France vs England LIVE: Six Nations rugby result, final score and reaction as France seal Grand Slam
France 25-13 England: Follow live as France seal a Grand Slam and a first Six Nations title since 2010 in Paris
Follow live coverage as France beat England 25-13 in the finale of the Six Nations in Paris to win the Grand Slam and lift the championship trophy for the first time in 12 years.
Fabien Galthie’s side made history as they claimed a Grand Slam and a first championship title since 2010. Victory over England achieved both those goals but the pressure was on, as any other result would have seen Ireland snatch the title after they beat Scotland earlier in the day.
Tries from Gael Fickou, Francois Cros and Antoine Dupont secured the title for Les Bleus in front of a raucous crowd at the Stade de France.
Follow all the latest reaction from the Stade de France:
Rugby against Racism and Solidarity with Ukraine
The players stand cloaked in glorious spring sunshine, with shadows covering the rest of the pitch, and join in with the applause in support of Ukraine.
The Principality Stadium erupts
Enormous roars for both Biggar and Jones, who poses for a photo in front of the flamethrowers. After all the talk of tickets, scheduling and pricing last week, the Principality looks mostly rammed.
Leading Wales out is...
Dan Biggar, followed by Alun Wyn Jones and his kids (wearing Dad 150 shirts, which is a lovely touch).
Final pre-match preparation
The controlling voices today will be Irish ones - Andrew Brace is the referee, with Joy Neville, who became a mother last summer, in the TMO truck.
Who will lead Wales out?
150 for Alun Wyn Jones; 100 for Dan Biggar - but who will lead Wales out? Biggar suggested earlier this week that there was a conversation to be had over a coffee...
Dan Biggar and Alun Wyn Jones to discuss who leads out Wales against Italy
Wales colleagues will reach major career milestones in Italy game
Half-an-hour until kick-off of Wales vs Italy
Strap yourselves in - this is a long old day of rugby. France 2, the Six Nations broadcaster, have begun their countdown to Le Crunch, with the first images of Vincent Clerc alongside the host inside the Stade de France shown a full seven hours before kick-off. All of the focus has been on the Grand Chelem - with in depth looks at just about everything France and their 2022 campaign.
But there’s plenty to get out of the way first, of course - kick-off in Cardiff is about half-an-hour away.
Quite the day for it
The Met Office have officially declared today the warmest of the year so far in the United Kingdom, and the skies are a delicious blue in Dublin and Paris, too.
Dewi Lake on his first international start
Dewi Lake knew switching from back-row to hooker would be a tough nut to crack
The Wales prospect is set to make his first international start against Italy in the Six Nations
Ange Capuozzo earns a promotion
Ange Capuozzo enjoyed a rather captivating international debut against Scotland, taking his two scores with a trademark blend of impish footwork and deceptive strength to make the most of a sliver of space. The rumour is that the Grenoble full-back may be Toulouse-bound come the close season, which seems a slightly strange move for the player, who could be behind France’s top two full-backs (Melvyn Jaminet and Thomas Ramos) in the club pecking order, but shows how well regarded the 22-year-old is in the
Wales will give the youngster a proper test under the high ball, you’d think, but they will have to kick accurately – Capuozzo will be a real threat on return. Edoardo Padovani should provide a steadying influence, too.
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