France Faces South Africa in High-Stakes Autumn Rugby Test at Stade de France

On November 8, 2025, the French national rugby team confronted the reigning world champions South Africa in a much-anticipated autumn test match at Stade de France. This game symbolized a significant rematch occurring more than two years after France’s narrow 29-28 quarter-final loss to the Springboks in the 2023 Rugby World Cup.

Coached by Fabien Galthié, France introduced a new half-back pairing featuring Nolann Le Garrec at scrum-half and Romain Ntamack at fly-half, with star player Antoine Dupont recovering but not starting. The experienced front row included Baptiste Erdocio, Régis Montagne, and Julien Marchand. Galthié emphasized the formidable nature of the South African side, noting their 20 wins and 4 losses since their last World Cup victory – the strongest opponent France has faced in seven years (Source 135466).

Key French players voiced their perspectives ahead of the match. Anthony Jelonch described the game as an enormous challenge and expressed excitement to compete against the world champions in front of a home crowd. He acknowledged the painful memory of the World Cup loss but framed the match as one of the team’s biggest recent encounters rather than a revenge match, saying, "It's not a revenge match, but one of our biggest encounters in recent years" (Source 135476).

Similarly, Gaël Fickou downplayed the concept of revenge, highlighting the Springboks’ collective experience and recent success with consecutive World Cup titles and recent Rugby Championship victory. While acknowledging the emotional difficulty of their last meeting, Fickou stressed the importance of focusing on the present squad and the challenge ahead, stating, "We think about the past, reflect on what we can do better, but we are moving forward and thinking about this match on Saturday" (Source 135465).

This autumn tour marks a pivotal period for France, with further matches planned against Fiji and Australia later in November. The game against South Africa set the tone for these encounters, representing not only a test of skill against the reigning champions but also an opportunity to demonstrate growth since the previous World Cup heartbreak.

Overall, with a mix of new tactics, experienced players, and strong emotional motivation, France aimed to deliver a compelling performance against one of rugby’s most dominant teams on a storied stage.