France secured the 2026 Six Nations with a breathless, chaotic 48-46 victory England on Saturday, with Thomas Ramos kicking a penalty to win the match with the last kick of the game.
The defeat, a heartbreaking one for England, consigned Steve Borthwick’s side to their worst ever championship finish with just one win through the tournament which came on the opening weekend against Wales.
It was France’s 20th championship title and third under Fabien Galthie.
Having lost against Scotland in round four, France knew their Grand Slam hopes were over and following Ireland’s impressive win over Scotland earlier in the day, they still needed to get the job done and beat England to secure the overall title.
Their 48-46 win at Stade de France came thanks to four tries from winger Louis Bielle-Biarrey, one from Theo Attissogbe, and a perfect night off the kicking tee from Ramos.
Their campaign started with a rare Thursday night match against Ireland as they eased to a 36-14 win. They followed it up with a 54-12 demolition of Wales, and then dispatched a spirited Italy side 33-8 in Lille.
Against Scotland they played out a 90 point epic to fall 50-40. There were yet more points in Paris on March 15 as they edged England with a last minute penalty.
The title vindicated Galthie’s decision to leave out Gael Fickou and Damien Penaud from the original squad and it was a championship where we saw several players break through and establish themselves on the world stage.
France finished top with 21 points, Ireland were second on 19 and Scotland third with 16.
Italy ran in fourth on nine points while England had their worst ever campaign finishing with eight points.
Wales, who did get their first Six Nations win since 2023 against Italy in Super Saturday got the wooden spoon but improved throughout the tournament.
