Instead of Les Bleus, you need to call the French Rugby team Les Rouges. Fifty years of rugby tradition was washed away earlier today when officials said France would start their Six Nations rugby campaign against Scotland on Saturday wearing red shirts.
France, whose usual blue shirt is one of the most iconic in rugby, whose normal alternative change of strip is white, had a brief flirtation with red shirts in 1958 and 1959 against Australia and Scotland respectively, winning both games.
“It is one of the colours of our flag,” Emmanuelle Gaye, a spokesperson for Adidas, told the French daily Le Figaro, which also published a picture of the centre Wesley Fofana wearing the shirt with blue shorts and red socks today. Fofana told Le Figaro: “I immediately thought we would be privileged to play with this shirt.”
It promises to be an exciting match this Saturday, and I am looking forward to it, cheering Les Rouges to win.
France team to face Scotland :
S Spedding, Y Huget, M Bastareaud, W Fofana, T Thomas, C Lopez, R Kockott; A Menini, G Guirado, R Slimani, P Papé, Y Maestri, T Dusautoir (capt), D Chouly, B Le Roux. Replacements: B Kayser, U Atonio, E Ben Arous, R Taofifenua, L Goujon, M Parra, R Talès, R Lamerat.
