French World Cup side honoured

The French rugby side that lost 8-7 to the All Blacks in Sunday's World Cup final are to be commemorated on a stamp issued by the French postal service La Poste, it was announced on Monday.

The stamp will be oval-shaped like a rugby ball and inscribed with 'Bravo and thank you' in order to salute the exploits of the French team at the World Cup.

"We have issued this stamp to celebrate the remarkable campaign of the French team at the World Cup. They went all the way to the final, which is a superb achievement," said a spokesman for La Poste.

La Poste is to issue 1.8 million of the stamps at a cost of 60 euro cents ($0.84) apiece - the price of a normal stamp - and they will be available through either their internet site or in post offices around the country. It is not the first time that La Poste has issued a special series of stamps for sports events.

La Poste released commemorative stamps for the 2007 rugby World Cup, which was mainly hosted by France, and the 1998 football World Cup, which also took place on home soil and which France won.

AFP