The National Rugby Union teams of

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

and

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island coun ...

(the All Blacks) have been playing each other for over a century. The first encounter, during the historic 1905–1906 All Blacks tour of Europe and North America, which was also France's first Test, took place in Paris in January 1906 and was won by New Zealand 38–8. It was not until their third meeting, in 1954, that France secured their first win over New Zealand 3-0. France first toured New Zealand in 1961 before any of the

Home Nations Home Nations is a collective term with one of two meanings depending on context. Politically it means the nations of the constituent countries of the United Kingdom (England, Northern Ireland, Scotland, and Wales). In sport, if a sport is g ...

and the All Blacks won all three Tests. The All Blacks first full tour of France was in 1977, when they won one of the two tests. France first defeated the All Blacks in New Zealand on

Bastille Day Bastille Day is the common name given in English-speaking countries to the national day of France, which is celebrated on 14 July each year. In French, it is formally called the (; "French National Celebration"); legally it is known as (; "t ...

1979. France achieved a first series win in New Zealand in 1994, when they won both Tests. Since 2000, the two teams have contested the

Dave Gallaher Trophy The Dave Gallaher Trophy is a rugby union trophy contested between and . It is named after Dave Gallaher, the 1905–06 All Black captain who was killed in Belgium during World War I. History When it comes to rugby, France and New Zealand hav ...

. The teams World Cup history includes seven matches, the joint most for any pair of teams. They have played two tournament finals, in 1987 and 2011 (both at

Eden Park Eden Park is New Zealand's largest sports stadium, with a capacity of 50,000. Located in central Auckland, New Zealand's largest city, it is three kilometres southwest of the Auckland CBD, CBD, on the boundary between the suburbs of Mount E ...

and both won by New Zealand). Overall, the All Blacks have won 48 Tests against France's 13, with one match drawn. The largest winning margin in a test match between the countries was a 61-10 victory to the All Blacks at

Westpac Stadium Wellington Regional Stadium (known commercially as Sky Stadium through naming rights) is a major sporting venue in Wellington, New Zealand. The stadium's bowl site size is . The stadium was built in 1999 by Fletcher Construction and is situ ...

Wellington Wellington ( mi, Te Whanganui-a-Tara or ) is the capital city of New Zealand. It is located at the south-western tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Remutaka Range. Wellington is the second-largest city in New Zealand by ...

in 2007. The most career points scored by members of either team is 92 by

Andrew Mehrtens Andrew Philip Mehrtens (born 28 April 1973) is a New Zealand former rugby union player. He was regarded as a top first five-eighth, having played first for Canterbury in 1993, before being selected for the All Blacks (New Zealand's national t ...

, and he also holds the record for most points in one match with 29. Despite the vastly superior win record of New Zealand in this encounter, France has the greatest number of wins against the All Blacks of any Northern Hemisphere opponent to date. France are sometimes called the "bogey" team of New Zealand, known for having inconsistent results in regular test matches, but have proven to be fierce opponents in the knockout stage of the Rugby World Cup. All Black campaigns in The Rugby World Cup were halted by defeats to France in 1999 and 2007, and were nearly upset again in 2011 with a very narrow 8-7 victory in the final.

History

Early meetings (1905–25)

The first-ever New Zealand tour to the

Northern Hemisphere The Northern Hemisphere is the half of Earth that is north of the Equator. For other planets in the Solar System, north is defined as being in the same celestial hemisphere relative to the invariable plane of the solar system as Earth's Nort ...

was in 1905–06. It was also the first time they wore a black strip and the first time they performed the

haka Haka (; plural ''haka'', in both Māori and English) are a variety of ceremonial performance art in Māori culture. It is often performed by a group, with vigorous movements and stamping of the feet with rhythmically shouted or chanted accompani ...

. The team – known today as " The Original All Blacks" – played various club and national sides throughout the

British Isles The British Isles are a group of islands in the North Atlantic Ocean off the north-western coast of continental Europe, consisting of the islands of Great Britain, Ireland, the Isle of Man, the Inner and Outer Hebrides, the Northern Isl ...

before taking on France on 1 January 1906. This was France's first Test and was held at

Parc des Princes Parc des Princes () is an all-seater football stadium in Paris, France, in the south-west of the French capital, inside the 16th arrondissement, near the Stade Jean-Bouin and Stade Roland Garros. The stadium, with a seating capacity of 47 ...

