Wigan Warriors chairman highlights ‘strong’ Catalans Dragons connection ahead of ‘special’ Paris occasion

It has been officially confirmed that the Warriors will travel to Paris on June 6, 2026, to play a Super League match against the Dragons at the Stade Jean Bouin, home of Stade Français and Paris FC.

The historic fixture will help celebrate the 20th anniversary of Catalans in Super League, as well as the 30th anniversary of Super League as a competition, returning to Paris – the place where it all began in 1996, when Paris Saint-Germain hosted Sheffield Eagles in the competition’s inaugural game at Stade Charléty.

The Paris announcement was made ahead of Wigan’s recent 28-18 win over Catalans at the Brick Community Stadium, with Warriors chairman Professor Brookes and Dragons owner Bernard Guasch speaking to the media post-match.

Brookes said: “I speak to the fans every week, and the most common questions they’ve asked me for three months have been: ‘Are we going to Paris? Is it going to happen? Is it true?’ so it is great to be able to say ‘yes, we’re going’, especially with this man (Guasch) and these men (Catalans hierarchy) because the connection between our club and the Catalans club is strong and rooted in the community, so we can’t think of any club better to be playing this brilliant game in Paris with.”

Paris will not be the first time Wigan and Catalans have taken games on the road, with the pair having faced off at the Nou Camp – home of footballing giants FC Barcelona in 2019 – in front of a strong crowd of 31,555, which remains a record attendance for a regular-season Super League match.

They also played at The Den – home of Millwall FC – in front of 8,101 fans in 2015, which was the biggest Super League crowd in London for nine years at the time.

But the relationship blossomed all the way back in 2006, when Catalans and Wigan played out a thriller in the Dragons’ first-ever Super League match, with the hosts winning 38-30 in Perpignan.

"It will be 20 years since the very first game when Wigan went to play down in the south of France,” Brookes added.

"Our fans love it when we go, all the fans in that (Perpignan) square are enjoying themselves, they’re singing, they’re chanting, they’re taking in the atmosphere, which is then carried over to the stadium itself.

"When we go there, I think there is something special in the air. Often, it is crackling with all of the excitement.

"The brand of football that is played is like something of the Wigan brand. We like to play open football, and so do our French colleagues, and I think it is what makes it such a special occasion.

"The last bit about it is the thing I said at the start about the connections between our town, the communities and the fans is a massive thing for Wigan and it is a massive thing for Catalans and the connection with their supporters, so when you put all of that together, it is a really rich joining up between the two.”