Rugby league in France
Encyclopedia
Rugby league
has been played in France since 1934. As with rugby union
, the heartland of the game is the south of the country.
During the Second World War, in association with the French rugby union
, the sport was banned by the Vichy government
, an act which the sport has struggled to recover from. There has been a recent resurgence of the sport following the admission of Catalans Dragons
to the European Super League
. The game now boasts record numbers of participants, similar in number to rugby league players in New Zealand.
was introduced into France by the British in the early 1870s. It quickly began to flourish in the poorer, more rural south. The French rugby clubs remained in affiliation with the English Rugby Football Union
and IRB
when rugby split into rugby union
and rugby league
in 1895.
Reports of professionalism and on-field violence in internationals angered the Rugby Football Union and in 1931, France was ejected from the Five Nations Championship.
Following development work by both Harry Sunderland
(on behalf of the Australian Rugby League
) and the Rugby Football League
based in England, the Australian and Great British Test teams played an exhibition game at Stade Pershing
in Paris
in late December 1933.
In 1934, Jean Galia
took a French team that had never played rugby league to Yorkshire and Lancashire in England.
The French Rugby League was formed on 6 April 1934. Looking round for an alternative, many French players turned to rugby league, which soon became a popular game in France, particularly in the south of the country.
Within five years, the number of rugby league clubs in France approached the number of rugby union clubs (despite union's fifty year head start). By 1939 there were around 450 rugby league clubs in France, including amateur teams and 13 semi-professional rugby league clubs. The same year three leading rugby union clubs – Narbonne, Carcassonne and Brive – switched to rugby league.
The invasion of France by Germany in May 1940 divided the country into Occupied France in the north and a southern pro-Nazi Vichy France
, the latter of which roughly corresponded to the rugby-playing heartlands. The Vichy Government under Philippe Pétain
associated rugby league with the pre war socialist government. Some of the French Rugby Union's senior administrators took advantage of their close relationship with the new regime to have rugby league outlawed as a "corrupter" of French youth. All funds as well as grounds and equipment belonging to the French Rugby League Federation were confiscated and handed over to rugby union. The figure of assets stripped has been estimated at nine million francs (AUD
$1.5 million), none of which was ever returned. In addition, rugby league players were forced to switch to rugby union.
The federation was reinstated in September 1944, but it could not recapture the popularity it had lost to union.
On 10 July 1947, a gentleman's agreement was signed between the Ligue Française de rugby à treize (Paul Barrière
as representative), the French republic and the French rugby union for division of the Ligue Française de rugby à treize in two parts: a Federation française de jeu à treize as the governing body of the amateur game and a Ligue de rugby à XIII as the governing body for the semi-professional game.
Although the ban on rugby league was lifted, it was prevented from using the word rugby in its title from 24 April 1949 until 26 June 1991, having to use the name Jeu à Treize (Game of Thirteen).
After the war the French game was re-established and the French became one of rugby league’s major powers. France was the driving force behind the establishment of the Rugby League World Cup
following the war. The first Rugby League World Cup
was held in France in 1954, the Final at Parc des Princes
was narrowly lost by France 12-16 to a young, underdog Great Britain. France played major international series against Great Britain
, Australia and New Zealand
. The 1951 and 1955 French tours of Australia, in which the French won both Test series 2-1, are still regarded as two of the strongest sides ever to tour Australia.
The French maintained an excellent record in international rugby league through until the late 1970s, also triumphing over Australia in the home 1967-68 series and finishing as runner-up to Australia in the Rugby League World Cup of 1968. The Chanticleers also defeated Australia in the home 1978 Test series by 2 Tests to nil - a feat not repeated over Australia in a series by another international rugby league side until the 2005 Tri-Nations series win by New Zealand.
The original proposal for the European Super League in 1995 was for two French clubs, with both Paris and Toulouse being proposed. This was subsequently reduced to one, after much discussion amongst clubs. In February 1996, a French team, Paris Saint-Germain was formed to take part in the otherwise English Super League
. The players being drawn from the French league. It was abandoned in October 1997, partly because Paris was not in the southern heartland of French rugby league and partly because the players had the double burden of playing for both Paris and their original club.