, Paris. The All Blacks scored ten tries, including six in the second half, to France's two, and won 38–8. Despite the scoreline, France's two tries were more than any previous team had scored against the All Blacks on tour. Commenting on the state of French rugby in their book ''The Complete Rugby Footballer'', Original All Blacks

Dave Gallaher David Gallaher (30October 1873 – 4October 1917) was an Irish-born New Zealand rugby union footballer best remembered as the captain of the " Original All Blacks"—the 1905–06 New Zealand national team, the first representative New Zealan ...

and

Billy Stead Billy Stead, born John William Stead, (18 September 1877 – 21 July 1958) was a rugby union player born in Invercargill who played for New Zealand, the All Blacks, on their 1905–06 tour. Stead also played provincially for Southland, and lat ...

wrote: "We are strongly of the opinion that the game will spread in their country and that in the course of time they will put a team in the field which will command the utmost respect of any other." The 1924–25 All Blacks' '' Invincibles'' tour included a Test against France. The teams met at the

Stade des Ponts Jumeaux The Stade des Ponts Jumeaux (the "Twin Bridges Stadium") was a rugby union stadium, inaugurated on 24 November 1907, in the ''Ponts Jumeaux'' district of Toulouse, south-western France. The land was purchased by the embryonic Stade Toulousain rug ...

Toulouse Toulouse ( , ; oc, Tolosa ) is the prefecture of the French department of Haute-Garonne and of the larger region of Occitania. The city is on the banks of the River Garonne, from the Mediterranean Sea, from the Atlantic Ocean and fr ...

on 18 January 1925.31st All Blacks Test Although French rugby had improved since 1906, the All Blacks still won 30–6, with France scoring two tries. All Blacks' captain

Cliff Porter Scottish-born Clifford Glen Porter (5 May 1899 in Edinburgh – 12 November 1976 in Wellington) was a New Zealand rugby union player. Playing as a wing forward, he represented Wellington at a provincial level and captained the New Zealand nationa ...

said of France "Your forwards gave us a lot of bother. Your three-quarters were not so good."Potter (1961), p. 175. In 1926, France lost to the New Zealand Maori.Potter (1961), p. 102. Perhaps the "most celebrated Maori side in history", they undertook a seven-month 1926–27 tour of Australia, Ceylon, France, Wales and Canada, playing 38 matches, winning 29 and losing seven, with two draws.BBC News (June 2003) In total, the Maori scored 712 points while conceding 215. This was the last match between a New Zealand representative team and France for nearly three decades. In 1932 the International Rugby Football Board (IRB) expelled France from the

Five Nations Championship The Six Nations Championship (known as the Guinness Six Nations for sponsorship reasons) is an annual international men's rugby union competition between the teams of England, France, Ireland, Italy, Scotland and Wales. The current champions ar ...

for breaching the

professionalism A professional is a member of a profession or any person who works in a specified professional activity. The term also describes the standards of education and training that prepare members of the profession with the particular knowledge and ski ...

rules in its domestic club competition. Consequently, the All Blacks did not face France during their 1935 British Isles' tour. Although France was readmitted in 1939, the Second World War intervened, suspending international competition. In 1946, France played two matches against a team selected from the

New Zealand Expeditionary Force The New Zealand Expeditionary Force (NZEF) was the title of the military forces sent from New Zealand to fight alongside other British Empire and Dominion troops during World War I (1914–1918) and World War II (1939–1945). Ultimately, the NZE ...

, nicknamed the "Khaki All Blacks". Despite the team not being a representative New Zealand side, they included many future All Blacks. The games took place on 10 March at Stade Colombes, Paris, and on 24 March at Wallon Stadium, Toulouse. The Khaki All Blacks won both (14–9 and 13–10).

