Who are the EIGHT uncapped stars in the France squad for the 2026 Six Nations?

The head coach will bring eight new faces into the squad, but who are these uncapped stars, and why have they found their place over some of the most relied on players in France’s dominant period?

The 31-year-old has been called up into the French squad for the first time after qualifying with residency. The second-rower has been plying his trade in the Top14 for Castres since his move away from the Waratahs in 2021 He has played 92 matches for the French outfit, helping them to their runners-up campaign in the 2021/22 season.

The former Australian U20s vice-captain represented the Wallabies at age grade for two years at two World Championships, before spending six seasons in Super Rugby with the Brumbies and the Waratahs.

The 24-year-old back-rower has been a consistent starter for the European champions this season, cementing himself into the number eight shirt at Bordeaux. He broke out at Pro D2 Biarritz in November 2022, where he instantly found himself a regular in their matchday squads. He scored a try just two matches into his professional career, away to Massy, and even played one single match on the wing in the return fixture, scoring his only other try that season.

Another season at Biarritz, where he became a consistent starter, earned him a move to Top14 Bordeaux. He featured in 20 league matches, as well as making his Champions Cup debut in Round 3 against Exeter, in which he played the full 80. So far this season, he has started all of the Investec Champions Cup games, as well as another 11 Top 14 appearances. The last time Matiu didn’t start a Bordeaux game? November 21st in their Round 10 clash against Pau.

Pau’s 6-foot-4 utility back has started in every game he has played so far this year for the Basque club, as they continue to make waves in the Top14. He has been with them since his professional debut in December 2022, a nine-minute feature away at the Dragons in the Challenge Cup.

The winger only got his second match in the next season, starting this time in their Round 1 Challenge Cup clash against the Sharks, where he also scored his first try. He also started in one U20s Six Nations match against Ireland, where he earned himself a sinbin.

He started all four of Pau’s Challenge cup fixtures last season, as they finished with a 50% record in the competition. He also received two yellow cards across those games. Arfeuil has since gone on to have a spectacular season, with ten tries across 13 matches so far this season, and a spot in the senior French squad.

Arfeuil’s 20-year-old team mate has also had an outstanding season, with starts in all but one of his appearances across the campaign. A regular in the French U20s side, the centre featured in back-to-back Six Nations and World Championships, playing 14 matches for the age-grade national team, scoring four times.

Brau-Boirie made his professional debut for Pau in November 2024, in their away defeat to Montpellier in Round 10. He would go on to feature heavily for the club, scoring two tries in their round-of-16 Challenge Cup defeat to Bath, as well as becoming a regular starter towards the back end of the season. This season, the centre has scored seven tries for the club, including three braces in-a-row, as Pau’s incredible Top14 season continues, and the 20-year-old is rewarded with a spot in France’s senior squad.

The 25-year-old has been a try-scoring machine for the French outfit over the last couple of seasons, as they push on at the sharp end of the Top14 and the Champions Cup knockouts. The winger opened his try-scoring account on debut back in September 2022 against Clermont. He grabbed another in his next match in a defeat away to Perpignan, before starting for most of the 2022/23 season.

He was a regular fixture in Toulon’s next season, starting all 19 games he played, including his introduction into Champions Cup rugby, scoring in an away defeat to Glasgow. Another 19 matches came for Dréan last season with 13 tries, including his first hattrick in their Round 10 victory over Bayonne.

This season, he’s bettering that try scoring record even more, with 11 tries in 13 matches, becoming an integral part of their Top14 and European push.

The 21-year-old has been integrating back into the Stade Francais squad after a year away, in which the centre has made his mark on the squad. Nene made his debut against Toulon in December 2023, before playing in their draw against Clermont and loss to Leinster in the couple of weeks that followed. He earned himself a 15-minute cameo for the French U20s in their Six Nations clash against Ireland in 2024.

Last season, he spent a year at US Dax Rugby Landes in ProD2. He played in 12 matches, and scored three tries as Dax finished 11th in the league. This season, on his return to the Parisian club, he has scored seven in 12 matches, becoming a young weapon in Stade Francais and the national team’s arsenal.

Featuring in all but one of Racing 92’s Top14 fixtures this year, the 25-year-old has risen through the ranks to get himself into the number 10 shirt at the Parisian giants. His career started in the French third-tier Nationale, playing for Blagnac. He featured in 25 of the 26 fixtures that year, scoring 47 points in his debut season.

He started to become the regular fly-half at Blagnac over the next two seasons, but as fortunes went south for the club, Seunes was able to move away to ProD2 side Aurillac. Seunes started 24 matches in the second-tier last year, ten of those at fullback, scoring 188 points as Aurillac fell at the first hurdle in the playoffs.

A move to the Parisian club has seen the fly-half score 115 points over 12 matches, as Racing try to get themselves up the order in the tight league the Top14 is.

A gold medallist at the Paris 2024 Olympics, the winger has risen his stock quite considerably in the last 18 months. Born in Bromley, London to Nigerian dad and French mother, Grandidier-Nkanang played for National 1 side Old Elthamians, whilst studying at St Mary’s University, Twickenham.

He joined CA Brive in 2019, making his senior debut, in December 2021, in a Challenge Cup loss to Leicester Tigers, before playing against Zebre in the next round. He made the switch over to sevens in 2022, breaking the record for most tries in a weekend at Hong Kong with 11 that season. He was selected for the 2024 Paris Olympics tournament, scoring twice for Argentina in the quarter-finals. He was nominated for World Sevens Player of the Year in 2024.

He made his debut for Pau in September 2024, beating La Rochelle. It took him a year to score his first try for the club against Stade Francais, where he signed a long term deal not long after. He was included in the Autumn Nations Series squad in late 2025, but is still uncapped.

1. France joined the championship in 1910, originally entering the Five Nations and completing the modern line-up.

2. Les Bleus have won the title six times in the Six Nations era (since 2000), most recently in 2022.

3. France have achieved 10 Grand Slams overall, the most of any nation in the competition’s history.

4. Their longest title drought lasted 12 years (2010–2022) before ending under Fabien Galthié.

5. France usually play home matches at the Stade de France, which has been their main Six Nations venue since 1998.