In 1998, XIII Actif were formed under the Chairmanship of French rugby league historian Robert Fassolette, to put pressure on the French government over the Vichy banning of the sport and the return of stolen assets. The French Minister of Sport commissioned an enquiry, which found in favour of XIII Actif. The Court then ruled that only the French rugby league federation could take up the case further. This they declined to do under continuing pressure from rugby union.
Professional rugby league returned to France in February 2006 when Perpignan-based club Catalans Dragons joined Super League. They provided French rugby league with a major boost by demonstrating their prowess before nearly 85,000 people at Wembley in the Final of the Rugby League Challenge Cup of 2007.
(i.e. formerly Ligue Française de Rugby à XIII then, Fédération Française de Jeu à XIII). The Federation is a founding member of and a full member of the Rugby League International Federation
(i.e. IRLB Jan. 1948) and of the Rugby League European Federation
(i.e. May 2003).
has been the major rugby league
tournament for semi-professional clubs in France since the sport was introduced to the country in the 1930s. The championship is divided into several divisions; the top league being Elite One Championship
, below that is the Elite Two Championship
. There are several lower and regional divisions below them. The premier knock-out cup is the Lord Derby Cup
and there is the Coupe Falcou
for National Division One and Federal clubs.
At its height, the French Championship maintained teams from the big cities of Paris, Marseille, Lyon, Bordeaux and Toulouse; as well as the passionate smaller rugby league towns of Carcassonne, Avignon, Lezignan, Albi, Villeneuve and Perpignan.
Each year four French teams take part in the Rugby League Challenge Cup
, and since February 2006 the Perpignan based club formerly known as UTC (Union Treiziste Catalan), now known as Catalans Dragons
, play in the European Super League
. Toulouse Olympique
bid for a 2009 Super League franchise but were rejected; subsequently they have accepted a place in the Championship
.
Super League is the highest rugby league competition in Europe. France has one Super League team, Catalans Dragons.
Paris Saint-Germain played in Super League between 1995 and 1997.
into European Super League
in 2006 and Toulouse Olympique into Co-operative Championship in 2009 has seen substantial with articles appearing in national newspapers such as L'Équipe
, Libération
and Le Figaro
. It has also contributed to the slight rise in playing numbers as in 2002 it was estimated that rugby league had around 8,000 regular players with this number rising to 10,000 registered participants and 80 clubs in 2009.
The French national rugby league team are often nicknamed les Chanteclairs, after the cockerel which is the emblem of the team, or as les Tricolores. They have competed in every World Cup
and European Nations Cup
, as well as playing in other tournaments such the Victory Cup.
It was announced that from 2009, France would enter into the current Tri-Nations setup involving Australia, New Zealand, and Great Britain. The introduction of Catalans Dragons into the Super League, and recent strong outings from the international side led to this decision. This should benefit the rugby league world as a whole.
The French territory of New Caledonia
has had its own rugby league team since 2003, which is run by the Fédération Francaise de Rugby à Treize.
shows every Catalan Dragons home match live. Selected games from the Elite Championship are broadcast live on Orange TV and summaries of each match Elite 1 are available to subscribers. They also broadcast some of Toulouse Olympique's home games live.
Orange TV also secured to rights to broadcast Super League, Four Nations and the European Cup in 2009. In 2010 Direct 8
gained the rights to four international matches involving France: a test match against England on June 12 and the three French games of the 2010 European Cup
. This marks the first time rugby league has been shown on French
free-to-air
television for at least two decades.
Radio France Bleu Roussillon carries commentary on every Catalans Dragons away match played in the UK.
Rugby league
Rugby league football, usually called rugby league, is a full contact sport played by two teams of thirteen players on a rectangular grass field. One of the two codes of rugby football, it originated in England in 1895 by a split from Rugby Football Union over paying players...
has been played in France since 1934. As with rugby union
Rugby union
Rugby union, often simply referred to as rugby, is a full contact team sport which originated in England in the early 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand...
, the heartland of the game is the south of the country.
During the Second World War, in association with the French rugby union
Rugby union in France
Rugby union is the second most popular team sport in France, after association football, and is the dominant sport in most of the southern half of the country. It was first introduced in the early 1870s by British residents. Elite French clubs participate in the professional domestic club league,...
