Images from the trip show fans proudly displaying the club’s colours in the stands, with one young supporter holding a large red, yellow and black flag, while groups of Bulls followers posed with balloons, banners and flags ahead of the fixture.
‘It feels like a little bit of home’
Supporters William and Tracy, who arrived in Toulouse earlier in the week, said they had spent their time exploring the city and soaking up the atmosphere created by fellow Bulls fans.
“We got here on Wednesday,” William said. “We’ve been around the centre, the park, the town centre and looking around where the hotel is.”
Tracy added: “It’s beautiful. Absolutely beautiful. The architecture’s stunning, the culture…It’s the second time here and we’re really happy to be back.”
The pair said the growing number of Bulls supporters in the city had helped build excitement ahead of the game.
William explained: “We know there’s a regular pub where most of the fans go and as the week’s gone on it’s got fuller and fuller, the atmosphere has really built as it’s gone on. It feels like a little bit of home here.”
Although realistic about Bradford’s chances, the pair said they were more interested in seeing commitment from the players than worrying about the final score.
“Effort is the worst thing if it’s missing,” William said. “If we see effort, then we’re happy with that. If we lose, we lose. If we win, that’s a bonus.”
Tracy added: “The most important thing for me is the lads knowing that we’ve put time and effort in to come and support them. That’s my important take away from it, that they know we’re here for them.”
Ninth trip to Toulouse for one dedicated fan
Tom, another travelling supporter, said the fixture has become a regular feature of his rugby league calendar.
“This is my ninth time now,” he said.
“I’m loving it.”
When asked what he enjoys most about the annual trip, he joked: “I’m going to say the beers, but that doesn’t sound good. Exploring the town as well.”
Like many supporters, Tom approached the game with cautious optimism.
“We’ll lose, but hopefully we’ll lose by a small margin,” he said. “You never know.”
Family holiday built around supporting the Bulls
One Bradford family, who preferred not to be named, combined their summer holiday with the Toulouse fixture.
The family had spent more than two weeks travelling before making the stop in southern France for the match.
“This is our first French trip,” one family member said. “We thought we’d come down and make it part of the bank holiday weekend.”
Despite a difficult season, they said their support for the club remains unchanged.
They added: “We expected a hard year this year, but not as hard as it has been. We’ll be there supporting them all the way.”
The family pointed to positive moments during the campaign, particularly against some of the division’s strongest teams, and said they were hopeful the Bulls could still finish the season strongly.
Bulls fall short after spirited display
Bradford’s travelling supporters were ultimately denied a result as the Bulls were beaten 28-18 by Toulouse.
Despite dominating large spells of the contest and pushing the French side all the way, Bradford was undone by a crucial late turning point before Toulouse pulled clear in the closing stages.
The result leaves the Bulls bottom of the table and likely needing victories in their final two fixtures against Castleford and York to avoid finishing last.
Read our full match report for all the key moments, reaction and analysis from Toulouse’s 28-18 victory over Bradford Bulls.