A reinforcement in the fray for Racing 92. The young French under-20 international Léo Carbonneau (Brive) will indeed join the Hauts-de-Seine team at the end of the season, the two clubs have announced Monday evening. With this recruitment of one of the rising stars of French rugby for a period of four years, the Ile-de-France residents hope to fill the departure of Nolann Le Garrec to La Rochelle.
Léo Carbonneau, currently captain of the Brive team, third in Pro D2, was coveted by many Top 14 teams. Crowned under-20 world champion in 2023, he is the son of Philippe Carbonneau, former French international ( 32 selections in the 1990s). This season, he played nine matches in eleven days, scoring three tries.
“CA Brive and Racing 92 have reached an agreement regarding the departure of Léo Carbonneau at the end of the 2024-2025 season,” wrote the Corrèze club in a press release, while his contract initially extended until 2026 The CAB added that he would have liked to extend his scrum half until 2028 and admits to “deeply regretting” his departure.
This is the first recruit made official by Racing for the 2024-25 season. A promising but risky recruitment, since Carbonneau has only played 11 Top 14 matches in his career with Brive in 2022-23, for four starts.
Winners in Pau before the break (33-23), Stuart Lancaster’s players are eighth a third of the championship, one point from the top 6. They will visit their neighbor Stade Français on Sunday evening, but will be deprived of their flagship opener Owen Farrell for several weeks.