Post war (1954–68)

The 1954 match at Stade Colombes, Paris, was dominated by the All Blacks who had the majority of possession and territory. Despite this, France scored in the 35th minute after the ball was lost by All Blacks' half-back Keith Davis from France's line. The ball was picked up by French number eight Robert Baulon who passed to Paul Labadie. Labadie then passed to French captain

Jean Prat Jean Prat (1 August 1923 – 25 February 2005) was a French rugby union footballer. He played as a flanker. He was awarded the Légion d'honneur in 1959. He is considered one of the best French rugby players of all time and was inducted into both ...

who scored a try, giving France a 3–0 lead that the All Blacks failed to close.Potter (1961), p. 103. Although New Zealand relentlessly attacked the French line – and made several

drop goal A drop goal, field goal, or dropped goal is a method of scoring points in rugby union and rugby league and also, rarely, in American football and Canadian football. A drop goal is scored by drop kicking the ball (dropping the ball and then kicki ...

and penalty attempts – the French defence held, earning France their first win (3–0) over the All Blacks. France first toured New Zealand in 1961 – before any of the Home Nations.Palenski (2003), p. 51. The first Test at

was won 13–6 by the All Blacks after they scored two converted tries and a penalty. France's

first five-eighth In the game of rugby union, there are 15 players on each team, comprising eight forwards (wearing jerseys numbered 1–8) and seven backs (numbered 9–15). In addition, there may be up to eight replacement players "on the bench", numbered 16– ...

Pierre Albaladejo kicked all of France's points with two drop goals, prompting the New Zealanders to nickname him "Monsieur Drop"."105th All Black Test" The second Test of the tour was played at Athletic Park in

."106th All Black Test" The wind was very strong and neither team scored during the first half. In the second, playing into the wind, France scored a try to lead 3–0. The All Blacks'

Kel Tremain Kelvin Robin Tremain (21 February 1938 – 2 May 1992) was a New Zealand rugby union player and administrator. A flanker, he won 38 full caps for the New Zealand national team, the All Blacks, between 1959 and 1968, scoring nine tries. During th ...

responded with a try. In one of the best conversions of his career,

Don Clarke Donald Barry Clarke (10 November 1933 – 29 December 2002) was a New Zealand rugby union player who played 89 times (31 of these were test matches) as a New Zealand international from 1956 until 1964. He was best known for his phenomena ...

kicked almost parallel to the goal-line, relying on the strong wind to gust the ball over the posts. The Blacks won 5–3.Palenski (2003), p. 52. Although the All Blacks won the final Test in

Christchurch Christchurch ( ; mi, Ōtautahi) is the largest city in the South Island of New Zealand and the seat of the Canterbury Region. Christchurch lies on the South Island's east coast, just north of Banks Peninsula on Pegasus Bay. The Avon Rive ...

32–3 to take the series, the tour had a positive influence in France where it was broadcast on national television via satellite, popularising the sport beyond its traditional heartland of the southwest.Dine (2001), p. 131. The next two matches between the teams were both in Paris. The All Blacks won the first 12–3 in 1964 after tries from Ralph Caulton and Ken Gray. In the next match, in 1967, the All Blacks were coached by

Fred Allen John Florence Sullivan (May 31, 1894 – March 17, 1956), known professionally as Fred Allen, was an American comedian. His absurdist, topically pointed radio program ''The Fred Allen Show'' (1932–1949) made him one of the most popular and for ...

and captained by

Brian Lochore Sir Brian James Lochore (3 September 1940 – 3 August 2019) was a New Zealand rugby union player and coach who represented and captained the New Zealand national team, the All Blacks. He played at number 8 and lock, as well as captaining the ...

; they won 21–15. In 1968, following their first Five Nations Grand Slam, France toured Australia and New Zealand. They were defeated in their Test against Australia and in all three against the All Blacks. The All Blacks' side was particularly strong and won all its Tests between 1965 and 1970. France's touring losses presaged a string of defeats that did not end until they drew against

Wales Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the Bristol Channel to the south. It had a population in ...

in the 1969 Five Nations (in which France finished last).Dine (2001), p. 154.

Full amateur tours (1970–1994)

France achieved only their second Test victory over the All Blacks in 1973 at Parc des Princes, Paris."158th All Black Test" The All Blacks had defeated

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe ...

