France rugby union boss Fabien Galthié on Thursday announced an international debut for Fabien Brau-Boirie in Sunday afternoon's match in the 2026 Six Nations tournament against Wales in Cardiff.
The 20-year-old Section Paloise centre is one of two changes to the starting line-up of the team that romped past Ireland 36-14 on 5 February at the Stade de France.
Brau-Boirie will begin his France career beside Section Paloise teammate Émilien Gailleton, who will be making his 12th appearance for his country.
They replace the Bordeaux-Begles duo Nicolas Depoortère and Yoram Moefana, who miss the match due to injury.
"The fact that they play together regularly, and train together, creates greater understanding, which, in those instinctive moments, whether in attack or defence, adds a special connection," said Galthié. "It is worth taking advantage of."
Weighing in at 98kg and standing 1.90m tall, Brau-Boirie has been on the radar of the French selectors for the last 18 months.
He took part in the training sessions for the 2025 Six Nations competition and was earmarked for last summer's tour of New Zealand before an ankle injury ruled him out.
"He regularly establishes himself, every weekend, by his club performances," said Galthie.
Attack coach Patrick Arlettaz has compared Brau-Boirie to former France great Yannick Jauzion, who was capped 73 times between 2001 and 2011.
"He has that kind of talent... to be understated and very effective, to make others around him play well," Arlettaz said.
Six Nations returns for a shortened tournament with clear favourites
France on a roll
Wales and France have beaten each other 51 times apiece in their 105 previous test matches, with three draws. However, France are on a seven-match winning run in the fixture and have scored more than 40 points in each of the last three, including last season's 43-0 drubbing in Paris.
Wales launched their campaign abysmally. England battered them 48-7 at Twickenham on 7 February.
The annihilation was the 12th successive defeat in the Six Nations tournament and the team's 22nd in 24 tests against all opponents.
Despite the slump, Wales coach Steve Tandy has ruled out a drastic overhaul of the side.
"There's going to be nothing knee-jerk around it," said the 46-year-old Welshman, who became head coach in September 2025.
"I knew this when I took the job. On Sunday, we're going to be playing one of the best teams in the world and it's not going to click for us overnight.
"This is part of experiencing these moments and using them as learning experiences, making sure we adapt for the coming games."
In the other ties in the second round of matches, Ireland entertain Italy in Dublin on Saturday, before Scotland host England at Murrayfield in Edinburgh.
