France excludes Top 14 final players from July tests

The French rugby union (FFR) has agreed with Top 14 organisers to exclude players from selection for July internationals in defiance of World Rugby regulations.

The FFR said in a statement players who compete in the Top 14 finals in June 2025 and 2026 will not be selected for France as part of a player availability agreement with the National Rugby League (LNR).

The move is at odds with World Rugby's Regulation 9 which specifies that players must be available for selection during international windows.

It all but ensures France will bring a weakened squad to New Zealand for the July tour next year given the prevalence of its leading players in the domestic league.

France has previously toured southern hemisphere nations with under-strength squads for mid-year tests without openly stating its selection priorities in advance.

World Rugby and New Zealand Rugby did not provide immediate comment when contacted by Reuters.

The FFR and LNR said their accord "reconcile(s) the performance of the French teams, the competitiveness of the clubs and the health of the players."

With the Top 14 arguably the world's most demanding professional rugby league, France's test players are often saddled with high workloads compared to their global peers.

France suffered a slew of injuries before hosting the Rugby World Cup last year and were knocked out of the quarterfinals by eventual champions South Africa.

The FFR and LNR's player availability agreement also included provisions for the Six Nations tournament for the next two years, with priority given to test selection.

The provisions allow for a minority of France squad players to be released to play for their Top 14 clubs during the Six Nations but only on weekends without test rugby.

Most Six Nations' squad players will otherwise be rested from Top 14 on non-test weekends "depending on their workload and selection forecasts".