1. Damian Penaud Biography

2. Introduction: Who is Damian Penaud?

Few backs in modern French rugby have combined longevity, finishing instinct, and sheer physical presence quite like Damian Penaud. Standing close to six-foot-four and built more like a lock than a traditional speedster, Penaud has spent nearly a decade redefining what a Test-match wing can look like — someone who out-jumps fullbacks, out-runs centres, and still finishes with the composure of a natural predator.

This Damian Penaud biography looks at the full arc of his career: a childhood shaped by his father’s own international rugby background, a youth spent bouncing between academies before he found a home at Clermont Auvergne, a decorated club career now continuing at Bordeaux Bègles, and an international journey that culminated in November 2025, when he surpassed the legendary Serge Blanco to become France’s all-time leading try scorer.

Anyone searching for Damian Penaud stats, Damian Penaud tries, or a breakdown of his Damian Penaud Rugby World Cup performances will find the complete, verified picture here — including the dramatic swings of 2026, a year in which he was dropped from France’s Six Nations squad, watched his team win the title without him, and then returned to break another milestone within seconds of his comeback.

3. Early Life & Background of Damian Penaud

Damian Penaud was born on 25 September 1996 in Brive-la-Gaillarde, a rugby-mad town in the Corrèze department of south-west France. Rugby was effectively the family business: his father, Alain Penaud, was a France international back in the 1990s, giving Damian an early, close-up education in the demands of top-level rugby.

Growing up around the sport rather than discovering it later gave him an early technical grounding, and by his mid-teens he was already moving through some of the region’s better-known youth structures — a path that eventually funneled him into one of the most respected academy systems in French rugby.

Did You Know? Damian Penaud is one of relatively few players in Top 14 history to follow a father who also earned senior international caps for France — a rare father-son pairing at the very top of the sport.

4. Damian Penaud Youth & Academy Career

Penaud’s junior rugby education took him through several clubs before he settled into a professional pathway:

• 2006–2007: Lyon
• 2007–2008: Brive
• 2009–2010: Malemort
• 2010–2014: Brive (second spell)
• 2014–2017: Clermont academy

He represented France Under-20s, featuring at the 2015 World Rugby Under-20 Championship, where he scored twice against an England U20 side — an early indicator of the finishing ability that would later define his senior career. He remained involved with the France U20 setup into 2016 before graduating fully into senior professional rugby with Clermont.

5. Damian Penaud Club Career Timeline

5.1 The Clermont Years (2015–2023)

Penaud made his senior Top 14 debut for ASM Clermont Auvergne on 16 April 2016 against SU Agen, playing the full match. He established himself as a first-choice back the following season, helping Clermont win the 2016–17 Top 14 title — scoring in the semi-final and starting the final.

Over eight seasons in Clermont’s professional squad he scored 52 tries, and in 2019 he added a European Challenge Cup winner’s medal, scoring a try in Clermont’s 36–16 final win over La Rochelle. By the end of his Clermont tenure, he was widely regarded as one of the most dangerous finishers in French domestic rugby, and his contract expiry at the end of the 2022–23 season triggered significant transfer interest.

5.2 The Move to Bordeaux Bègles (2023–present)

Penaud joined Union Bordeaux Bègles immediately after the 2023 Rugby World Cup, making his debut in Round 6 of the 2023–24 Top 14 season against Section Paloise. He wasted little time making an impact, scoring four tries in only his third appearance for the club, against Perpignan, and finished his debut season with 18 tries in all competitions.

His second UBB season, 2024–25, was arguably the finest club campaign of his career: 25 tries in 23 matches across all competitions. In the Champions Cup specifically, he was named the competition’s Player of the Tournament and finished as its top try scorer with 8 tries, including a brace in the final as Bordeaux Bègles beat Northampton Saints 28–20 to win the club’s first-ever Champions Cup title.

Bordeaux Bègles extended his contract through 2028 in mid-2025. The 2025–26 season saw him used extensively again — 30 matches, every one as a starter — and shifted at times from wing to centre to cover injuries to teammates Nicolas Depoortere and R.J. van Rensburg. That campaign ended with Bordeaux Bègles retaining the Champions Cup, won on the ground in Bilbao, making Penaud a two-time European club champion.