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to ...

and Wales, and drawn with

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel, the Irish Sea, and St George's Channel. Ireland is the s ...

on their 1973 tour and France was their last Test. France won 13–6, and scored two tries to nil, with two penalties the only points from the All Blacks.Palenski (2003), p. 53. In 1977 the All Blacks made their first-ever full tour of France. France won the first Test in Toulouse and the All Blacks the second in Paris. France then reciprocated and toured New Zealand in 1979. This time, neutral referees were appointed for the first time. The All Blacks won the first Test 23–9 at Lancaster Park. However, in the second Test, France upset the All Blacks by winning 24–19 on

at Eden Park. The victory was France's first win in New Zealand over the All Blacks.Palenski (2003), p. 55. The 1980s saw many France – New Zealand Tests. The first two were in 1981 when the All Blacks toured France, visiting in Toulouse and Paris; the All Blacks won both Tests, 13–9 and 18–6 respectively. In 1984, France visited New Zealand for two Tests. They lost the first, at Lancaster Park, 10–9 (despite repeated French drop goal attempts late in the match, nearly all in front of the posts from various distances) and the second, at Eden Park, 31–18. In 1986, France played a one-off Test in New Zealand, at Lancaster Park. Many top All Blacks were serving a two-month suspension for participating in the rebel

Cavaliers The term Cavalier () was first used by Roundheads as a term of abuse for the wealthier royalist supporters of King Charles I and his son Charles II of England during the English Civil War, the Interregnum, and the Restoration (1642 – ). It ...

tour to South Africa. The team that faced France became known as the "Baby Blacks" as all bar two of them were either making their Test début or were very inexperienced. The Baby Blacks upset France 18–9 in front of 24,000 spectators; the only try coming from number eight

Mike Brewer Mike Brewer (born 28 August 1964) is an English car trader turned presenter of motoring television programmes. He currently presents ''Wheeler Dealers'' on the Discovery Channel with Marc "Elvis" Priestley. Early life Brewer was born in 196 ...

."220th All Black Test" Later in 1986, the bans served, the full All Blacks toured France. They won the first Test, in Toulouse, 19–7. Their next match, at Nantes, became known as "the battle of Nantes".Palenski (2003), p. 61. France played aggressively and tried to intimidate the All Blacks. All Black

Buck Shelford Sir Wayne Thomas "Buck" Shelford (born 13 December 1957) is a former New Zealand rugby union footballer and coach who represented and captained New Zealand national rugby union team, New Zealand (the All Blacks) in the late 1980s. He is also cre ...

had his

scrotum The scrotum or scrotal sac is an anatomical male reproductive structure located at the base of the penis that consists of a suspended dual-chambered sac of skin and smooth muscle. It is present in most terrestrial male mammals. The scrotum co ...

ruck Ruck may refer to: * Ruck (rugby union), a contesting for the ball in Rugby Union from a grounded player * Ruck (Australian rules football), an aerial contest in Australian rules football between rival ruckmen * Ruck (rugby league), the area sur ...

ed in the twentieth minute that required stitches while he was still on the field. He was later knocked out, losing several teeth in the process, and did not finish the match. The aggressive display by France paid off and they won 16–3. The following year France and the All Blacks met in the final of the

inaugural In government and politics, inauguration is the process of swearing a person into office and thus making that person the incumbent. Such an inauguration commonly occurs through a formal ceremony or special event, which may also include an inaugur ...

Rugby World Cup The Rugby World Cup is a men's rugby union tournament contested every four years between the top international teams. The tournament is administered by World Rugby, the sport's international governing body. The winners are awarded the Webb ...

. The tournament was co-hosted by New Zealand and Australia and the final was held at Eden Park. The All Blacks were captained by

David Kirk David Edward Kirk (born 5 October 1960) is a former New Zealand rugby union player. He is best known for having been the captain of the All Blacks when they won the inaugural Rugby World Cup in 1987. Early years Kirk was born in Wellington an ...

and went on to win their first World Cup 29–9."231st All Black Test" According to the All Blacks' coach at the time,

, the previous year's loss in Nantes was the catalyst for their World Cup victory.Smith (2006) Shelford said of the match "We wanted to play them in the final because we wanted revenge".Kayes (2006) The match also helped improve the diplomatic and political rift between France and New Zealand caused by the 1985

bombing A bomb is an explosive weapon that uses the exothermic reaction of an explosive material to provide an extremely sudden and violent release of energy. Detonations inflict damage principally through ground- and atmosphere-transmitted mechanica ...

