The Most Famous

RUGBY PLAYERS from France

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This page contains a list of the greatest French Rugby Players. The pantheon dataset contains 35 Rugby Players, 4 of which were born in France. This makes France the birth place of the 2nd most number of Rugby Players.

Top 10

The following people are considered by Pantheon to be the top 10 most legendary French Rugby Players of all time. This list of famous French Rugby Players is sorted by HPI (Historical Popularity Index), a metric that aggregates information on a biography’s online popularity. Visit the rankings page to view the entire list of French Rugby Players.

Photo of Auguste Giroux

1. Auguste Giroux (1874 - 1953)

With an HPI of 48.76, Auguste Giroux is the most famous French Rugby Player.  His biography has been translated into 16 different languages on wikipedia.

Auguste Paul Almire Giroux (29 July 1874 in Châteauneuf-sur-Loire, Loiret – 9 August 1953 in Portel-des-Corbières, Aude) was a French rugby union player who competed in the 1900 Summer Olympics. He was a member of the French rugby union team, which won the gold medal.

Photo of Sébastien Chabal

2. Sébastien Chabal (b. 1977)

With an HPI of 46.00, Sébastien Chabal is the 2nd most famous French Rugby Player.  His biography has been translated into 23 different languages.

Sébastien Chabal (born 8 December 1977) is a French former rugby union player. He played number eight and lock for Bourgoin (1998–2004), Sale Sharks (2004–2009), Racing Métro 92 Paris (2009 – February 2012), and for the French national team. Chabal played professionally for 16 years and won the English Premiership with Sale, and the 2007 Six Nations Championship with France. He also finished in fourth place at the 2007 Rugby World Cup. He earned his first international cap on 4 March 2000 against Scotland, and represented France in 62 games. He is known for his full beard, long hair and ferocious tackling, leading the French rugby fans to nickname him l'Homme des Cavernes (Caveman). With this look, he has a number of lucrative commercial contracts. He was one of the most popular sportsmen in France, so much that local journalists wrote about Chabalmania.

Photo of André Rischmann

3. André Rischmann (1882 - 1955)

With an HPI of 45.15, André Rischmann is the 3rd most famous French Rugby Player.  His biography has been translated into 15 different languages.

André Félix Rischmann (26 January 1882 in Paris – 9 November 1955 in Paris) was a French rugby union player who competed in the 1900 Summer Olympics. He was a member of the French rugby union team, which won the gold medal.

Photo of Léon Binoche

4. Léon Binoche (1878 - 1962)

With an HPI of 43.27, Léon Binoche is the 4th most famous French Rugby Player.  His biography has been translated into 15 different languages.

Léon Binoche (16 August 1878 – 28 August 1962) was a French rugby union player who competed in the 1900 Summer Olympics. He was a member of the French rugby union team, which won the gold medal. His great-niece is the actress Juliette Binoche.

Photo of Carla Neisen

5. Carla Neisen (b. 1996)

With an HPI of 0.00, Carla Neisen is the 5th most famous French Rugby Player.  Her biography has been translated into different languages.

Carla Neisen (born 8 March 1996) is a French rugby player who plays as a center for the Blagnac women's rugby club and for the France women's national rugby union team since 2012. Neisen competed at the 2020 Tokyo Summer Olympics, where the team won a silver medal. She also played at the 2022 Rugby World Cup Sevens and won a bronze medal. She represented France at the 2024 Summer Olympics.

Photo of Caroline Drouin

6. Caroline Drouin (b. 1996)

With an HPI of 0.00, Caroline Drouin is the 6th most famous French Rugby Player.  Her biography has been translated into different languages.

Caroline Drouin (born 7 July 1996) is a French rugby union player.

Photo of Fanny Horta

7. Fanny Horta (b. 1986)

With an HPI of 0.00, Fanny Horta is the 7th most famous French Rugby Player.  Her biography has been translated into different languages.

Fanny Horta (born 22 January 1986) is a rugby union player. She represented France at the 2006 Women's Rugby World Cup, and 2010 Women's Rugby World Cup. She captained France at the 2014 China Women's Sevens. She was selected as a member of France's women's national rugby sevens team to the 2016 Summer Olympics.

Photo of Camille Grassineau

8. Camille Grassineau (b. 1990)

With an HPI of 0.00, Camille Grassineau is the 8th most famous French Rugby Player.  Her biography has been translated into different languages.

Camille Grassineau (born 10 September 1990) is a French rugby union player. She represented France at the 2014 Women's Rugby World Cup. She was a member of the squad that won their fourth Six Nations title in 2014. Grassineau was also a member of the French squad to the 2013 Rugby World Cup Sevens She was selected as a member of the France women's national rugby sevens team to the 2016 Summer Olympics. She was the first woman to score a tri in the olympics since rugby returned to the games. Grassineau won a bronze medal at the 2022 Rugby World Cup Sevens. She competed for France at the 2024 Summer Olympics.

Photo of Lina Guérin

9. Lina Guérin (b. 1991)

With an HPI of 0.00, Lina Guérin is the 9th most famous French Rugby Player.  Her biography has been translated into different languages.

Lina Guérin (born 16 April 1991) is a French rugby union player. She was a member of the France women's national rugby sevens team to the 2016 Summer Olympics. She has played in 22 matches in the Women's Sevens Series so far, made 12 tries and scored 60 points.

Photo of Coralie Bertrand

10. Coralie Bertrand (b. 1994)

With an HPI of 0.00, Coralie Bertrand is the 10th most famous French Rugby Player.  Her biography has been translated into different languages.

Coralie Bertrand (born 10 April 1994) is a French rugby union and rugby sevens player. She plays 15-a-side rugby for RC Chilly Mazarin in France. She was named in the France squad for the Rugby sevens at the 2020 Summer Olympics.

People

Pantheon has 10 people classified as French rugby players born between 1874 and 1996. Of these 10, 7 (70.00%) of them are still alive today. The most famous living French rugby players include Sébastien Chabal, Carla Neisen, and Caroline Drouin. The most famous deceased French rugby players include Auguste Giroux, André Rischmann, and Léon Binoche. As of April 2024, 6 new French rugby players have been added to Pantheon including Carla Neisen, Caroline Drouin, and Fanny Horta.

Living French Rugby Players

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Deceased French Rugby Players

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Newly Added French Rugby Players (2024)

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Overlapping Lives

Which Rugby Players were alive at the same time? This visualization shows the lifespans of the 3 most globally memorable Rugby Players since 1700.