In this post, you can find our France vs Ireland prediction as the French host the Irish in the opening fixture of the 2026 Six Nations, as two of Europe’s heavyweight nations renew their rivalry under the lights at the Stade de France.
Below you can find our preview of the big game, while our panel of Six Nations experts, Simon Zebo, Andy Goode, and Jim Hamilton, also discuss the tournament opener in the video below.
France vs Ireland Match Info
Match Details
Matchup: France vs Ireland
Date & Time: 20:10, Thursday, February 5th
Competition : Six Nations
Venue : Stade de France
Referee : Karl Dickson (RFU)
France vs Ireland Prediction – 2026 Six Nations
How to Watch
How To Watch France vs Ireland
The opening match of the Six Nations gets underway at 20:10 on Thursday, February 5th. In Ireland, you can catch pre-match coverage on Virgin Media One from 19:00, with Jill Douglas presenting build-up to the championship opener.
UK viewers can tune into ITV1 from 19:20 for live coverage of the game.
France vs Ireland Odds
Match Betting Odds
Result | Odds | Chance |
|---|---|---|
France | 1/6 | 85.7% |
Ireland | 7/2 | 22.2% |
Draw | 28/1 | 3.4% |
France are the clear favourites at 1/6, with Ireland priced at 7/2, while the draw is available at 28/1, pointing to a strong home lean in the market.
Handicap Betting
France -13 @ 10/11
Ireland +13 @ 10/11
Handicap Draw (-13) @ 18/1
France v Ireland Handicap Prediction
Total Points Betting
Over 50.5 Points @ 4/5
Under 50.5 Points @ 10/11
Will There Be Over or Under 50.5 Points? France v Ireland 2026 6N
France v Ireland Lineups
Team News
France Team To Face Ireland
Backs
15. Thomas Ramos, 14. Theo Attissogbe, 13. Nicolas Depoortere, 12. Yoram Moefana, 11. Louis Bielle-Biarrey, 10. Matthieu Jalibert, 9. Antoine Dupont ©
Forwards
8. Anthony Jelonch, 7. Oscar Jegou, 6. Francois Cros, 5. Mickael Guillard, 4. Charles Ollivon, 3. Dorian Aldegheri, 2. Julien Marchand, 1. Jean-Baptiste Gros
Replacements : 16. Peato Mauvaka, 17. Rodrigue Neti, 18. Regis Montagne, 19. Hugo Auradou, 20. Emmanuel Meafou, 21. Lenni Nouchi, 22. Baptiste Serin, 23. Kalvin Gourgues
Ireland Team To Face France
Backs
15. Jamie Osborne, 14. Tommy O’Brien, 13. Garry Ringrose, 12. Stuart McCloskey, 11. Jacob Stockdale, 10. Sam Prendergast, 9. Jamison Gibson-Park
Forwards
1. Jeremy Loughman, 2. Dan Sheehan, 3. Thomas Clarkson, 4. Joe McCarthy, 5. Tadhg Beirne, 6. Cian Prendergast, 7. Josh van der Flier, 8. Caelan Doris (c)
Replacements : 16. Rónan Kelleher, 17. Michael Milne, 18. Finlay Bealham, 19. James Ryan, 20. Jack Conan, 21. Nick Timoney, 22. Craig Casey, 23. Jack Crowley
Form Guide
Form And Momentum
France arrive as reigning Six Nations champions after winning four of their five matches in 2025, with their only defeat coming by a single point against England . Les Bleus endured a difficult summer tour of New Zealand , losing all three Tests, but showed resilience in the autumn internationals, bouncing back from an opening defeat to South Africa to record victories over Fiji and Australia.
Ireland finished third in last year’s championship following back-to-back title wins in 2023 and 2024 and face a demanding schedule in 2026, beginning in Paris before travelling to Twickenham to face England in round three. Andy Farrell returns after leading the British and Irish Lions on their tour of Australia, but Ireland enter the tournament with a lengthy injury list and are navigating a period of transition within the squad.
Head-to-Head
France vs Ireland Head-to-Head
Year | Result | Winner |
|---|---|---|
2025 | Ireland 27–42 France | France |
2024 | France 17–38 Ireland | Ireland |
2023 | Ireland 32–19 France | Ireland |
2022 | France 30–24 Ireland | France |
2021 | Ireland 13–15 France | France |
Across 104 previous Test meetings, France hold the overall advantage with 60 wins to Ireland’s 37 , with 7 draws recorded between the sides. In the Six Nations era, the rivalry has tightened, with France winning 13 matches to Ireland’s 11, alongside 2 draws.
Try Scorer Odds
Try Scorer Betting
Try Scorer Odds
Player | First Try Scorer | Anytime Try |
|---|---|---|
Louis Bielle-Biarrey | 11/2 | 4/7 |
Theo Attissogbe | 9/1 | 21/20 |
Antoine Dupont | 10/1 | 6/5 |
Dan Sheehan | 10/1 | 6/5 |
Bar | 12/1 | 6/4 |
Try Scorer Betting Tips
Dan Sheehan Anytime Try Scorer @ 6/5 appeals given Ireland’s recent success targeting France through structured set plays, with Sheehan crossing in both of the last two championship meetings.
First Try Scorer in France vs Ireland: 2026 6N
Ireland’s hookers, Sheehan and Rónan Kelleher, have combined for three tries across those fixtures, underlining a clear pattern of using the hooker not just from the lineout, but from wider first-phase strike moves.
Ireland’s front row has also contributed tries in recent editions of this fixture, with Cian Healy scoring in 2025 and Andrew Porter touching down in 2023. With Jeremy Loughman Anytime Try Scorer @ 15/2, and 50/1 first tryscorer, the starting loosehead shapes as an interesting long-shot option if Ireland can apply sustained pressure near the French line.
Match Prediction & Tips
France vs Ireland Prediction & Betting Tips
Prediction: France 27-19 Ireland
A vibrant Stade de France atmosphere and a much healthier squard should give France the edge in the championship opener, and the hosts are expected to make that home advantage count. However, the 13-point handicap looks generous in the context of recent meetings, particularly given Andy Farrell’s track record of setting Ireland up to frustrate France through physicality and structured phases.
Expect to see a competitive contest with France likely to edge proceedings while Ireland remain within touching distance for most of the game. For those reasons, both Ireland +13 @ 10/11 in the handicap betting and France to win by 1-12 points @ 7/4 catch the eye.
From a try-scorer perspective, Ireland’s continued use of Dan Sheehan in designed set plays — not only from the lineout, but across multiple first-phase options — makes a bet on Sheehan Anytime Try Scorer @ 6/5 very appealing.
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