of the ''Rainbow Warrior'' by

French Secret Service This is a list of current and former French intelligence agencies. Currently active *DGSE: Directorate-General for External Security – '' Direction générale de la sécurité extérieure''. It is the military foreign intelligence agency, whi ...

agents.Dine (2001), p. 136. France toured New Zealand in 1989 and played a two Test series. They lost both Tests; the first 25–17 at Lancaster Park, and the second 34–20 at Eden Park. In both Tests the All Blacks led at the half time break, with France responding by scoring most of their points during the first 15 minutes of the second half before the All Blacks counter-attacked to win in the last quarter.The Times (1989) The All Blacks' reciprocal tour of France came in 1990. Again two Tests were played and again they were won by the All Blacks; 24–3 at Nantes, and 30–12 at the Parc de Princes. The All Blacks first-five eighth Grant Fox, dominated both matches, scoring 16 points in the first Test,Le Guernigou (1990) and 22 points in the second.Mehaffey (1990) The next tour was of New Zealand by France in 1994. In a major upset for New Zealand rugby, France took the first Test 22–8 at Lancaster Park, coinciding with Frenchman

Philippe Sella Philippe Sella (born 14 February 1962, in Tonneins) is French former rugby union player. He started as a rugby league junior in his home town before switching to rugby union. As a former French rugby union player, he held the record for most intern ...

's hundredth match for his country. Sella said of the game "But this historic victory for my 100th cap, with a score I never imagined – that's one of my really great, great memories". The second and final Test on tour was at Eden Park on 3 July 1994. The All Blacks were winning 20–16 with three minutes remaining after Matthew Cooper had kicked a penalty. The French counter-attacked and ran the ball the length of the field from their own in-goal area to win. The ball was handled by nine French players before the try was scored by

Jean-Luc Sadourny Jean-Luc Sadourny (born 26 August 1966 in Toulouse) is a former French rugby union footballer and a current coach. He played as a fullback. He was nicknamed ''The Old Woman'' (''La Vieille'') and he is generally considered one of the best French p ...

.Richards (2007) French captain

Philippe Saint-Andre Philippe is a masculine sometimes feminin given name, cognate to Philip. It may refer to: * Philippe of Belgium (born 1960), King of the Belgians (2013–present) * Philippe (footballer) (born 2000), Brazilian footballer * Prince Philippe, Count ...

called it "a counter-attack from the end of the world", and it was then labelled (the try from the end of the world).Gallagher (2003) The try gave France a 23–20 win and a 2–0 series win over the All Blacks. In 2003, ''

Daily Telegraph Daily or The Daily may refer to: Journalism * Daily newspaper, newspaper issued on five to seven day of most weeks * ''The Daily'' (podcast), a podcast by ''The New York Times'' * ''The Daily'' (News Corporation), a defunct US-based iPad new ...

'' readers voted the try the fourth best of all time in either rugby union or

rugby league Rugby league football, commonly known as just rugby league and sometimes football, footy, rugby or league, is a full-contact sport played by two teams of thirteen players on a rectangular field measuring 68 metres (75 yards) wide and 112 ...

Professional era (from 1995)

On 11 November 1995, France set a record when they defeated the All Blacks 22–15 at Toulouse—their third consecutive victory over the New Zealanders. A week later, on 18 November, at the Parc des Princes in Paris, the All Blacks took their revenge, inflicting a resounding 37–12 defeat. It was not until 1999 that the two teams met again, in a one-off Test at Athletic Park in Wellington. The All Blacks won 54–7; at the time France's largest ever loss."326th All Black Test"

Tana Umaga Jonathan Ionatana Falefasa Umaga (; ; born 27 May 1973) is a New Zealand former rugby union footballer and former captain of the national team, the All Blacks. Since 2016 he has been coach of the Blues in the Super Rugby competition. He playe ...

scored three tries and

kicked 19 points in the match. France All Blacks 16-11-2002

After their Athletic Park victory, the All Blacks were heavy favourites to win when they met France in the semi-finals of the

1999 Rugby World Cup The 1999 Rugby World Cup was the fourth Rugby World Cup, the quadrennial international rugby union championship. It was principally hosted by Wales, and was won by Australia. This was the first Rugby World Cup to be held in the sport's professi ...

