| Home team | Japan |
| Away team | France |
| Venue | MUFG Stadium |
| Competition | Rugby Nations Championship |
| Kick-off time | 9:40 am (UK and Ireland) |
| Watch Live in the UK | ITV |
Japan vs France preview as the sides meet at the MUFG Stadium in Tokyo.
Both teams have one win from the tournament so far, with Japan winning their opener, while France won their second game against the Wallabies.
A win for either side will set them in a strong position as the teams head to the northern hemisphere in November.
Read more match previews for all your rugby action here
Japan vs France confirmed lineups
| Japan | France | ||||
| Forwards | |||||
| Otsuka | 1 | Poirot | |||
| Era | 2 | Lamothe | |||
| Tamefusa | 3 | Montagne | |||
| Hockings | 4 | Verhaeghe | |||
| Dearns | 5 | Meafou | |||
| Haangana | 6 | Nouchi | |||
| Gunter | 7 | Gazzotti | |||
| Cornelsen | 8 | Roumat | |||
| Backs | |||||
| Saito | 9 | Lucu | |||
| Ito | 10 | Ntamack | |||
| Ishida | 11 | Grandidier-Nkanang | |||
| Tua | 12 | Moefana | |||
| Riley | 13 | Brau-Boirie | |||
| Ueda | 14 | Attisogbe | |||
| Matsunga | 15 | Jalibert | |||
| Replacements | |||||
| Sato | 16 | Mauvaka | |||
| Okabe | 17 | Wardi | |||
| Sword | 18 | Falatea | |||
| Stolberg | 19 | Auradou | |||
| Leitch | 20 | Staniforth | |||
| Costley | 21 | Tixeront | |||
| Main | 22 | Graou | |||
| Uenobo | 23 | Gourgues | |||
Recent Form:
Japan (Home team):
| Result | Date | Competition | Opponent | Score |
| Loss | 11th July 2026 | Rugby Nations Championship | Ireland | 20-36 |
| Won | 4th July 2026 | Rugby Nations Championship | Italy | 27-10 |
| Won | 22nd November 2025 | Friendly | Georgia | 23-25 |
| Loss | 15th November 2025 | Friendly | Wales | 24-23 |
| Loss | 8th November 2025 | Friendly | Ireland | 41-10 |
Japan had to travel to Australia to play Ireland, despite it being their home game. Ireland rotated heavily for the game and were leading just five minutes before halftime. Ireland turned it on in the second half, and despite a Japan try in the second half, Ireland scored two converted tries and a penalty to win the game.
France (Away team):
| Result | Date | Competition | Opponent | Score |
| Won | 11th July 2026 | Rugby Nations Championship | Australia | 26-42 |
| Loss | 4th July 2026 | Rugby Nations Championship | All Blacks | 34-32 |
| Won | 14th March 2026 | Six Nations | England | 48-46 |
| Loss | 7th March 2026 | Six Nations | Scotland | 50-40 |
| Won | 22nd February 2026 | Six Nations | Italy | 33-8 |
France were disappointed by their narrow defeat to the All Blacks in the first round of the competition, but went to Australia in the second round and picked up an impressive 42-26 victory. They scored six tries, with Grandidier-Nkanang picking up two tries on his international debut.
Japan vs France head-to-head record (last five matches):
| Date | Competition | Winner | Score |
| 9th November 2024 | Friendly | France | 52-12 |
| 20th November 2022 | Friendly | France | 35-17 |
| 9th July 2022 | Friendly | France | 15-20 |
| 2nd July 2022 | Friendly | France | 23-42 |
| 25th November 2017 | Friendly | Draw | 23-23 |
France have won the last four meetings between the teams, drawing in 2017. When they met in November 2024, they won by 40 points, scoring more than 50 points.