, the sport was banned by the Vichy government
Vichy France
Vichy France, Vichy Regime, or Vichy Government, are common terms used to describe the government of France that collaborated with the Axis powers from July 1940 to August 1944. This government succeeded the Third Republic and preceded the Provisional Government of the French Republic...
, an act which the sport has struggled to recover from. There has been a recent resurgence of the sport following the admission of Catalans Dragons
Catalans Dragons
The Catalans Dragons are a French professional rugby league club based in Perpignan, Pyrénées-Orientales. They currently play in the Super League, and are the only team in the competition from outside of the United Kingdom...
to the European Super League
Super League
Super League is the top-level professional rugby league football club competition in Europe. As a result of sponsorship from engage Mutual Assurance the competition is currently officially known as the engage Super League. The League features fourteen teams: thirteen from England and one from...
. The game now boasts record numbers of participants, similar in number to rugby league players in New Zealand.
History
Rugby footballRugby football
Rugby football is a style of football named after Rugby School in the United Kingdom. It is seen most prominently in two current sports, rugby league and rugby union.-History:...
was introduced into France by the British in the early 1870s. It quickly began to flourish in the poorer, more rural south. The French rugby clubs remained in affiliation with the English Rugby Football Union
Rugby Football Union
The Rugby Football Union was founded in 1871 as the governing body for the sport of rugby union, and performed as the international governing body prior to the formation of the International Rugby Board in 1886...
and IRB
International Rugby Board
The International Rugby Board is the governing body for the sport of rugby union. It was founded in 1886 as the International Rugby Football Board by the unions of Scotland, Wales and Ireland. England refused to join until 1890. The International Rugby Football Board changed its name to the...
when rugby split into rugby union
Rugby union
Rugby union, often simply referred to as rugby, is a full contact team sport which originated in England in the early 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand...
and rugby league
Rugby league
Rugby league football, usually called rugby league, is a full contact sport played by two teams of thirteen players on a rectangular grass field. One of the two codes of rugby football, it originated in England in 1895 by a split from Rugby Football Union over paying players...
in 1895.
Reports of professionalism and on-field violence in internationals angered the Rugby Football Union and in 1931, France was ejected from the Five Nations Championship.
Following development work by both Harry Sunderland
Harry Sunderland
Harry Sunderland was an Australian rugby league football administrator and journalist.Sunderland was born in Gympie, Queensland in 1889. From 1913 to 1922, Sunderland was the Queensland Rugby League's secretary. His administration is credited with the growth of the League in Queensland despite the...
(on behalf of the Australian Rugby League
Australian Rugby League
The Australian Rugby League is the governing body for the sport of rugby league in Australia. It is made up of state bodies, including the New South Wales Rugby League and the Queensland Rugby League...
) and the Rugby Football League
Rugby Football League
The Rugby Football League is the governing body for professional rugby league football in England. Based at Red Hall in Leeds, it administers the England national rugby league team, the Challenge Cup, Super League and the Rugby League Championships...
based in England, the Australian and Great British Test teams played an exhibition game at Stade Pershing
Stade Pershing
Stade Pershing was a multi-purpose stadium in Vincennes, France. It was used mostly for football matches and hosted the final of the Coupe de France on four occasions. It also hosted some of the football and rugby matches during the 1924 Summer Olympics. The stadium was able to hold 29,000...
in Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
in late December 1933.
In 1934, Jean Galia
Jean Galia
Jean Galia was a French rugby union and rugby league footballer and champion boxer...
took a French team that had never played rugby league to Yorkshire and Lancashire in England.
The French Rugby League was formed on 6 April 1934. Looking round for an alternative, many French players turned to rugby league, which soon became a popular game in France, particularly in the south of the country.
Within five years, the number of rugby league clubs in France approached the number of rugby union clubs (despite union's fifty year head start). By 1939 there were around 450 rugby league clubs in France, including amateur teams and 13 semi-professional rugby league clubs. The same year three leading rugby union clubs – Narbonne, Carcassonne and Brive – switched to rugby league.