.CNN/SI (1999) The game was played at the neutral venue of

Twickenham Stadium Twickenham Stadium () in Twickenham, south-west London, England, is a rugby union stadium owned by the Rugby Football Union (RFU), English rugby union governing body, which has its headquarters there. The England national rugby union team plays ...

on 31 October 1999. The All Blacks led 24–10 seven minutes into the second half after two tries (both from

Jonah Lomu Jonah Tali Lomu (12 May 1975 – 18 November 2015) was a New Zealand professional rugby union player. Lomu is considered to have been the first true global superstar of rugby, and consequently had a huge impact on the game. He is widely regarde ...

). France then scored two penalties and two drop goals to

Christophe Lamaison Christophe "Titou" Lamaison (born 8 April 1971) is a former French rugby union footballer who represented France at international level, and Brive, Agen and Aviron Bayonnais at professional club level. He won 37 caps, and at the time of his retire ...

to reduce the All Blacks' lead to 24–22 with 25 minutes remaining. Scrum-half

Fabien Galthié Fabien Galthié (; born 20 March 1969) is a French rugby union coach and former player, he is currently the head coach of the French national team. His usual position was at scrum-half. He played much of his club rugby for Colomiers, and later ...

chip kicked the ball to

Christophe Dominici Christophe Dominici (20 May 1972 – 24 November 2020) was a French rugby union player. In a career spanning seventeen years between 1991 and 2008, he played wing for Stade Français and France, scoring a total of 25 tries in 67 international c ...

who then scored.BBC News (1999) Another Lamaison kick set up a try for

centre Center or centre may refer to: Mathematics *Center (geometry), the middle of an object * Center (algebra), used in various contexts ** Center (group theory) ** Center (ring theory) * Graph center, the set of all vertices of minimum eccentricity ...

Richard Dourthe, which Lamaison converted, to take France into the lead, 36–24. France scored another try in the remaining five minutes, and although the All Blacks scored a last-minute try France won 43–31. Lamaison had scored 28 points, and a ''full house'' – a try, conversion, penalty and drop goal all in one match. Many have called this match "the greatest game in World Cup history".BBC News (September 2003) The

was introduced in 2000 to be contested between the two teams. It was named in memory of All Blacks captain Dave Gallaher who captained the All Blacks against France in 1906 and who died at the

Battle of Passchendaele The Third Battle of Ypres (german: link=no, Dritte Flandernschlacht; french: link=no, Troisième Bataille des Flandres; nl, Derde Slag om Ieper), also known as the Battle of Passchendaele (), was a campaign of the First World War, fought by t ...

. The Cup was first contested on

Armistice Day Armistice Day, later known as Remembrance Day in the Commonwealth and Veterans Day in the United States, is commemorated every year on 11 November to mark the armistice signed between the Allies of World War I and Germany at Compiègne, Fran ...

(11 November) 2000. The All Blacks won 39–26 and scored two tries while Andrew Mehrtens scored nine penalties."344th All Black Test" The two met again the following week and this time France won 42–33, but as only the first Test counted towards the trophy the All Blacks retained it. The countries met in one-off Tests in 2001, 2002 and 2003. The 2001 Test was won 37–12 by the All Blacks, the 2002 Test was a 20 all draw and in 2003 the All Blacks won 31–23 at Jade Stadium. They met again in 2003 at the

in Sydney. The match was a third-fourth play-off game and was won 40–13 by the All Blacks. In 2004 they met in a one-off Test in Paris. The 2004 Test was the first between the two teams with

Graham Henry Sir Graham William Henry (born 8 June 1946) is a New Zealand rugby union coach, and former head coach of the country's national team, the All Blacks. Nicknamed 'Ted', he led New Zealand to win the 2011 World Cup. Henry played rugby union for ...

as All Blacks coach. France were

2004 Six Nations The 2004 Six Nations Championship was the fifth series of the rugby union Six Nations Championship to be held since the competition expanded in 2000 to include Italy. Overall, this was the 110th series of the international championship. Match w ...

