.
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