ANTOINE DUPONT HAS come a long way from the little village of Castelnau-Magnoac in the foothills of the Pyrenees mountains in south-west France.
When his high-flying career allows, he still enjoys going back to visit his family, who are among the few hundred people who live there, but Dupont is also comfortable in front of a global audience these days.
At the age of 29, he has long since transcended French rugby and is one of the most famous people in the country.
Even though Dupont was sidelined for eight months of last year after suffering a knee injury against Ireland in the Six Nations, he remained front and centre in the French public consciousness.
His relationship with Iris Mittenaere, who won Miss France and Miss Universe in 2016, was reported on the pages of Le Parisien and Paris Match before the hard launch when they were photographed together at Roland Garros watching the French Open. Even more glamorously, they attended the Cannes Film Festival together, with Dupont in full black tie.
The France scrum-half was also snapped at Paris fashion week, where he attended Louis Vuitton shows and was interviewed on the luxury fashion brand’s podcast, discussing Pharrell Williams’ latest collection.
Dupont was in Japan, visiting the World Expo in Osaka in his role as an ambassador for the France Pavilion. That was on 14 July, which is Bastille Day, the national day of France.
“Vive la France, vive le 14 juillet,” said Dupont on TV station France 2 as he addressed his nation down the camera from Osaka.
Dupont was spotted at a Paris Saint-Germain game against Auxerre a few months ago, giving an interview on PSG TV and updating his millions of supporters on how his recovery from the knee injury was going.
Dupont and Iris Mittenaere at Roland Garros. Alamy Stock Photo
Alamy Stock Photo
His decision to invest in American rugby made headlines last year. Dupont and his company, Ouest Coast, took part ownership of Los Angeles RFC, who play in Major League Rugby.
He had visited LA in 2024, training with the NFL’s Los Angeles Chargers and attending an LA Lakers game in the NBA. He also stopped in Miami and had his photo taken with the great Lionel Messi. As with everything Dupont does nowadays, his trip to the United States was documented in detail back home.
And even though he wasn’t playing, Dupont was still involved in one of the biggest stories in French rugby last year. His new contract with Toulouse, which runs until 2031, was announced by the club at one of their Top 14 games. A gigantic jersey with ’2031′ emblazoned on it was laid out on the pitch at Stade Ernest-Wallon, and Dupont came out to be interviewed wearing a cool old-school Toulouse polo shirt.
Everyone wants a piece of Dupont. He has a commercial partnership with Louis Vuitton and LVMH, which manages many other prestigious brands. Dupont also works with or has worked with the likes of Adidas, Peugeot, Volvic, and Tissot, among others.
He has stepped into the tech world too, meeting Tim Cook, the CEO of Apple, in Silicon Valley, attending an Apple event that also welcomed people like YouTube sensation MrBeast.
Dupont has been on the front page of GQ magazine in France, famously wearing what looked like an oversized yellow dressing gown. In that interview, GQ labelled him a “sweetheart”.
And that’s the thing. Despite his fame, most of those who have covered Dupont’s rise say he hasn’t changed all that much from the young fella who came from Castelnau-Magnoac.
“It’s a paradox because he came from a very rural zone in France; he didn’t grow up in a big city,” says French rugby writer Simon Valzer, who works for Midi Olympique.
“He grew up basically eating rugby, consuming every game he could. We were all surprised at first to see him on the front pages of magazines, the haute couture.
“He has this kind of double personality; he’s a real hero in France, and he has a huge impact and a huge aura. But he’s still very down to earth.”
The village of Castelnau-Magnoac. Alamy Stock Photo
Alamy Stock Photo
There is this contradiction with Dupont, whose nickname is ‘Toto’, but who is also referred to as ‘The Martian’ by some of his team-mates because of his out-of-this-world skills on the pitch.
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Those who knew Dupont when he first came onto the rugby scene could never have imagined him being so prominent in the public limelight.
The scrum-half remains a true family man. Dupont’s father, Jean, passed away in 2023. He spoke about this in a candid interview on a TV show called Les Papotin on France 2, where he was interviewed by a group of non-professional journalists with autism spectrum disorder.
Jean had been in a vegetative state for eight years and living in care before he passed away, Antoine told them.
Dupont also spoke about how close he remains to his mother, Marie-Pierre Galès. With his home village of Castelnau-Magnoac being only a 90-minute drive from Toulouse, he still sees his family regularly.
His older brother, Clément, followed in their father’s footsteps by becoming a pig breeder. There is also a strong Dupont history in hospitality. The Hotel Dupont was a proud part of life in Castelnau-Magnoac for two centuries before it closed in the early 2010s.
Last year, Antoine and Clément opened a new restaurant in their village named ‘Chez Jean,’ in honour of their father. So home is where the heart is for Dupont.