Champions, but were defeated by five tries to nil.Short (2004) The final score was a 45–6 win to the All Blacks; a record at the time."392nd All Black Test" They met in France in 2006 – this time for a two-Test series. The first Test was played in

Lyon Lyon,, ; Occitan: ''Lion'', hist. ''Lionés'' also spelled in English as Lyons, is the third-largest city and second-largest metropolitan area of France. It is located at the confluence of the rivers Rhône and Saône, to the northwest of ...

on Armistice Day. The All Blacks defeated France 46–3 which was a record defeat for them at home. This was despite the All Blacks' team not being their strongest available.Westerby (2006) Following the defeat France's manager

Jo Maso Jo, jo, JO, or J.O. may refer to: Arts and entertainment * ''Jo'' (film), a 1972 French comedy * ''Jo'' (TV series), a French TV series *"Jo", a song by Goldfrapp from ''Tales of Us'' *"Jo", a song by Mr. Oizo from '' Lambs Anger'' * Jo a ficti ...

said that the All Blacks played the match, "for all the New Zealanders who died during the two World Wars in Europe". "Laporte ..." The following week the two teams met in Paris, this time to commemorate the centennial of the first ever All Blacks versus France Test. Despite fielding what coach Graham Henry described as his best team, the All Blacks achieved a less notable 23–11 victory. The next year France visited New Zealand for a two-Test series. The final rounds of the

2006–07 Top 14 season The 2006–07 Top 14 competition was the 108th French domestic rugby union club competition operated by the Ligue Nationale de Rugby (LNR) and the 2nd using the name Top 14. Biarritz were out to defend their crown, after their defeat of Toulous ...

conflicted with the tour, so France sent a Test team short of 30 of their top players.Barclay (2007) With their weakened squad, the team was labelled "France C" by the New Zealand media. Featuring six new

caps Caps are flat headgear. Caps or CAPS may also refer to: Science and technology Computing * CESG Assisted Products Service, provided by the U.K. Government Communications Headquarters * Composite Application Platform Suite, by Java Caps, a Ja ...

, France were defeated 42–11 in the first Test at Eden Park. The second Test was played the following week in Wellington, and the All Blacks achieved their largest ever victory over France with a 61–10 win."NZ inflict ..." The defeat was France's heaviest in their history. France hosted the 2007 World Cup, and the two teams met in the tournament quarter-finals. Despite France's hosting of the tournament, the match was held at the

Millennium Stadium The Millennium Stadium ( cy, Stadiwm y Mileniwm), known since 2016 as the Principality Stadium ( cy, Stadiwm Principality) for sponsorship reasons, is the national stadium of Wales. Located in Cardiff, it is the home of the Wales national r ...

Cardiff Cardiff (; cy, Caerdydd ) is the capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of Wales. It forms a Principal areas of Wales, principal area, officially known as the City and County of Cardiff ( cy, Dinas a ...

, Wales. The match was won by France 20–18, and involved several controversial decisions by referee

Wayne Barnes Wayne Barnes (born 20 April 1979) is an English international rugby union referee and barrister. He is a regular referee in the English Premiership, and has refereed games in the Heineken Cup and the European Challenge Cup. At international lev ...

,Gower (2007) who subsequently received death threats from some fans.BBC News (2007) France scored one try after the sin binning of All Blacks

second five-eighth Second five-eighths, or sometimes second five-eighth, is a name used in New Zealand to refer the rugby union position commonly known elsewhere as the inside centre or number 12. It traditionally described a playmaking type of 12 with good passin ...

Luke McAlister Charles Luke McAlister (born 28 August 1983 in Waitara) is a New Zealand rugby union footballer. He plays at fly-half and at centre. He is the brother of New Zealand women's sevens player Kayla McAlister and son of rugby league footballer Ch ...

