Toulouse international center Sofiane Guitoune, 34, will end his career at the end of the season, he announced Thursday on the eve of a trip to Bayonne to open the first day of the Top 14 .

“The season will be my last. I had already thought about it carefully, I spoke about it with the staff long before, announced the player in a press conference. I did not want to chain the additional years, nor to go elsewhere in Pro D2 or a team at the bottom of the table. I lived a dream, and continue to live it, playing at Stade Toulousain and winning titles…”

After successively wearing the colors of Agen, Albi, Perpignan and Bordeaux-Bègles, Guitoune arrived in Toulouse in 2016, where he was crowned French champion three times in 2019, 2021 and 2023.

The center three-quarters, also capable of playing on the wing, has 9 selections for the France team, the latest against Tonga (23-21 victory) at the 2019 World Cup.

“I think I’m still performing well,” said this part of the Toulouse locker room. “I still feel good physically, but I don’t want to do the season too much. It’s always difficult to make a choice, to know when to stop. But all good things come to an end, you have to know how to draw a line.”