“Antoine is a guy of the mountains, and it’s important for him to stay that way,” says Jérémy Fadat, a rugby journalist with Midi Olympique.
“He’s from a very modest family, and he’s really a child of rugby. He’s a huge personality in French rugby now, but more than that, just a huge French personality. He has a fame which is huge, but his character is still the same.
“He’s very simple. He’s a real big competitor.”
Dupont’s mother, Marie-Pierre, has spoken about her pride in how Dupont has used his profile in a positive manner.
GQ isn’t the only magazine cover Dupont has done. He was on the front page of Têtu, a LGBTQ+ magazine in France and said in that interview that he would stop a game of rugby if he heard a homophobic comment on the pitch.
Dupont has also spoken out against racism.
“I loved it when he was on the cover of Têtu, I thought he looked very handsome,” his mother told French podcast Pourquoi le Rugby.
“I told him, ‘You’re going to attract some criticism,’ but he told me, ‘It’s OK, it’s good to do it.’
“I’m proud of him, but I’m afraid he’ll put himself in danger, that he’ll be attacked by homophobic, racist people. I think he’s very courageous to take a stand and be a bit of a spearhead, because in rugby, there aren’t many people who speak out.”
Having won Top 14 and Champions Cup titles with Toulouse, a Grand Slam with France, and been named 2021 World Rugby player of the year, he was already a superstar in French sport, but leading his country to gold medals in 7s at the 2024 Paris Olympics elevated him to an entirely new level.
Fadat reckons that Dupont’s fame is equalled by just three other French sportsmen – footballer Kylian Mbappé, basketball starVictor Wembanyama, and swimmer Leon Marchand.
Sébastien Chabal is the only other rugby player who gained countrywide fame, but Fadat says that was partly because of how the former France back row looked, with his wild beard and long hair making him so memorable.
Not that Dupont hasn’t cultivated his own unique look. He has developed a clear love for fashion and is now something of an influence in that sphere.
“He didn’t know that world before, so he has the opportunity, the chance to discover that, and he’s very curious,” says Fadat.
“I think he sees that almost with the eye of a child who discovers another world.”
Dupont with fellow French Olympic gold medallists Teddy Riner and Leon Marchand. Alamy Stock Photo
Alamy Stock Photo
Valzer says it’s important to note that Dupont has steered well clear of the bad side of the celebrity world. There are no big parties, no excess, no poor behaviour in public. He just likes the aesthetic side of fashion.
“Some athletes can go a bit crazy,” says Valzer. “They get lost in that world, which is not theirs.”
And yet, while Dupont is admired for being brave enough to speak up and has gained more fame by engaging with different parts of French culture, what he is really admired for is his sensational skill and athleticism in rugby.
There were concerns in some quarters last year about his ability to come back from his ACL injury at the same level, partly because he was out enjoying the world. He even attracted criticism for supposedly taking his eye off the ball.
“We saw him a lot on the social networks, going to Roland Garros, going to Miami, we saw him all around the world and people were quite worried,” says Valzer.
“They were worried about his ability to come back and be in those tough places, you know, out on the field at training, the suffering.”
But Dupont was training as hard as ever throughout that spell. He just didn’t show the world that side of his life.
Dupont was utterly determined to return to the same elite level as before. Valzer says that the 2023 World Cup quarter-final defeat to South Africa on home soil still frustrates Dupont deeply. It motivates him.
He did well just to be playing that day after fracturing his face only weeks before, but Dupont took it hard and it still causes him pain.
Remarkably, Dupont has only played seven games for France in the last three seasons due to his Olympics hiatus and injury. His dream now is to help les Bleus become world champions in Australia in 2027.
Dupont on a banner at Gare du Nord train station in Paris. Alamy Stock Photo
Alamy Stock Photo
But before that, he’ll be looking to get back up to speed in France’s number nine shirt against Ireland on Thursday night. His return for Toulouse since the end of November has been impressive. He picked up where he left off immediately.
Dupont will make France a better team with his own skills and physicality, but also because he tends to elevate everyone around him.
“He’s quiet but he’s very passionate, he’s very demanding,” says Valzer.
“We always talk about what he’s doing on the field, his kicking game with both feet, his passing, his physicality. But what we see in France is that he’s making the others better. He gives a lot of confidence to those around him and he makes the team play better.”
Toulouse and France hooker Peato Mauvaka summed it up well for Fadat recently.
“He said that when Dupont isn’t on the field, the opposition are looking at everyone else,” says Fadat.
“But he said, ‘When Antoine is on the field, they are all looking at Antoine, so there is space for the rest of us.’”
It’s not good news for Ireland that one of the best players of all time is back in the French side.
But it is brilliant news for French rugby and the entire nation.
