PARIS (Updated) – The French Rugby Federation (FFR) announced a key squad adjustment on Monday, confirming that star French rugby playmaker Antoine Dupont will not feature in the opening rounds of the brand-new inaugural Nations Championship. Taking his place in the traveling squad will be his Toulouse club teammate Paul Graou. As of the announcement, the FFR has not released any additional details regarding the reason behind the last-minute change to the national side’s roster.
The newly launched Nations Championship introduces a fresh, cross-hemisphere competition structure for international rugby, splitting teams into two groups based on their geographic location – northern versus southern hemisphere. The tournament kicks off with three matchdays scheduled across July, followed by another three fixtures in November, before the whole campaign concludes with a knockout Finals Weekend to determine the overall champion.
France’s opening run of fixtures in the new competition is grueling, starting with a showdown this Saturday against three-time World Cup champion New Zealand in Christchurch. The side will then travel north to Brisbane to face Australia on July 13, before wrapping up their July tour with a match against Japan in Tokyo the following weekend.
Widely regarded as the finest scrumhalf in global rugby at present, Dupont was just in action over the weekend leading his club Toulouse to a historic fourth consecutive French Top 14 title. Toulouse secured the championship with a 28-20 victory over Montpellier, and Graou actually came on to replace Dupont in the second half of that title-deciding match as Toulouse lifted the coveted Bouclier de Brennus, the French men’s rugby top-flight trophy, once again.
The 29-year-old playmaker has built an extraordinary international record across his 64 test caps for France, crossing the try line 16 times to date. Most recently, he played a central role in helping France successfully defend their Six Nations Championship title earlier this year. Two years ago, Dupont made a high-profile temporary switch from the 15-a-side format of the game to lead France’s rugby sevens squad to an Olympic gold medal on home soil at the 2024 Paris Games.