Lebanon vs France Rugby League World Cup 2026 Tips & Predictions - France To Fight For Pride
In Rugby League World Cup 2026 Round 3, Lebanon play France, with France tipped to cover a +31.5 handicap. Both teams have lost their opening two matches, but Lebanon have never beaten France by more than 30 points. France's recent heavy defeats saw most points conceded after halftime, while Lebanon have struggled to score, managing only 18 points in two games and losing Khaled Rajab. Additional selections include Jacob Kiraz to score 2 or more tries and a same game multi of Kiraz and Arthur Mourgue both to score, capitalising on defensive vulnerabilities.
- France +31.5 is tipped on the handicap against Lebanon.
- Lebanon have never beaten France by more than 30 points.
- Kiraz 2+ tries and a Kiraz-Mourgue same game multi are also suggested.
Lebanon vs France
Lebanon vs France, Rugby League World Cup 2026 Round 3 - Expert Prediction
Take France +31.5, Jacob Kiraz to score 2+ tries and a same game multi of Kiraz and Arthur Mourgue to both score. Lebanon should win on Sunday, but 31.5 points is a massive line for a game between two nations who have each lost both of their World Cup games.
- Lebanon vs France, Rugby League World Cup 2026 Round 3 - Expert Prediction
- Head to Head Stats
- Lebanon Form Analysis
- France Form Analysis
- Lebanon vs France Team News
- Lebanon vs France Team Lists
France have been belted, 78-4 by Samoa and 82-0 by England, but the scorelines hide how those games played out. A lot of the damage came after the result was already decided and the confidence was gone. France conceded 90 of those 160 points after halftime, and they held England scoreless for the first 20 minutes in Perth. This is the game France would have circled as the one to show up for, and the line is giving them a huge buffer.
Lebanon are not built to run away from anyone either. They lost 42-18 to PNG and did not score a point against Tonga, so they have scored 18 points in two games. They have also lost Khaled Rajab for the rest of the tournament, with Joseph Nohra coming in at five-eighth. Lebanon have beaten France four times, but never by more than 30.
Kiraz is the value play. He has carried the ball for 368 metres across two games from fullback without a try, but this is the first defence he faces that has conceded 160 points in a fortnight. There will be tries in this game, and the last line of Lebanon's attack is the player most likely to get on the end of them. At the other end, Mourgue is France's most dangerous ball runner and should get his chances in broken play.
Take France +31.5, Kiraz 2+ tries and the Kiraz and Mourgue same game multi.
- France conceded 90 of their 160 points against in the second half of their two games.
- Lebanon have scored 18 points across two World Cup games and were held scoreless by Tonga.
- Lebanon lead the head-to-head 4-1, but their biggest winning margin over France is 30 points.
- Jacob Kiraz has 368 Run Metres and 8 tackle breaks from fullback at the tournament.
- France lose Latrell Siegwalt (shoulder) but welcome back Cesar Rouge at five-eighth.
Head to Head Stats
Lebanon lead the head-to-head 4-1. France won the first meeting 38-24 in 1999, before Lebanon won three straight in 2002, 2003 and 2004 by 30, 8 and 28 points. The last meeting was at the 2017 World Cup, where Lebanon won 29-18 in Canberra. Two planned meetings in 2024 were cancelled. France would have covered a 31.5-point start in all five games.
Lebanon Form Analysis
Lebanon opened their tournament with a 42-18 loss to PNG in Port Moresby. They were in the game at halftime, trailing just 18-12 after two tries in four minutes before the break through Abbas Miski and Tony Sukkar, and Miski added a second in the 54th minute. The Kumuls ran away with it late, scoring seven tries in total. Tony Francis was outstanding with 292 Run Metres and seven tackle breaks.
Round 2 was harder. Tonga beat them 36-0 at CommBank Stadium, scoring seven tries to none. Lebanon kept Tonga to 14-0 at halftime and Alex Conti impressed under heavy pressure, but the Cedars could not find a way through. Kiraz ran for 154 metres and five tackle breaks in a beaten side.
France Form Analysis
France have conceded 160 points and scored just 4 in two games. Samoa raced to an 18-0 lead after eight minutes in Round 1 and won 78-4, with Guillermo Aispuro-Bichet scoring France's only try of the tournament so far. England then won 82-0 in Perth, although France kept them scoreless for the first 20 minutes before conceding six tries in 16 minutes.
Fullback Arthur Mourgue has stayed upbeat, saying after the Samoa loss that France "did have more line breaks against Samoa than the last time we played them" and that the team still has games to improve. The bad news is the loss of Latrell Siegwalt, who left the England game with a shoulder injury. Cesar Rouge returns at five-eighth and Thomas Lacans moves to halfback.
Lebanon vs France Team News
Lebanon Team News: Joseph Nohra wears the No.6 after Khaled Rajab was ruled out of the rest of the tournament with a hamstring injury. Shadi Hammoud has been added to the squad and comes off the bench. Moustafa Dirani is named at hooker, and Jalal Bazzaz returns to the bench alongside Yehya Ayache and Hammoud.
France Team News: Latrell Siegwalt is out with a shoulder injury, so Guillermo Aispuro-Bichet comes into the centres and Romeo Tropis also starts in the centres. Leo Darrelatour comes in on the wing for Fouad Yaha, who goes to the bench. Cesar Rouge starts at five-eighth after being benched against England, Thomas Lacans moves to No.7 and Theo Fages goes to the interchange. Alrix Da Costa is the new hooker, Mathieu Cozza starts in the back row, Amir Bourouh goes to the bench and Arthur Romano drops to the reserves.
Lebanon vs France Team Lists
| Lebanon | No. | France |
|---|---|---|
| Jacob Kiraz | 1 | Arthur Mourgue |
| Tony Francis | 2 | Leo Darrelatour |
| Michael Gabrael | 3 | |
| Jordan Samrani | 4 | Romeo Tropis |
| Jason Saab | 5 | |
| Joseph Nohra | 6 | Cesar Rouge |
| Alex Conti | 7 | Thomas Lacans |
| Jaxson Rahme | 8 | |
| Moustafa Dirani | 9 | Alrix Da Costa |
| James Roumanos | 10 | Julian Bousquet |
| Tony Sukkar | 11 | Mathieu Cozza |
| Abbas Miski | 12 | |
| Alex Twal (c) | 13 | |
| Yehya Ayache | 14 | Amir Bourouh |
| Tupou Francis | 15 | Lambert Belmas |
| Jalal Bazzaz | 16 | Jordan Dezaria |
| Khalil Rahme | 17 | |
| Shadi Hammoud | 18 | Theo Fages |
| Mikael Ibrahim | 19 | Fouad Yaha |
| Ibrahim El Labban | 20 | Tiaki Chan |
| Cameron Kanaan | 21 | Louis Grossemy |
| Mohamed Alameddine | 22 | Arthur Romano |
Verdict
Take France +31.5, Kiraz 2+ tries and the Kiraz and Mourgue same game multi.
France +31.5
Line
$2.00 - 2 Units
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