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The Top 14 is a professional rugby competition that’s contested in
France. This annual league is renowned for its high level of competition and is one of the three major professional leagues in Europe, alongside the English Premiership and the United Rugby Championship.
Established in 1892, this tournament’s history is marked by memorable matches. This includes the inaugural season, which consisted of just one game: Racing Club de France versus Stade Français. Racing won the match 4-3 and
claimed the first French Championship.
From 1892 to 1898, the
league was open to Parisian teams only. Over the next 100 years, the Top 14 underwent numerous changes, growing in size and prestige.
LATEST NEWS
Countries Dagg's blunt take on Plummer's French move SPOTLIGHT: Israel Dagg doesn’t blame Harry Plummer for taking up a multi-year deal with Clermont Auvergne in France’s prestigious Top 14, but that doesn’t mean the 2011 Rugby World Cup winner is happy to see the one-Test All Black leave New Zealand’s shores.
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Countries Struggling Stade Francais limps into Clermont clash as Dupont draws sold-out crowd PREVIEW: Struggling 14-time Top 14 champions Stade Francais will host Clermont on Saturday low on confidence on the back of their worst start to a season in five years while Toulouse face Toulon in front of a sold-out crowd.
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Top 14 Format & Winners
Today, the Top 14 operates a round-robin structure, whereby each of
the 14 teams plays all of the other teams at home and away. The season
runs from August to June and culminates in a play-off series.
The top six teams progress to the knock-out stage; the top two advance
straight to the semi-finals while the remaining four compete in
semi-final qualifiers.
Promotion and relegation are key features of the Top 14. The team that finishes at the bottom of the table is
relegated to the Pro D2 (the second division), while the Pro D2 Champion is promoted to the Top 14. Similarly, the team that finishes second
bottom of the Top 14 plays against the losing finalist from the Pro D2
in a relegation play-off. Additionally, teams also compete to earn their place at the European Rugby Champions Cup.
With such a long
history, many Top 14 rugby teams have amassed impressive records. The
top-performing team is Stade Toulousain with 22 wins. They are followed
by Stade Français (14), AS Béziers (11), SU Agen (8) and FC Lourdes (8).
Want to be the first to know about French Championship results, lineups and
announcements? Save this page for the latest Top 14 news and
predictions.