Antoine Dupont among nine Top 14 finalists added to France squad for Nations Championship

Louis Chapman Coombe 28 Jun 2026 12:33 PM

A two layered image of Antoine Dupont (right) and Romain Ntamack (left) — Antoine Dupont (right) and Romain Ntamack (left) are among nine Top 14 finalists called into Fabien Galthie's squad

France have added nine Top 14 finalists to their extended squad for the Nations Championship, including star scrum-half and captain Antoine Dupont.

The Toulouse number nine has not played in the Southern Hemisphere since 2017, but looks set to end that streak this July after being called into the wider group.

The new inclusions are not available for France’s Nations Championship opener against the All Blacks, but are in contention for the latter two Tests against Australia and Japan.

Antoine Dupont among nine Top 14 finalists called into France squad

Dupont is joined by fellow Toulouse men Kalvin Gourgues, Emmanuel Meafou, Romain Ntamack, Alexandre Roumat and Peato Mauvaka in the extended squad, with the Rouge et Noir securing their fourth successive Top 14 title in last night’s 28-20 win, while Montpellier trio Auguste Cadot, Lenni Nouchi and Florian Verhageghe have also been added.

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Of that cohort, Dupont, Gourgues, Meafou, Roumat, Mauvaka and Nouchi all featured in France’s Six Nations title win earlier this year, while Ntamack returns to the Test side for the first time since the Autumn Nations Series back in November.

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Verhaeghe is also in line to win his first France cap since 2023, while Cadot could make his Test debut following his inclusion in the extended group.

Updated France squad in full

Forwards: Moses Alo-Émile, Hugo Auradou, Demba Bamba, Esteban Capilla, Sipili Falatea, Marko Gazzotti, Mickaël Guillard, Oscar Jegou, Maxime Lamothe, Barnabé Massa, Temo Matiu, Peato Mauvaka, Emmanuel Meafou, Régis Montagne, Lenni Nouchi, Boris Palu, Jefferson Poirot, Alexandre Roumat, Tom Staniforth, Tevit Tatafu, Killian Tixeront, Reda Wardi, Florian Verhaeghe

Backs: Theo Attissogbe, Fabien Brau-Boirie, Auguste Cadot, Nicolas Depoortere, Antoine Dupont, Mathis Ferté, Théo Forner, Émilien Gailleton, Kalvin Gourgues, Aaron Grandidier Nkanang, Antoine Hastoy, Matthieu Jalibert, Nolann le Garrec, Maxime Lucu, Yoram Moefana, Romain Ntamack, Damian Penaud, Max Spring

France’s Nations Championship July Fixtures

New Zealand v France
Date: Saturday, 4 July, 2026
Venue: One New Zealand Stadium, Christchurch
Kick-off: 19:10 (local), 08:10 (UK), 09:10 (France), 09:10 (South Africa), 17:10 (AEST), 16:10 (JST), 4:10 (Argentina), 3:10 (July 5, EDT)
Referee: Luke Pearce (RFU)
Assistant Referees: Christophe Ridley (RFU), Katsuki Furuse (JRFU)
TMO: Marius van der Westhuizen (SARU)
FPRO: Ben Whitehouse (WRU)
Broadcasters: ITV (United Kingdom), TF1 (France), Virgin Media Television (Republic of Ireland), Sky Italia (Italy), Wowow (Japan), Sky Sport (New Zealand), Nine Network / Stan Sport (Australia), SuperSport (South Africa)

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Australia v France
Date: Saturday, 11 July, 2026
Venue: Suncorp Stadium, Brisbane
Kick-off: 17:40 (local), 08:40 (UK), 09:40 (France), 09:40 (South Africa), 19:40 (NZST), 16:40 (JST), 4:40 (July 5, Argentina), 3:40 (July 5, EDT)
Referee: Karl Dickson (RFU)
Assistant Referees: Christophe Ridley (RFU), Katsuki Furuse (JRFU)
TMO: Andrew Jackson (RFU)
FPRO: Glenn Newman (NZR)
Broadcasters: ITV (United Kingdom), TF1 (France), Virgin Media Television (Republic of Ireland), Sky Italia (Italy), Wowow (Japan), Sky Sport (New Zealand), Nine Network / Stan Sport (Australia), SuperSport (South Africa)

Japan v France

Date: Saturday, 18 July, 2026
Venue: Tokyo National Stadium, Tokyo
Kick-off: 17:40 (local), 08:40 (UK), 9:40 (France), 9:40 (South Africa), 19:40 (NZST), 18:40 (AEST), 5:40 (Argentina), 4:40 (EDT)
Referee: Ben O’Keeffe (NZR)
Assistant Referees: Andrea Piardi (FIR), Luke Pearce (RFU)
TMO: Glenn Newman (NZR)
FPRO: Matteo Liperini (FIR)
Broadcasters: ITV (United Kingdom), TF1 (France), Virgin Media Television (Republic of Ireland), Sky Italia (Italy), Wowow (Japan), Sky Sport (New Zealand), Nine Network / Stan Sport (Australia), SuperSport (South Africa)