2018–19 Rugby Pro D2 season
| 2018–19 Pro D2 | |
|---|---|
| Countries | France |
| Date | 17 August 2018 – 26 May 2019 |
| Champions | Bayonne (1st title) |
| Runners-up | Brive |
| Promoted | Bayonne, Brive |
| Relegated | Massy, Bourg-en-Bresse |
| Matches played | 245 |
| Attendance | 1,357,695 (average 5,542 per match) |
| Highest attendance | 17,958 (final) Bayonne v Biarritz 26 May 2019 16,207 (league) Bayonne v Biarritz 4 April 2019 |
| Lowest attendance | 1,131 Massy v Provence 15 February 2019 |
| Top point scorer | Thomas Laranjeira (Brive) 300 points |
| Top try scorer | Josaia Raisuqe (Nevers) 15 tries |
| Official website | |
| www | |
The 2018–19 Rugby Pro D2 was the second-level French rugby union club competition, behind the Top 14, for the 2018–19 season. It ran alongside the 2018–19 Top 14 competition; both competitions are operated by the Ligue Nationale de Rugby (LNR).
On 29 March 2019, Massy became the first side to be relegated, a narrow home defeat against Montauban condemning them to the drop with four games still left to play. The other relegation spot was much more keenly fought, going all the way to the last round, when on 5 May 2019 Bourg-en-Bresse were the second team to go down, despite winning their final game, just 1 point behind 14th placed Aurillac. Massy and Bourg-en-Bresse drop to Fédérale 1.
The promotion play-off final was between Brive (1st in the league stage) and Bayonne (3rd). As they had topped the league stage, Brive were slight favourites to make an instant return to the Top 14, while Bayonne had had two tough games including a memorable 38-34 semi-final away against league runners up, Oxonnax, who like Brive had also hoped to make an instant return to the Top 14. In the final held at the Stade du Hameau, Pau, Bayaonne shaded a close game, 21–19, to win their first ever Pro D2 title and return to the Top 14 after an absence of two seasons.
Defeated finalists Brive had a second shot at promotion when they faced 2018–19 Top 14 13th placed side, Grenoble, in the relegation playoff. Brive won 28–22 to take Grenoble's place and join Bayonne in the 2019–20 Top 14. Grenoble and bottom club, Perpignan, would be relegated to the 2019–20 Rugby Pro D2.