The invasion of France by Germany in May 1940 divided the country into Occupied France in the north and a southern pro-Nazi Vichy France
Vichy France
Vichy France, Vichy Regime, or Vichy Government, are common terms used to describe the government of France that collaborated with the Axis powers from July 1940 to August 1944. This government succeeded the Third Republic and preceded the Provisional Government of the French Republic...
, the latter of which roughly corresponded to the rugby-playing heartlands. The Vichy Government under Philippe Pétain
Philippe Pétain
Henri Philippe Benoni Omer Joseph Pétain , generally known as Philippe Pétain or Marshal Pétain , was a French general who reached the distinction of Marshal of France, and was later Chief of State of Vichy France , from 1940 to 1944...
associated rugby league with the pre war socialist government. Some of the French Rugby Union's senior administrators took advantage of their close relationship with the new regime to have rugby league outlawed as a "corrupter" of French youth. All funds as well as grounds and equipment belonging to the French Rugby League Federation were confiscated and handed over to rugby union. The figure of assets stripped has been estimated at nine million francs (AUD
Australian dollar
The Australian dollar is the currency of the Commonwealth of Australia, including Christmas Island, Cocos Islands, and Norfolk Island, as well as the independent Pacific Island states of Kiribati, Nauru and Tuvalu...
$1.5 million), none of which was ever returned. In addition, rugby league players were forced to switch to rugby union.
The federation was reinstated in September 1944, but it could not recapture the popularity it had lost to union.
Post War to the Present
Paul Barrière
Paul Barrière was born on 8 June 1920 in Espéraza and died on 29 May 2008 in Biarritz, aged 88. He was president of the Fédération Française de Rugby à XIII from 1947 to 1955.Barrière played rugby union for Espéraza in 1936 and Carcassone....
as representative), the French republic and the French rugby union for division of the Ligue Française de rugby à treize in two parts: a Federation française de jeu à treize as the governing body of the amateur game and a Ligue de rugby à XIII as the governing body for the semi-professional game.
Although the ban on rugby league was lifted, it was prevented from using the word rugby in its title from 24 April 1949 until 26 June 1991, having to use the name Jeu à Treize (Game of Thirteen).
After the war the French game was re-established and the French became one of rugby league’s major powers. France was the driving force behind the establishment of the Rugby League World Cup
Rugby League World Cup
The Rugby League World Cup is an international rugby league competition contested by members of the Rugby League International Federation . It has been held nearly once every 4 years on average since its inaugural tournament in France in 1954...
following the war. The first Rugby League World Cup
Rugby League World Cup
The Rugby League World Cup is an international rugby league competition contested by members of the Rugby League International Federation . It has been held nearly once every 4 years on average since its inaugural tournament in France in 1954...
was held in France in 1954, the Final at Parc des Princes
Parc des Princes
The Parc des Princes is an all-seater football stadium located in the southwest of Paris, France. The venue, with a seating capacity of 48,712 spectators, has been the home of French football club Paris Saint-Germain since 1974. The current Parc des Princes was inaugurated on 4 June 1972, endowed...
was narrowly lost by France 12-16 to a young, underdog Great Britain. France played major international series against Great Britain
Great Britain national rugby league team
The Great Britain national rugby league team represents the United Kingdom in rugby league football. Administered by the Rugby Football League , the team is nicknamed "The Lions" or "Great Britain Lions"....
, Australia and New Zealand
New Zealand national rugby league team
The New Zealand national rugby league team has represented New Zealand in rugby league football since intercontinental competition began for the sport in 1907. Administered by the New Zealand Rugby League, they are commonly known as the Kiwis, after the native bird of that name...
. The 1951 and 1955 French tours of Australia, in which the French won both Test series 2-1, are still regarded as two of the strongest sides ever to tour Australia.
The French maintained an excellent record in international rugby league through until the late 1970s, also triumphing over Australia in the home 1967-68 series and finishing as runner-up to Australia in the Rugby League World Cup of 1968. The Chanticleers also defeated Australia in the home 1978 Test series by 2 Tests to nil - a feat not repeated over Australia in a series by another international rugby league side until the 2005 Tri-Nations series win by New Zealand.
