It’s Friday and that starts with "FR" and so does the word French, which is fortuitous for FloRugby as we get to give you an update on the French Top 14.

The league welcomes the top two teams from Pro D2, Grenoble and Perpignan. As this past season's Pro D2 champion, Perpignan moved up automatically in place of last-place Brive, while runners-up Grenoble won a playoff against 13th-place Oyonanax.

Watch FloRugby’s LIVE coverage of the French Top 14 all season, starting August 25. 

Meanwhile, last season's champion, Castres, has to still be basking in its improbable run from finishing sixth in the regular season to beating top-seeded Montpellier in the final. Well, guess what? That's the opening match of the season, with Castres and Montpellier reliving old rivalries August 25.

#TOP14 ► Lors de la J14 de cette saison 2017-2018, le néo-retraité A. Rougerie se joue de la défense du @CastresRugby en sortie de mêlée avant d'aplatir pour l'@ASMOfficiel ! ? pic.twitter.com/FQO7zxPiIR

— TOP 14 Rugby (@top14rugby) July 6, 2018

USA forward Samu Manoa and Toulon take on Racing 92 in the first weekend. The hope is that Manoa will be healthy for the entire season—his form has been good and Toulon will need him to set the tone up front. More news from Toulon is that wing Chris Ashton has asked to be released from his contract and is back in the UK, playing for Sale with AJ MacGinty.

FloRugby will show two games every week from the Top 14, giving fans 52 regular-season games LIVE, plus highlights of each week and live coverage of the playoffs. These are some of the very best professional clubs in the world, featuring international stars from around the globe.