Tadhg Beirne secures lineout possession for Ireland during last March's meeting with France at the Aviva Stadium ©Seb Daly/Sportsfile
With four Guinness Men’s Six Nations titles between them since 2022, Ireland and France have developed one of the most compelling rivalries in modern international rugby. Check out the Opta Facts, provided by Stats Perform, ahead of Thursday’s first round clash in Paris.
– France have won 13 and lost 11 of their 26 meetings with Ireland in the Guinness Men’s Six Nations (D2). They are the only team that Ireland do not have a winning record against in the Championship
– Ireland won their most recent away match against France in the Men’s Six Nations, in the opening match in 2024
– Including the Five Nations, the last time Ireland won consecutive away games against les Bleus in the Championship was between 1925 and 1928, when they won three in a row
– This will be the first fixture to take place on a Thursday in the Men’s Five or Six Nations since France hosted Ireland in Colombes in the opening match of the 1948 edition. Ireland were victorious that day and subsequently went on to clinch the first of their four Grand Slams
– Ireland have won more round 1 fixtures than any other team in the Men’s Six Nations (W19 D1 L6), just ahead of France and England (both W18, L8)
– Six of France’s eight opening round defeats have come against the team who went on to win the Championship, including the last four in a row (England in 2017, Ireland in 2018, Wales in 2019, and Ireland in 2024)
– France have won 12 of their last 13 Men’s Six Nations games at the Stade de France (L1), including the last seven in a row, with their only defeat in that run coming against Scotland in 2021
– Les Bleus have not trailed at half-time in a Six Nations encounter at the Saint-Denis venue since the opening round in 2018, against Ireland
– France lost just one of their 67 lineouts in the Men’s Six Nations in 2025, with their 99% success rate being the best of any team
– Only England (97%) recorded a better scrum success rate than les Bleus (95%). Ireland recorded the lowest scrum success rate in the Championship last year (89%)
– Ireland (40) and France (41) conceded fewer penalties than any other team in the 2025 Championship. Ireland were also awarded the most penalties of any side last year (55), however France were awarded the fewest (44)
– Thomas Ramos was the top points scorer in each of the last three editions of the Men’s Six Nations (84 points in 2023, 63 in 2024, and 71 in 2025). He was just the second player to achieve that feat after Ireland legend Ronan O’Gara (2005, 2006, and 2007)
– Ramos needs just 11 more points to become the first player to reach 500 points for France in Men’s Test rugby
– France’s Louis Bielle-Biarrey scored eight tries in the 2025 tournament, the most of any player in a single edition of the Men’s Six Nations, overtaking the previous record of seven set by Jacob Stockdale for Ireland in 2018
– Additionally, despite playing just 237 minutes, Antoine Dupont assisted seven tries last year. Only England’s Jonny Wilkinson has assisted more during a single campaign (8 in 2001)
– Ireland hooker Dan Sheehan has scored five tries in each of the last two editions of the Men’s Six Nations. No other forward has scored as many in a single Championship – he crossed the line once against France in both campaigns
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