The original proposal for the European Super League in 1995 was for two French clubs, with both Paris and Toulouse being proposed. This was subsequently reduced to one, after much discussion amongst clubs. In February 1996, a French team, Paris Saint-Germain was formed to take part in the otherwise English Super League
Super League
Super League is the top-level professional rugby league football club competition in Europe. As a result of sponsorship from engage Mutual Assurance the competition is currently officially known as the engage Super League. The League features fourteen teams: thirteen from England and one from...
. The players being drawn from the French league. It was abandoned in October 1997, partly because Paris was not in the southern heartland of French rugby league and partly because the players had the double burden of playing for both Paris and their original club.
In 1998, XIII Actif were formed under the Chairmanship of French rugby league historian Robert Fassolette, to put pressure on the French government over the Vichy banning of the sport and the return of stolen assets. The French Minister of Sport commissioned an enquiry, which found in favour of XIII Actif. The Court then ruled that only the French rugby league federation could take up the case further. This they declined to do under continuing pressure from rugby union.
Professional rugby league returned to France in February 2006 when Perpignan-based club Catalans Dragons joined Super League. They provided French rugby league with a major boost by demonstrating their prowess before nearly 85,000 people at Wembley in the Final of the Rugby League Challenge Cup of 2007.
Governing body
Since 26 June 1991 the governing body for rugby league in France has been the Fédération Française de Rugby à XIIIFédération Française de Rugby à XIII
The French Rugby League Federation is the governing body for the sport of rugby league football in France. The Federation was formed during 1934 and since then has organized and governed the French rugby league championship, the Lord Derby Cup and all of the clubs that are contained within those...
(i.e. formerly Ligue Française de Rugby à XIII then, Fédération Française de Jeu à XIII). The Federation is a founding member of and a full member of the Rugby League International Federation
Rugby League International Federation
The Rugby League International Federation is the world governing body of rugby league football. It was formed in 1998 in Sydney, Australia. Its purpose is to, "foster, develop, extend, govern and administer the game of Rugby League throughout the world". Its headquarters are in Sydney, Australia,...
(i.e. IRLB Jan. 1948) and of the Rugby League European Federation
Rugby League European Federation
The Rugby League European Federation is the umbrella body for nations playing the sport of rugby league football across Europe and the Northern Hemisphere. It supports the Rugby League International Federation . The RLEF "oversees and co-ordinates the development of the sport in all its member...
(i.e. May 2003).
Competitions
The French Rugby League ChampionshipFrench rugby league championship
The French rugby league championship has been the major rugby league tournament for semi-professional and professional clubs in France and Monaco since the sport was introduced to the country in the thirties....
has been the major rugby league
Rugby league
Rugby league football, usually called rugby league, is a full contact sport played by two teams of thirteen players on a rectangular grass field. One of the two codes of rugby football, it originated in England in 1895 by a split from Rugby Football Union over paying players...
tournament for semi-professional clubs in France since the sport was introduced to the country in the 1930s. The championship is divided into several divisions; the top league being Elite One Championship
Elite One Championship
The Elite One Championship is the top tier French professional domestic rugby league competition....
, below that is the Elite Two Championship
Elite Two Championship
The Elite Two Championship is the second tier semi-professional rugby league competition in France below the Elite One Championship, but above the National Division East and West....
. There are several lower and regional divisions below them. The premier knock-out cup is the Lord Derby Cup
Lord Derby Cup
The Lord Derby Cup , also known as French Rugby à XIII Cup, is the premier knock-out competition for the sport of rugby league football in France. It is open to all French rugby league clubs....
and there is the Coupe Falcou
Coupe Falcou
The Coupe Falcou is an annual knock-out competition organised by the Fédération Française de Rugby à XIII for amateur rugby league clubs.-History:Introduced in 1937 the competition was originally known as the French Amateur Cup...
for National Division One and Federal clubs.
At its height, the French Championship maintained teams from the big cities of Paris, Marseille, Lyon, Bordeaux and Toulouse; as well as the passionate smaller rugby league towns of Carcassonne, Avignon, Lezignan, Albi, Villeneuve and Perpignan.
Each year four French teams take part in the Rugby League Challenge Cup
Challenge Cup
The Challenge Cup is a knockout cup competition for rugby league clubs organised by the Rugby Football League. Originally it was contested only by British teams but in recent years has been expanded to allow teams from France and Russia to take part....
