England’s 2025 Six Nations Championship couldn’t get off to a harder start with France at Twickenham hot on the heels of their opening-round game against defending champions Ireland in Dublin.
A poor second-half performance ultimately proved costly for Steve Borthwick’s side as they were defeated 27-22 in their Six nations opener.
Les Bleus, inspired by the irrepressible Antoine Dupont cruised to a record opening Six Nations victory against woeful Wales in Paris.
Home captain Dupont dazzled on his Six Nations return as he provided the inspiration with three try assists before he was taken off after only 49 minutes.
When is England v France?
England host France on Saturday, February 8. The match will kick-off 4.45pm (GMT).
It is the second game of round two, sandwiched between Italy v Wales at 2.15pm on Saturday, February 8, and Scotland v Ireland at 3pm on Sunday, February 9
Where is England v France taking place?
At Twickenham Stadium, often referred to as ‘the Home of Rugby’, and officially now known as the Allianz Stadium for sponsorship reasons. With an 82,000 capacity, it is the world’s largest rugby union stadium, the second largest stadium in the UK, behind Wembley, and the fourth largest in Europe. Construction of the stadium began in 1907 and it was officially opened in 1909. So it has been the home of English rugby for 115 years.
How to watch England v France on TV?
It will be on ITV1. The BBC and ITV will once again share coverage of the Six Nations in the UK.
Alternatively, you can bookmark this page and follow Telegraph Sport’s live coverage of the game.
Who is the referee?
Referee: Nika Amashukeli (GRU)
Assistant Referee 1: Andrea Piardi (FIR)
Assistant Referee 2: Damian Schneider (UAR)
TMO: Marius van der Westhuizen (SARU)
FPRO: Marius Jonker (SARU)
What is the England team news?
Steve Borthwick was forced into a drastic reshuffle of his Six Nations squad after Jamie George was among four players ruled out of England’s opener against Ireland. He will be hoping for better news in the week leading up to the France clash.
England’s Six Nations squad
Forwards: Fin Baxter, Ollie Chessum, Arthur Clark, Luke Cowan-Dickie, Chandler Cunningham-South, Ben Curry, Tom Curry, Theo Dan, Ben Earl, Ellis Genge, Joe Heyes, Ted Hill, Maro Itoje (c), Curtis Langdon, George Martin, Asher Opoku-Fordjour, Henry Pollock, Bevan Rodd, Will Stuart, Tom Willis.
Backs: Oscar Beard, Elliot Daly, Fraser Dingwall, George Ford, Tommy Freeman, Ollie Lawrence, Alex Mitchell, Cadan Murley, Raffi Quirke, Harry Randall, Tom Roebuck, Henry Slade, Ollie Sleightholme, Fin Smith, Marcus Smith, Ben Spencer, Freddie Steward.
Withdrawals: Alex Coles, Alex Dombrandt, Jamie George, Jack van Poortvleit
France’s Six Nations squad
Forwards: Esteban Abadie, Dorian Aldegheri, Gregory Alldritt, Uini Atonio, Hugo Auradou, Cyril Baille, Giorgi Beria, Paul Boudehent, Joshua Brennan, Georges-Henri Colombe, Francois Cros, Thibaud Flament, Marko Gazzotti, Jean-Baptiste Gros, Mickaël Guillard, Matthias Halagahu, Oscar Jegou, Maxime Lamothe, Julien Marchand, Peato Mauvaka, Emmanuel Meafou, Dany Priso, Rabah Slimani, Romain Taofifénua
Backs: Theo Attissogbe, Pierre-Louis Barassi, Leo Barre, Nicolas Depoortere, Gael Drean, Antoine Dupont (c), Antoine Frisch, Emilien Gailleton, Matthieu Jalibert, Nolann le Garrec, Maxime Lucu, Yoram Moefana, Noah Nene, Romain Ntamack, Damien Penaud, Thomas Ramos, Killian Tixeront, Gabin Villiere
When did England and France last win the Six Nations?
England last claimed the title in 2020. France were winners as recently as 2022.
England’s last Grand Slam was in 2016. France achieved it in 2022, the same year they last lifted the trophy.
England’s last Triple Crown – an accolade awarded to either England, Ireland, Scotland or Wales for beating all the other Home Nations – was in 2020.
What was the score last year?
It was a last-gasp heartbreak for England as they went down 33-31 in Paris. A penalty from the half-way line by Thomas Ramos in the 80th minute snatched what would have been the most significant win of Borthwick’s tenure, and a first against France on French soil since 2016.
