France and Italy collide in the final match of Six Nations round three this weekend.
Having opened the competition in Marseille while renovation work continues on the Stade de France ahead of this summer’s Paris Olympics, Les Bleus head to Lille on Sunday as they look to make it back-to-back wins to get their campaign firmly back on track.
Fabien Galthie’s side followed a classic but painful Rugby World Cup quarter-final defeat by eventual champions South Africa on home soil in the autumn with a punishing loss to title rivals Ireland on opening night.
The emphatic manner of that loss was galling for a side expected to compete with the defending Grand Slam champions once again this year, with the loss of talismanic leader Antoine Dupont particularly noticeable as he prepares to play Olympic sevens.
France bounced back against Scotland in round two, but their 20-16 success at Murrayfield was more than slightly fortuitous as the hosts were controversially denied a last-gasp winning try.
Italy made a positive start to a fresh era under new head coach Gonzalo Quesada as they lost by only three points to England in Rome, before being brushed aside by Ireland and failing to register a single point in Dublin last time out.
France vs Italy date, kick-off time and venue
France vs Italy takes place on Sunday February 25, 2024, with kick-off scheduled for 3pm GMT.
The match is being hosted at the Decathlon Arena - AKA the Stade Pierre-Mauroy - in Lille.
How to watch France vs Italy
TV channel: In the UK, Sunday’s game is being televised live on ITV1, with coverage beginning at 2:15pm.
Live stream: The ITVX website and ITVX app will also offer a free live stream to fans online.
Live blog: Follow the match live with Standard Sport’s dedicated match blog.
France vs Italy team news
France are expected to be without captain Gregory Alldritt, who suffered a nasty cut to his left thigh against Scotland that required stitches.
That should mean that ex-skipper Charles Ollivon leads the side against Italy in Lille this weekend, while Francois Cros will expect to start in the back row.
Italy saw their own back-row options depleted against Ireland, with Lorenzo Cannone, Sebastian Negri and Edoardo Iachizzi all sidelined.
However, star back Ange Capuozzo - born and raised in France - returned from illness as Simone Ferrari, Paolo Odogwu, Dino Lamb and Marco Riccioni all remained sidelined, with Lorenzo Pani keeping his place on the wing and Tommaso Allan moving to the bench.
After an impressive performance against England alongside his older brother Paolo at half-back, Alessandro Garbisi missed out in Dublin as Gloucester’s Stephen Varney got the nod at 9, backed up by the French-born Martin Page-Relo.
France vs Italy lineups
Both Fabien Galthie and Gonzalo Quesada will name their respective teams on Friday. Check back in then to see the lineups in full.
France vs Italy head to head (h2h) history and results
Italy toppled France twice in three years in Rome between 2011 and 2013, but their only other victory in this fixture to date came all the way back in 1997 in Grenoble.
Les Bleus have won all 42 other games, including the last 14 in a row. France had to come from behind to win 29-24 at the Stadio Olimpico 12 months ago, before thrashing Italy 60-7 in the pool stage of their home World Cup in the autumn.
France wins: 45
Italy wins: 3
Draws: 0
France vs Italy prediction
We certainly haven’t seen vintage France in this Six Nations so far, with that heavy loss to Ireland followed by a very fortunate win over Scotland.
A home tie against Italy should offer them the chance to produce a far more comfortable victory ahead of their trip to Cardiff and a Super Saturday showdown with England.
Italy were much improved for the most part against England and made things scrappy at times against Ireland, but it would be a huge shock to see them in contention for a first win in France for some 27 years this weekend.
They might be able to keep things close and competitive in the early going, but expect France to quickly pull away.
France to win, by 20 points.
France vs Italy match odds
France to win: 1/80
Italy to win: 30/1
Draw: 50/1