, and since February 2006 the Perpignan based club formerly known as UTC (Union Treiziste Catalan), now known as Catalans Dragons
Catalans Dragons
The Catalans Dragons are a French professional rugby league club based in Perpignan, Pyrénées-Orientales. They currently play in the Super League, and are the only team in the competition from outside of the United Kingdom...
, play in the European Super League
Super League
Super League is the top-level professional rugby league football club competition in Europe. As a result of sponsorship from engage Mutual Assurance the competition is currently officially known as the engage Super League. The League features fourteen teams: thirteen from England and one from...
. Toulouse Olympique
Toulouse Olympique
Toulouse Olympique are a French professional rugby league team from Toulouse, in the southwest of France. They were founded on 22 October, in 1937 two years after the founding of the French Rugby League Federation. Between 1995 and 2002 the club were known as Spacers de Toulouse, due to links with...
bid for a 2009 Super League franchise but were rejected; subsequently they have accepted a place in the Championship
Rugby League National Leagues
The Championship, known as Co-operative Championship due to sponsorship by The Co-operative Group, is a professional rugby league competition based in the United Kingdom. It is currently contested by ten teams from England. It acts as Europe's second-tier competition below the Super League, and has...
.
Super League
| Team | Stadium | City/Area | Founded |
|---|---|---|---|
 Catalans DragonsCatalans Dragons The Catalans Dragons are a French professional rugby league club based in Perpignan, Pyrénées-Orientales. They currently play in the Super League, and are the only team in the competition from outside of the United Kingdom... |
Stade Gilbert Brutus Stade Gilbert Brutus Stade Gilbert Brutus is a rugby league stadium located in Perpignan, in the south of France. Even though the stadium currently has around 9,000 seats installed, it can accommodate around 1,000 fans more due to standing room... |
Perpignan Perpignan -Sport:Perpignan is a rugby stronghold: their rugby union side, USA Perpignan, is a regular competitor in the Heineken Cup and seven times champion of the Top 14 , while their rugby league side plays in the engage Super League under the name Catalans Dragons.-Culture:Since 2004, every year in the... , Pyrénées-Orientales Pyrénées-Orientales Pyrénées-Orientales is a department of southern France adjacent to the northern Spanish frontier and the Mediterranean Sea. It also surrounds the tiny Spanish enclave of Llívia, and thus has two distinct borders with Spain.- History :... |
2000 (XIII Catalan XIII Catalan XIII Catalan were a French rugby league team from Perpignan, in the Catalan Pyrénées-Orientales region of France. They were founded in 1935, and thus were founding members of the French rugby league championship... , 1935) |
Super League is the highest rugby league competition in Europe. France has one Super League team, Catalans Dragons.
Paris Saint-Germain played in Super League between 1995 and 1997.
Popularity
Rugby league is most popular in the south of France. The game struggles for attention in the national media, but it is covered by regional outlets in the south. However the introduction of Catalans DragonsCatalans Dragons
The Catalans Dragons are a French professional rugby league club based in Perpignan, Pyrénées-Orientales. They currently play in the Super League, and are the only team in the competition from outside of the United Kingdom...
into European Super League
Super League
Super League is the top-level professional rugby league football club competition in Europe. As a result of sponsorship from engage Mutual Assurance the competition is currently officially known as the engage Super League. The League features fourteen teams: thirteen from England and one from...
in 2006 and Toulouse Olympique into Co-operative Championship in 2009 has seen substantial with articles appearing in national newspapers such as L'Équipe
L'Équipe
L'Équipe is a French nationwide daily newspaper devoted to sports, owned by Éditions Philippe Amaury. The paper is noted for coverage of football , rugby, motorsports and cycling...
, Libération
Libération
Libération is a French daily newspaper founded in Paris by Jean-Paul Sartre and Serge July in 1973 in the wake of the protest movements of May 1968. Originally a leftist newspaper, it has undergone a number of shifts during the 1980s and 1990s...
and Le Figaro
Le Figaro
Le Figaro is a French daily newspaper founded in 1826 and published in Paris. It is one of three French newspapers of record, with Le Monde and Libération, and is the oldest newspaper in France. It is also the second-largest national newspaper in France after Le Parisien and before Le Monde, but...