6. Damian Penaud International Career & Test Match Record

Damian Penaud made his France debut in June 2017, scoring a try in a 37–15 win over South Africa in Durban under then-coach Guy Novès. He signed a contract extension with Clermont later that year having already made 22 appearances and scored 9 tries for the club.

His international career has included:

• 2020: Missed the Autumn Nations Cup through injury, returning for the 2021 Six Nations.
• 2022 Six Nations: Joint top try scorer (3 tries) as France won the Grand Slam and the title.
• 2023 Six Nations: Outright top try scorer with 5 tries.
• 2023 Rugby World Cup: Finished as the tournament’s second-highest try scorer overall, with 6 tries.
• November 2025: Broke Serge Blanco’s long-standing French record of 38 international tries, becoming France’s all-time leading try scorer.
• 2025: Captained France on their tour of New Zealand.
• January 2026: Left out of France’s Six Nations squad — a decision that drew public criticism from pundits, including former England international Anthony Watson, who called the omission “criminal.” France went on to win the 2026 Six Nations title without him.
• July 2026: Recalled for the inaugural Nations Championship, scoring his 41st Test try just 70 seconds into his comeback against New Zealand — before suffering a calf injury that ended his involvement in the July Test window.

As of his most recent involvement, Penaud has earned 60 caps and scored 41 tries for France — the all-time national record.

Did You Know? Damian Penaud scored a Test try for France just over a minute into his first appearance back from being dropped — arguably the fastest possible rebuttal to any questions about his place in the squad.

7. Damian Penaud Rugby World Cup Performances

Penaud has represented France at two Rugby World Cups.

7.1 2019 Rugby World Cup (Japan)

Penaud was part of the France squad and started on the wing in the quarter-final against Wales, a match France ultimately lost. It was his first taste of World Cup knockout rugby.

7.2 2023 Rugby World Cup (France, host nation)

Playing on home soil, Penaud was one of the standout performers of the pool stage. He scored a hat-trick in France’s record 96–0 win over Namibia, added a double against Italy, and opened his tournament account with a try in France’s opening win over New Zealand. He finished the tournament as the second-highest try scorer overall with 6 tries, behind only New Zealand’s Will Jordan (8), and briefly chased the French calendar-year try-scoring record set by Philippe Saint-André in 1995. France were eliminated in the quarter-final by eventual runners-up South Africa.

8. Damian Penaud Playing Style & Key Skills

Penaud’s game is built around an unusual physical profile for a winger: at close to 1.93 m and 98 kg, he has the frame of a back-rower but the acceleration and finishing instincts of a specialist finisher. His key attributes include:

• Aerial ability: His height makes him a genuine threat under high balls and cross-kicks, a tactic France and Bordeaux Bègles have repeatedly used to isolate him against smaller defenders.
• Finishing and gain-line power: He regularly breaks the gain line on the outside shoulder of defenders, using his size to shrug off attempted tackles in the corner.
• Try-scoring instinct: His record-breaking international tally reflects a consistent ability to be in the right place — supporting lines, chip-and-chase finishes, and set-piece strike plays all feature heavily in his highlight reel.
• Versatility: The 2025–26 season showed a new dimension, with Penaud filling in at outside centre for Bordeaux Bègles when injuries hit the club’s midfield.

Where he has drawn criticism — most notably around the time of his January 2026 Six Nations omission — is defensive consistency and dealing with the high ball under pressure, areas cited by France’s coaching staff as factors in that decision.

9. Damian Penaud Major Honors & Achievements

• Top 14 champion — 2017 (Clermont)
• European Challenge Cup winner — 2019 (Clermont)
• Six Nations champion & Grand Slam winner — 2022 (France)
• Six Nations top try scorer — 2022 (joint), 2023
• Investec Champions Cup winner — 2024–25, 2025–26 (Bordeaux Bègles)
• Champions Cup Player of the Tournament & top try scorer — 2024–25
• France’s all-time leading try scorer — record broken November 2025 (surpassing Serge Blanco’s 38 tries)
• Rugby World Cup 2023 — second-highest try scorer of the tournament (6 tries)

Did You Know? Damian Penaud’s Champions Cup final tally with Bordeaux Bègles includes a brace in the 2025 final against Northampton Saints — meaning he has personally contributed match-defining scores in a European final, not just accumulated tries in the group stage.

