‘Dynamite’ Dupont leads France’s quest for Rugby World Cup glory

France, still gunning for a maiden title after three final defeats, are among the hot favourites to win the sport’s quadrennial showpiece event, which runs through October 28.

Expectations surrounding the home side are sky-high as they prepare to take on New Zealand’s All Blacks in a tantalising curtain-raiser at the Stade de France near Paris, with all eyes on Dupont, France’s electrifying skipper.

“Obviously the closer we get, the more we feel the excitement, the enthusiasm, the fervour," Dupont told reporters on Thursday, while playing down talk of the pressure weighing on the home side.

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Relaxed, demure and seemingly unfazed by global fame, French rugby’s poster boy has become the face of the tournament, his image ubiquitous in cities up and down the country – including outside the Louvre museum in Paris.

Dupont already has his wax statue at the Grévin Museum in Paris, his voice is being used by the national train company SNCF, and when Volvic revived an iconic advert from the early 2000s, featuring Zinedine Zidane, it naturally tapped the French rugby star to stand in for the football legend.