. It has also contributed to the slight rise in playing numbers as in 2002 it was estimated that rugby league had around 8,000 regular players with this number rising to 10,000 registered participants and 80 clubs in 2009.
The National Team
- See also New Caledonia national rugby league team
The French national rugby league team are often nicknamed les Chanteclairs, after the cockerel which is the emblem of the team, or as les Tricolores. They have competed in every World Cup
Rugby League World Cup
The Rugby League World Cup is an international rugby league competition contested by members of the Rugby League International Federation . It has been held nearly once every 4 years on average since its inaugural tournament in France in 1954...
and European Nations Cup
Rugby League European Nations Cup
The European Cup is a rugby league football tournament for European nations that was first held in 1935. The tournament was first started in 1935, with England, Wales and France each playing each other once...
, as well as playing in other tournaments such the Victory Cup.
It was announced that from 2009, France would enter into the current Tri-Nations setup involving Australia, New Zealand, and Great Britain. The introduction of Catalans Dragons into the Super League, and recent strong outings from the international side led to this decision. This should benefit the rugby league world as a whole.
The French territory of New Caledonia
New Caledonia
New Caledonia is a special collectivity of France located in the southwest Pacific Ocean, east of Australia and about from Metropolitan France. The archipelago, part of the Melanesia subregion, includes the main island of Grande Terre, the Loyalty Islands, the Belep archipelago, the Isle of...
has had its own rugby league team since 2003, which is run by the Fédération Francaise de Rugby à Treize.
Television
Orange TVOrange TV
OTV is a publicly-traded television station in Lebanon.It began broadcasting on July 20, 2007 on the Arabsat satellite, on the 11823MHz frequency. OTV Launched officially in 2008 after a testing period of almost six months. OTV now covers the world through different broadcasting channels for...
shows every Catalan Dragons home match live. Selected games from the Elite Championship are broadcast live on Orange TV and summaries of each match Elite 1 are available to subscribers. They also broadcast some of Toulouse Olympique's home games live.
Orange TV also secured to rights to broadcast Super League, Four Nations and the European Cup in 2009. In 2010 Direct 8
Direct 8
Direct 8 is a national French TV channel, owned by Vincent Bolloré. It is available through digital terrestrial television network "TNT" and the Astra 1H satellite position....
gained the rights to four international matches involving France: a test match against England on June 12 and the three French games of the 2010 European Cup
2010 European Cup
The 2010 European Cup, known as the Alitalia European Cup for sponsorship purposes, is a rugby league football tournament. Three of the competing teams participated in the 2009 European Cup, with France also being included in the tournament after competing in the 2009 Four Nations...
. This marks the first time rugby league has been shown on French
Television in France
Television in France was introduced in 1931, making the country one of the first countries in the world to broadcast television programmes.- Terrestrial :...
free-to-air
Free-to-air
Free-to-air describes television and radio services broadcast in clear form, allowing any person with the appropriate receiving equipment to receive the signal and view or listen to the content without requiring a subscription or one-off fee...
television for at least two decades.
Radio
Radio Marseillette has rugby league debate and news every Saturday from 10:00 to 12:00. They also have exclusive live commentary of all Catalans Dragons home matches and Toulouse Olympique home matches. They also have commentary on some Elite League games.Radio France Bleu Roussillon carries commentary on every Catalans Dragons away match played in the UK.
External links
- Jean Galia's introduction of the May 1934 Yorkshire's tour in France : Jean Galia's parent of the expression jeu à treize or Game of thirteen
- France Rugby League
- French RL Banned
- April 1999, the French Republic's Homage to all sportmen, sportwomen, clubs and federations (FRL included) having had to suffer from the vichy regime and of its national revolution
- Le Rugby à XIII le plus Français du monde (500 pages) by Louis Bonnery (former National Technical Director -1978 to 2000- of the French RL and international RL player)
- French Republic' educationnal facilities in Carcassonne, Toulouse, Salon de Provence for the FRL
- Rugby treize forum (French and English)
- History of Rugby football in France at independent.co.uk