,"World Cup ..." and another from a forward pass unseen by the referee. The All Blacks were strongly criticised for not attempting a drop goal in the game's final minutes.Rattue (2007) Their performance was analysed by

Palmerston North Palmerston North (; mi, Te Papa-i-Oea, known colloquially as Palmy) is a city in the North Island of New Zealand and the seat of the Manawatū-Whanganui region. Located in the eastern Manawatu Plains, the city is near the north bank of the ...

based company Verusco who had analysed 1,500 games since 2000. They discovered that the All Blacks made 57 tackles to France's 269, and they had 66 percent possession and 60 percent territory. The playing time, that is time the ball is in play, was the longest of any game Verusco had ever recorded.Lampp (2007) An 'Independent Review of the 2007 Rugby World Cup Campaign', conducted by Russel McVeagh lawyers and SPARC ( Sport and Recreation New Zealand), found that Barnes and the touch judges had a significant impact on the result of the match. The report states that "The penalty count was 10-2 against the All Blacks, with none awarded in the second half, despite dominance in territory and possession (which statistically should result in penalties awarded to the dominant side). On anyone's account the referees and touch judges made mistakes which worked against the All Blacks." Outside New Zealand and France, the focus was on the fact that, as in 1999, France had pulled off what ''The Guardian'' described as another "incredible triumph against the odds." In 2011, New Zealand hosted the

. Unusually, France and New Zealand played twice at the tournament - both times at Eden Park. Both teams were in Pool A, and on September 24 New Zealand won their first encounter 37-17. New Zealand were pool winners, with France second. On either side of the draw for the knockout stage, both teams made the Final on October 23. New Zealand won 8-7. The match involved several controversial decisions by referee Craig Joubert, nonetheless for the second time New Zealand won a home World Cup with France runners up.

Summary

As of November 2021, New Zealand and France have played 62 Tests. The All Blacks have won 48, France 13, and one has been drawn. Only four matches have been played at neutral venues; the 1999 World Cup semi-final at Twickenham, London, the 2003 World Cup third/fourth play-off match at

Stadium Australia Stadium Australia, currently known as Accor Stadium for sponsorship purposes, is a multi-purpose stadium located in the Sydney Olympic Park, in Sydney, Australia. The stadium, which in Australia is sometimes referred to as Sydney Olympic Stad ...

in Sydney, and the 2007 and 2015 World Cup quarter-finals at

. New Zealand have scored considerably more points than France both in France and New Zealand, and at neutral venues - although at neutral venues France have won two of the four matches. A summary of the Test match statistics can be found below."NZL -vs- FRA"

Overview

Rugby World Cup matches

New Zealand and France have played seven Rugby World Cup games, more than any other pair of teams, including six play-off matches. Five have been won by New Zealand and two by France. France's wins knocked New Zealand out of the 1999 and 2007 tournaments at the semi-final and quarter-final stage respectively. New Zealand's first two successful campaigns (1987 and 2011) ended with wins over France, both at

. New Zealand's other victories have come in a quarter-final (2015), a pool match (2011, again at Eden Park) and the 2003 third-place playoff.

Records

Note: Date shown in brackets indicates when the record was or last set.

Results

XV results

Below is a list of matches that France and New Zealand opted not to give full test match status.

List of series

References

Notes

:: A full tour, rather than a tour, is when the All Blacks tour just France, instead of visiting France as an extension of a tour to the

. The 1977 All Blacks tour to France consisted of nine matches, including two Tests."All Blacks Player Profiles..." :: The 1924–25 Invincibles won all 32 matches, including four Tests, that they played throughout the British Isles and France. :: France was admitted into the Five Nations in 1910, and achieved a win over Scotland in 1911 and Ireland in 1920,"France vs Scotland > Games Won""France vs Ireland > Games Won" and in 1922

drew Drew may refer to: __NOTOC__ Places ;In the United States * Drew, Georgia, an unincorporated community * Drew, Mississippi, a city * Drew, Missouri, an unincorporated community * Drew, Oregon, an unincorporated community * Drew County, Arkansas ...

a match with England."France vs England > Games Drawn"1906-1920: Des premiers...1921-1930: Les Bleus...

Citations

Sources

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

External links

Official website
of the Fédération Française de Rugby
Official
All Blacks website {{DEFAULTSORT:France And New Zealand New Zealand national rugby union team matches France national rugby union team matches Rugby union rivalries in France Rugby union rivalries in New Zealand France–New Zealand sports relations