10. Damian Penaud Rivalries & Notable Match-Ups

Penaud’s most talked-about “rivalry” in recent seasons has not been with an opponent but with a teammate: fellow Bordeaux Bègles and France wing Louis Bielle-Biarrey, whose explosive rise since 2023 has repeatedly put the two in direct comparison for club and country. Their partnership on the flanks for Bordeaux Bègles has been central to the club’s back-to-back European titles, even as media coverage increasingly frames Bielle-Biarrey as the heir to Penaud’s try-scoring records.

On the international stage, Penaud’s head-to-head battles with elite opposition wings and fullbacks — including New Zealand’s back three during the 2023 World Cup opener and subsequent Nations Championship fixtures — have been among the most closely watched match-ups in the sport, given the aerial duels his height and timing routinely produce.

11. Damian Penaud Injuries & Setbacks

Injury has periodically interrupted Penaud’s career at key moments:

• 2020: Missed the Autumn Nations Cup due to injury.
• January 2026: A toe injury sustained in training ruled him out of France’s Six Nations opener against Wales — around the same period he was omitted from the wider squad.
• July 2026: After returning for the Nations Championship and scoring within his first minute back, he suffered a calf injury at half-time of the match against New Zealand, ending his involvement in the remainder of France’s July Test fixtures.

These setbacks have not been catastrophic long-term injuries, but the timing of several — particularly around major squad selections — has fed into broader discussion of his form and fitness heading into 2026.

12. Off-the-Field Life

Damian Penaud comes from a rugby family: his father Alain Penaud was himself a France international back in the 1990s, and growing up in that environment shaped his early exposure to the professional game. Beyond his family background and his on-field career, Penaud maintains a relatively low public profile compared to some of his higher-media-presence France teammates, with most of his public visibility tied directly to match performances, squad announcements, and milestone achievements such as his 2025 record-breaking try. Reliable, publicly confirmed detail beyond his rugby career and family background is limited, and this article avoids speculating on aspects of his private life that have not been confirmed by reputable sources.

13. Damian Penaud Net Worth, Earnings, Sponsorship & Public Profile

As a long-serving Top 14 player and one of France’s most capped and most prolific try scorers, Penaud earns income through his Bordeaux Bègles club contract (running to 2028) and match fees associated with his France international career, in line with standard arrangements for players at his level in French professional rugby. He is a recognizable face in French rugby media coverage, particularly around milestone moments such as his November 2025 record-breaking try and his high-profile squad omission and recall in 2026.

Specific, verified figures for his individual net worth or personal sponsorship deals are not reliably published by authoritative sources, and this article does not include invented dollar figures — readers should treat any specific net-worth number found elsewhere online with caution unless it cites a primary or verifiable source.

14. Damian Penaud Facts for Fans

1. He is the son of former France international Alain Penaud.
2. He was born in Brive-la-Gaillarde on 25 September 1996.
3. He passed through five different youth clubs before turning professional.
4. He made his Top 14 debut for Clermont on 16 April 2016.
5. He won the Top 14 title in his second full season as a Clermont regular (2016–17).
6. He scored 52 tries across eight seasons at Clermont.
7. He scored four tries in just his third match for Bordeaux Bègles.
8. He is France’s all-time leading try scorer, having broken Serge Blanco’s 38-try record in November 2025.
9. He has played in two Rugby World Cups (2019 and 2023).
10. He finished the 2023 Rugby World Cup as the tournament’s second-top try scorer, with 6 tries.
11. He was named Champions Cup Player of the Tournament for 2024–25.
12. He is a two-time Champions Cup winner with Bordeaux Bègles (2025, 2026).
13. He captained the France national team on their 2025 tour of New Zealand.
14. He scored a Test try just 70 seconds into his return from being dropped from the France squad in 2026.
15. He stands 1.93 m tall — unusually tall for a specialist winger.

15. Comparison with Peers

Figures for Bielle-Biarrey and Jordan reflect mid-to-late 2026 reporting and will continue to change as both remain active; Penaud’s tally is his French all-time record total.

What stands out is strike rate as much as raw totals: Bielle-Biarrey’s try-scoring ratio has been running well ahead of the historical top-58 international try scorers, while Jordan’s 0.9-tries-per-Test rate is considered one of the best in Test history. Penaud’s record isn’t built on the same blistering ratio — it’s the product of sustained, multi-season consistency across nearly a decade at the top level, which is arguably a harder record to assemble.

