Two years ago, Wales were defending champions and France were on their way to the Grand Slam. Now they're both just hoping to avoid the wooden spoon. To their credit, Warren Gatland's young side has shown flashes, which is more than can be said for Les Bleus, who entered the 2024 Six Nations as favourites but are lucky to have any points on the board at all.
Questionable refereeing decisions gifted France a victory over Scotland and a draw against Italy, when both games should have ended in defeat. Poor discipline and the absence of star scrum-half Antoine Dupont have hurt them, but such has been the scale and speed of the decline that head coach Fabien Galthié's job has come under scrutiny – something that was unthinkable even a month ago.
By contrast, even though Wales have just a single point to show from their three games, fans can see that Gatland is building something. They nearly pulled off a comeback for the ages against Scotland and came within minutes of a first win at Twickenham since 2012. The 31-7 defeat to Grand Slam-chasing Ireland last time out was nothing to be too ashamed of.
In their final home game of the tournament, though, Wales will want to repay their fans for their loyal support and give them a taster of what lies ahead. This France team is there for the taking.
HOW TO WATCH A FREE WALES VS FRANCE LIVE STREAM ON BBC iPLAYER
| UK stream: BBC iPlayer (FREE) |
| US stream: Peacock TV |
| AUS stream: Stan Sport |
What time is kickoff?
The Wales vs France kickoff is at 3pm GMT / 11am ET / 8am PT today, Sunday, March 10. In Australia, that's 2am AEDT on Monday, March 11.
Wales vs France team news and venue
Wales team: Winnett; Adams, Roberts, Watkin, Dyer; Costelow, Tomos Williams; Thomas, Elias, Assiratti, Rowlands, Beard, D Jenkins (c), Reffell, Wainwright. Replacements: Dee, Domachowski, Lewis, Martin, Mann, Davies, Lloyd, Grady.
France team: Barre; Penaud, Fickou, Depoortere, Bielle-Biarrey; Ramos, Le Garrc; Baille, Marchand, Atonio, Flament, Meafou, Cros, Ollivon, Alldritt (c). Replacements: Mauvaka, S Taofifenua, Colombe, R Taofifenua, Roumat, Boudehent, Lucu, Moefana.
Today's game will be played at the 73,931-seater Principality Stadium in Cardiff, the second-biggest of the Six Nations venues. Known by many as the Millennium Stadium, it features a retractable roof and employs the services of Dad the hawk to keep seagulls and pigeons at bay.
