France team v Japan: Top 14 winner among four changes as Matthieu Jalibert experiment continues
Matthieu Jalibert (right) again features at full-back for France, while Alexandre Roumat (left) is one of four changes to Les Bleus' starting XV to take on Japan
France head coach Fabien Galthie has made four changes to his starting side to take on Japan, with Top 14 winner Alexandre Roumat back in the run-on group.
All four of those changes come in the starting pack, which means Les Bleus have also kept the exciting playmaking axis of Maxime Lucu, Romain Ntamack and Matthieu Jalibert intact.
France come into the Test at the Tokyo National Stadium in good spirits following their 42-26 win over the Wallabies last time out, and will be hoping to make it two victories from three in the maiden Nations Championship block.
Fabien Galthie makes changes as Les Bleus continue Matthieu Jalibert experiment
As mentioned above, Galthie has opted to retain the exact starting backline from the six-try win at Suncorp Stadium for their trip to Japan, meaning Bordeaux-Begles ace Jalibert continues at full-back. He is joined by Theo Attissogbe and Aaron Grandidier-Nkanang in the back-three.
Fabien Brau-Boirie and Yoram Moefana form the midfield pair once more, while Ntamack and Lucu also get the nod in the halves.
Up front, Toulouse back-rower Roumat slots straight in at number eight, forcing Marko Gazzotti over to the flanks alongside Lenni Nouchi. Emmanuel Meafou and Florian Verhaeghe continue in the locks, while Regis Montagne, Maxime Lamothe and Jefferson Poirot all come into the starting front-row.
The Les Bleus boss has opted to deploy a 6:2 split on his bench, with Peato Mauvaka, Reda Wardi, Sipili Falatea, Hugo Auradou, Tom Staniforth and Killian Tixeront the forward options and Paul Graou and Kalvin Gourgues the backs.
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France team v Japan in full
France: 15 Matthieu Jalibert, 14 Theo Attissogbe, 13 Fabien Brau-Boirie, 12 Yoram Moefana, 11 Aaron Grandidier-Nkanang, 10 Romain Ntamack, 9 Maxime Lucu (c), 8 Alexandre Roumat, 7 Marko Gazzotti, 6 Lenni Nouchi, 5 Emmanuel Meafou, 4 Florian Verhaeghe, 3 Regis Montagne, 2 Maxime Lamothe, 1 Jefferson Poirot
Replacements: 16 Peato Mauvaka, 17 Reda Wardi, 18 Sipili Falatea, 19 Hugo Auradou, 20 Tom Staniforth, 21 Killian Tixeront, 22 Paul Graou, 23 Kalvin Gourgues
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)
