Springboks Dominate France 32-17 in Paris Rugby Showdown

France vs. South Africa: A Thrilling Encounter at Stade de France

France and South Africa faced off at the Stade de France in what was the headline clash of the 2025 Autumn Nations Series. This match carried extra significance as it marked their first meeting since the 2023 Rugby World Cup quarterfinal, where the Springboks narrowly advanced on their way to another world title. This time, the margin was far more convincing.

France struck early through Damian Penaud, whose two first-half tries gave the home crowd plenty to cheer about. However, the Springboks showed why they remain the top-ranked team in the world. Even after losing Lood de Jager to a red card before halftime, South Africa stayed composed, turning the match with relentless forward play and a punishing maul that broke the French defense in the final quarter.

In the end, the Springboks powered to a 32–17 win, extending their dominance and silencing the Stade de France.

Key Moments from the Match

• Damian Penaud's Scoring: Two Damian Penaud tries got Les Bleus off to a scorching start, with his second coming in the 27th minute. Thomas Ramos set up both tries with brilliant play.
• Penalty Goals: Early on, the Boks chose to focus on penalty goals instead of opting for lineouts. Through four penalty attempts, Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu made two, keeping SA within reach of the lead.
• Strategic Shift: What made little sense in the first half made complete sense as the French team were worn down. After a slew of replacements, South Africa turned their focus to kicking to touch, lineouts, and using the maul to score, with two of their last three tries coming from that strategy.
• Red Card Impact: Oh, and the Springboks played with 14 men after a first-half red card on Lood de Jager for a high tackle.

Game Highlights

• Sacha Scores! - 77': France 17, South Africa 32
  This game has turned, as Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu takes the offload from Manie Libbok, fakes a pass, and then scores.

• Bielle-Biarrey Comes Back - 74': France 17, South Africa 25
  Louis Bielle-Biarrey's yellow card has expired and France have the man-advantage once again.

• Grant Williams Scores! - 71': France 17, South Africa 25
  South Africa once again pushes behind the maul, this time the ball finds its way to Grant Williams, who scoots around the pile of players and past the try-line.

• South Africa Take The Lead! - 64': France 17, South Africa 18
  The Springboks immediately take the lead off the penalty, using the maul to push the French defense backwards. Andre Esterhuizen is awarded the try. Sacha misses the conversion.

• Louis Bielle-Biarrey Shown Yellow Card 🟨 - 63': France 17, South Africa 13
  Deliberate knock-on by Louis Bielle-Biarrey during the South Africa's push after an SA build-up at the French end.

• Ramos Adds Three Points - 59': France 17, South Africa 13
  Thomas Ramos adds a penalty goal as France tries to pad their lead.

• France Holding Lead - 57': France 14, South Africa 13
  France are holding onto the 1-point lead by the skin of their teeth. It's been a lot of back and forth by each team throughout the second half. Both have had chances but have not capitalized.

Team Lineups

France Rugby Lineup

Baptiste Erdocio
Julien Marchand
Regis Montagne
Thibaud Flament
Emmanuel Meafou
Anthony Jelonch
Paul Boudehent
Mickael Guillard
Nolann Le Garrec
Romain Ntamack
Louis Bielle-Biarrey
Gael Fickou
Pierre-Louis Barassi
Damian Penaud
Thomas Ramos

Substitutes: 16. Guillaume Cramont, 17. Jean-Baptiste Gros, 18. Dorian Aldegheri, 19. Romain Taofifenua, 20. Hugo Auradou, 21. Oscar Jegou, 22. Maxime Lucu, 23. Nicolas Depoortere

Springboks Team Today

Boan Venter
Malcolm Marx
Thomas du Toit
Eben Etzebeth
Lood de Jager
Siya Kolisi
Pieter-Steph du Toit
Jasper Wiese
Cobus Reinach
Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu
Kurt-Lee Arendse
Damian de Allende
Jesse Kriel
Cheslin Kolbe
Damian Willemse

Substitutes: Johan Grobbelaar, 17. Gerhard Steenekamp, 18. Wilco Louw, 19. RG Snyman, 20. Ruan Nortje, 21. Andre Esterhuizen, 22. Grant Williams, 23. Manie Libbok

Schedule and Broadcast Information

France Rugby Fixtures 2025

• Saturday, Nov. 8 – 3:10 p.m. ET – France vs. South Africa – Stade de France
• Saturday, Nov. 15 – 3:10 p.m. ET – France vs. Fiji – Stade Matmut-Atlantique
• Saturday, Nov. 22 – 3:10 p.m. ET – France vs. Australia – Stade de France

Springboks Rugby Fixtures 2025

• Saturday, Nov. 8 – 3:10 p.m. ET – France vs. South Africa – Stade de France
• Saturday, Nov. 15 – 1:40 p.m. ET – Italy vs. South Africa – Stadio Olimpico
• Saturday, Nov. 22 – 6:40 p.m. ET – Ireland vs. South Africa – Aviva Stadium
• Saturday, Nov. 29 – 4:10 p.m. ET – Wales vs. South Africa – Principality Stadium

How to Watch

Fans in the United States can stream the matches on Peacock, while other regions have different channels such as TNT Sports, Virgin Media, S4C, SuperSport, Stan Sport, and Sky Sport NZ. For live updates and scores, follow along as France hosts South Africa at Stade de France on November 8.