They will be watching his every move intently.
“Every kid in France wants to be like Antoine Dupont,” says Fadat.
“He’s iconic and it’s a blessing for French rugby.”
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Antoine from the mountains: how the world’s best rugby player transcended the sport
ANTOINE DUPONT HAS come a long way from the little village of Castelnau-Magnoac in the foothills of the Pyrenees mountains in south-west France.
When his high-flying career allows, he still enjoys going back to visit his family, who are among the few hundred people who live there, but Dupont is also comfortable in front of a global audience these days.
At the age of 29, he has long since transcended French rugby and is one of the most famous people in the country.
Even though Dupont was sidelined for eight months of last year after suffering a knee injury against Ireland in the Six Nations, he remained front and centre in the French public consciousness.
His relationship with Iris Mittenaere, who won Miss France and Miss Universe in 2016, was reported on the pages of Le Parisien and Paris Match before the hard launch when they were photographed together at Roland Garros watching the French Open. Even more glamorously, they attended the Cannes Film Festival together, with Dupont in full black tie.
The France scrum-half was also snapped at Paris fashion week, where he attended Louis Vuitton shows and was interviewed on the luxury fashion brand’s podcast, discussing Pharrell Williams’ latest collection.
Dupont was in Japan, visiting the World Expo in Osaka in his role as an ambassador for the France Pavilion. That was on 14 July, which is Bastille Day, the national day of France.
“Vive la France, vive le 14 juillet,” said Dupont on TV station France 2 as he addressed his nation down the camera from Osaka.
Dupont was spotted at a Paris Saint-Germain game against Auxerre a few months ago, giving an interview on PSG TV and updating his millions of supporters on how his recovery from the knee injury was going.
His decision to invest in American rugby made headlines last year. Dupont and his company, Ouest Coast, took part ownership of Los Angeles RFC, who play in Major League Rugby.
He had visited LA in 2024, training with the NFL’s Los Angeles Chargers and attending an LA Lakers game in the NBA. He also stopped in Miami and had his photo taken with the great Lionel Messi. As with everything Dupont does nowadays, his trip to the United States was documented in detail back home.
And even though he wasn’t playing, Dupont was still involved in one of the biggest stories in French rugby last year. His new contract with Toulouse, which runs until 2031, was announced by the club at one of their Top 14 games. A gigantic jersey with ’2031′ emblazoned on it was laid out on the pitch at Stade Ernest-Wallon, and Dupont came out to be interviewed wearing a cool old-school Toulouse polo shirt.
Everyone wants a piece of Dupont. He has a commercial partnership with Louis Vuitton and LVMH, which manages many other prestigious brands. Dupont also works with or has worked with the likes of Adidas, Peugeot, Volvic, and Tissot, among others.
He has stepped into the tech world too, meeting Tim Cook, the CEO of Apple, in Silicon Valley, attending an Apple event that also welcomed people like YouTube sensation MrBeast.
Dupont has been on the front page of GQ magazine in France, famously wearing what looked like an oversized yellow dressing gown. In that interview, GQ labelled him a “sweetheart”.
And that’s the thing. Despite his fame, most of those who have covered Dupont’s rise say he hasn’t changed all that much from the young fella who came from Castelnau-Magnoac.
“It’s a paradox because he came from a very rural zone in France; he didn’t grow up in a big city,” says French rugby writer Simon Valzer, who works for Midi Olympique.
“He grew up basically eating rugby, consuming every game he could. We were all surprised at first to see him on the front pages of magazines, the haute couture.
“He has this kind of double personality; he’s a real hero in France, and he has a huge impact and a huge aura. But he’s still very down to earth.”
There is this contradiction with Dupont, whose nickname is ‘Toto’, but who is also referred to as ‘The Martian’ by some of his team-mates because of his out-of-this-world skills on the pitch.
Those who knew Dupont when he first came onto the rugby scene could never have imagined him being so prominent in the public limelight.
The scrum-half remains a true family man. Dupont’s father, Jean, passed away in 2023. He spoke about this in a candid interview on a TV show called Les Papotin on France 2, where he was interviewed by a group of non-professional journalists with autism spectrum disorder.
Jean had been in a vegetative state for eight years and living in care before he passed away, Antoine told them.
Dupont also spoke about how close he remains to his mother, Marie-Pierre Galès. With his home village of Castelnau-Magnoac being only a 90-minute drive from Toulouse, he still sees his family regularly.
His older brother, Clément, followed in their father’s footsteps by becoming a pig breeder. There is also a strong Dupont history in hospitality. The Hotel Dupont was a proud part of life in Castelnau-Magnoac for two centuries before it closed in the early 2010s.
Last year, Antoine and Clément opened a new restaurant in their village named ‘Chez Jean,’ in honour of their father. So home is where the heart is for Dupont.