16. Damian Penaud Legacy & Impact on Rugby

Whatever happens across the remainder of his career, Damian Penaud’s place in French rugby history is already secured by one number: 41 international tries, more than any player who has worn the blue jersey, including legends like Serge Blanco. That record was built not through a single explosive peak but through year-on-year output across three different France coaching regimes and two different club environments.

His move from Clermont to Bordeaux Bègles also reshaped a club: Bordeaux Bègles’ back-to-back Champions Cup titles in 2025 and 2026 coincided directly with his arrival and his partnership with Louis Bielle-Biarrey, giving the club a genuine claim to being the most feared attacking back three combination in European club rugby during that period.

Did You Know? Damian Penaud’s try in November 2025 that broke Serge Blanco’s record ended a mark that had stood since the early 1990s — meaning it survived multiple generations of France wings, including players like Vincent Clerc and Christophe Dominici, before Penaud finally surpassed it.

17. What’s Next — 2026 Season Outlook

Penaud enters the second half of 2026 in an unusual position for a record holder: recovering from a calf injury sustained almost immediately after being recalled to the France squad, having watched his country win the Six Nations without him earlier in the year. His path back into Fabien Galthié’s first-choice XV is likely to depend on both his fitness and his ability to address the defensive and aerial concerns that were cited around his January 2026 omission.

At club level, his contract with Bordeaux Bègles runs through 2028, and with the emergence of Louis Bielle-Biarrey pushing him at times into a centre role, his positional versatility may become just as important to his continued selection as his finishing.

18. Frequently Asked Questions About Damian Penaud

1. How many international tries has Damian Penaud scored?

As of mid-2026, Damian Penaud has scored 41 tries for France, making him the country’s all-time leading try scorer.

2. How many caps does Damian Penaud have?

He has earned 60 caps for France as of July 2026.

3. Which clubs has Damian Penaud played for?

He came through Clermont’s academy, played professionally for ASM Clermont Auvergne from 2015 to 2023, and has played for Union Bordeaux Bègles since 2023.

4. Has Damian Penaud won a Rugby World Cup?

No. He has played in two World Cups (2019 and 2023) but France has not won the tournament during his career; they were eliminated in the quarter-finals both times.

5. Who is Damian Penaud’s father?

His father, Alain Penaud, was also a France international rugby player.

6. Why was Damian Penaud left out of the 2026 Six Nations squad?

Reports cited concerns from the France coaching staff about his recent defensive form and performance under the high ball, despite his status as the team’s all-time top try scorer.

7. What position does Damian Penaud play?

Primarily wing, though he has also played at outside centre, particularly during the 2025–26 season for Bordeaux Bègles.

8. Has Damian Penaud won the Champions Cup?

Yes — he won the Investec Champions Cup with Bordeaux Bègles in both 2024–25 and 2025–26.

9. What record did Damian Penaud break in 2025?

In November 2025, he broke Serge Blanco’s French international try-scoring record of 38, becoming the country’s all-time leading try scorer.

10. Is Damian Penaud still playing for France in 2026?

Yes, though intermittently — he was recalled for the July 2026 Nations Championship after being left out of the Six Nations, scoring a try before a calf injury cut his involvement short.

19. Sources & References

Wikipedia – [Source] , Wikipedia (France national rugby union team) – [Source] , Wikipedia (2022 Six Nations Championship) – [Source] , Wikipedia (2023 Six Nations Championship) – [Source] , Wikipedia (2025 Six Nations Championship) – [Source] , Wikipedia (2026 Six Nations Championship) – [Source] , Wikipedia (Louis Bielle-Biarrey) – [Source] , Union Bordeaux Bègles Official Site – [Source] , France24 – [Source] , RugbyPass – [Source] , RugbyPass – [Source] , RugbyPass Player Profile – [Source] , PlanetRugby – [Source] , PlanetRugby – [Source] , PlanetRugby (2021 squad recall) – [Source] , Sud Radio – [Source] , BBC Sport – [Source] , BBC Sport (France v Namibia, 2023 RWC) – [Source], BBC Sport (France 41-17 Australia) – [Source] , BBC Sport (2022 Six Nations, France v England) – [Source]