“Antoine is a guy of the mountains, and it’s important for him to stay that way,” says Jérémy Fadat, a rugby journalist with Midi Olympique.
“He’s from a very modest family, and he’s really a child of rugby. He’s a huge personality in French rugby now, but more than that, just a huge French personality. He has a fame which is huge, but his character is still the same.
“He’s very simple. He’s a real big competitor.”
Dupont’s mother, Marie-Pierre, has spoken about her pride in how Dupont has used his profile in a positive manner.
GQ isn’t the only magazine cover Dupont has done. He was on the front page of Têtu, a LGBTQ+ magazine in France and said in that interview that he would stop a game of rugby if he heard a homophobic comment on the pitch.
Dupont has also spoken out against racism.
“I loved it when he was on the cover of Têtu, I thought he looked very handsome,” his mother told French podcast Pourquoi le Rugby.
“I told him, ‘You’re going to attract some criticism,’ but he told me, ‘It’s OK, it’s good to do it.’
“I’m proud of him, but I’m afraid he’ll put himself in danger, that he’ll be attacked by homophobic, racist people. I think he’s very courageous to take a stand and be a bit of a spearhead, because in rugby, there aren’t many people who speak out.”
Having won Top 14 and Champions Cup titles with Toulouse, a Grand Slam with France, and been named 2021 World Rugby player of the year, he was already a superstar in French sport, but leading his country to gold medals in 7s at the 2024 Paris Olympics elevated him to an entirely new level.
Fadat reckons that Dupont’s fame is equalled by just three other French sportsmen – footballer Kylian Mbappé, basketball starVictor Wembanyama, and swimmer Leon Marchand.
Sébastien Chabal is the only other rugby player who gained countrywide fame, but Fadat says that was partly because of how the former France back row looked, with his wild beard and long hair making him so memorable.
Not that Dupont hasn’t cultivated his own unique look. He has developed a clear love for fashion and is now something of an influence in that sphere.
“He didn’t know that world before, so he has the opportunity, the chance to discover that, and he’s very curious,” says Fadat.
“I think he sees that almost with the eye of a child who discovers another world.”
Valzer says it’s important to note that Dupont has steered well clear of the bad side of the celebrity world. There are no big parties, no excess, no poor behaviour in public. He just likes the aesthetic side of fashion.
“Some athletes can go a bit crazy,” says Valzer. “They get lost in that world, which is not theirs.”
And yet, while Dupont is admired for being brave enough to speak up and has gained more fame by engaging with different parts of French culture, what he is really admired for is his sensational skill and athleticism in rugby.
There were concerns in some quarters last year about his ability to come back from his ACL injury at the same level, partly because he was out enjoying the world. He even attracted criticism for supposedly taking his eye off the ball.
“We saw him a lot on the social networks, going to Roland Garros, going to Miami, we saw him all around the world and people were quite worried,” says Valzer.
“They were worried about his ability to come back and be in those tough places, you know, out on the field at training, the suffering.”
But Dupont was training as hard as ever throughout that spell. He just didn’t show the world that side of his life.
Dupont was utterly determined to return to the same elite level as before. Valzer says that the 2023 World Cup quarter-final defeat to South Africa on home soil still frustrates Dupont deeply. It motivates him.
He did well just to be playing that day after fracturing his face only weeks before, but Dupont took it hard and it still causes him pain.
Remarkably, Dupont has only played seven games for France in the last three seasons due to his Olympics hiatus and injury. His dream now is to help les Bleus become world champions in Australia in 2027.
But before that, he’ll be looking to get back up to speed in France’s number nine shirt against Ireland on Thursday night. His return for Toulouse since the end of November has been impressive. He picked up where he left off immediately.
Dupont will make France a better team with his own skills and physicality, but also because he tends to elevate everyone around him.
“He’s quiet but he’s very passionate, he’s very demanding,” says Valzer.
“We always talk about what he’s doing on the field, his kicking game with both feet, his passing, his physicality. But what we see in France is that he’s making the others better. He gives a lot of confidence to those around him and he makes the team play better.”
Toulouse and France hooker Peato Mauvaka summed it up well for Fadat recently.
“He said that when Dupont isn’t on the field, the opposition are looking at everyone else,” says Fadat.
“But he said, ‘When Antoine is on the field, they are all looking at Antoine, so there is space for the rest of us.’”
It’s not good news for Ireland that one of the best players of all time is back in the French side.
But it is brilliant news for French rugby and the entire nation.
They will be watching his every move intently.
“Every kid in France wants to be like Antoine Dupont,” says Fadat.
“He’s iconic and it’s a blessing for French rugby.”
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Antoine Dupont Six Nations FAMOUS France Icon Ireland toto