Lille Olympique Sporting Club (), commonly referred to as LOSC, LOSC Lille or simply Lille, is a French professional
football
Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...
club based in
Lille
Lille ( , ; nl, Rijsel ; pcd, Lile; vls, Rysel) is a city in the northern part of France, in French Flanders. On the river Deûle, near France's border with Belgium, it is the capital of the Hauts-de-France Regions of France, region, the Pref ...
,
Hauts-de-France
Hauts-de-France (; pcd, Heuts-d'Franche; , also ''Upper France'') is the northernmost Regions of France, region of France, created by the territorial reform of French regions in 2014, from a merger of Nord-Pas-de-Calais and Picardy. Its Prefectu ...
that competes in
Ligue 1
Ligue 1, officially known as Ligue 1 Uber Eats for sponsorship reasons, is a French professional league for men's association football clubs. At the top of the French football league system, it is the country's primary football competition. A ...
, the top flight of
French football
Association football is the most popular sport in France. The French Football Federation (FFF, Fédération Française de Football) is the national governing body and is responsible for overseeing all aspects of association football in the cou ...
. Lille has played its home matches since 2012 at
Stade Pierre-Mauroy
The Stade Pierre-Mauroy, also known as the Decathlon Arena – Stade Pierre-Mauroy for sponsorship reasons, is a multi-use retractable roof stadium in Villeneuve-d'Ascq (Métropole Européenne de Lille), France, that opened in August 2012. It ha ...
, the fourth-largest
football stadium in France. The 50,186-capacity
retractable roof
A retractable roof is a roof system designed to roll back the roof of a structure so that the interior of the facility is open to the outdoors. Retractable roofs are sometimes referred to as operable roofs or retractable skylights. The term op ...
venue replaced the club's previous home of
Stadium Lille-Metropole
A stadium ( : stadiums or stadia) is a place or venue for (mostly) outdoor sports, concerts, or other events and consists of a field or stage either partly or completely surrounded by a tiered structure designed to allow spectators to stand o ...
.
Lille was founded as a result of a merger between
Olympique Lillois
Olympique Lillois was a French association football club from the city of Lille. Founded in 1902 they merged with SC Fives in 1944 to form Lille OSC.
Honours
Championnat de France
*Champion: 1914, 1933
*Runner-up: 1936
Events
Jan ...
and
SC Fives
SC Fives was a French association football club from Fives, a suburb in the east of Lille. Founded in 1901, the club merged with Olympique Lillois in 1944 to form Lille OSC.
Honours
Championnat de France
*Runner-up : 1934
Coupe de France
*Fin ...
in 1944. Both clubs were founding members of the
French Division 1
Ligue 1, officially known as Ligue 1 Uber Eats for sponsorship reasons, is a French professional league for men's association football clubs. At the top of the French football league system, it is the country's primary football competition. A ...
and Olympique Lillois was the
league's inaugural champions. In domestic football, the club has won four
league titles, six
Coupes de France
The Coupe de France, formerly known as the Coupe Charles Simon, is the premier knockout cup competition in French football organized by the French Football Federation (FFF). It was first held in 1917 and is open to all amateur and profession ...
and one
Trophée des Champions
The Trophée des Champions (, ) is a French association football trophy contested in an annual match between the champions of Ligue 1 and the winners of the Coupe de France. It is equivalent to the super cups found in many other countries.
His ...
since its foundation. In European football, Lille has participated in the
UEFA Champions League
The UEFA Champions League (abbreviated as UCL, or sometimes, UEFA CL) is an annual club football competition organised by the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) and contested by top-division European clubs, deciding the competit ...
eight times, reaching the knockout phase twice, competed in the
UEFA Europa League
The UEFA Europa League (abbreviated as UEL, or sometimes, UEFA EL), formerly the UEFA Cup, is an annual football club competition organised since 1971 by the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) for eligible European football clubs. It ...
on eight occasions and won the
UEFA Intertoto Cup in
2004 after finishing as runners-up in
2002
File:2002 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The 2002 Winter Olympics are held in Salt Lake City; Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother and her daughter Princess Margaret, Countess of Snowdon die; East Timor gains East Timor independence, indepe ...
.
The club's most successful period was the decade from 1946 to 1956, in the post-war period, when the team led by managers
George Berry and
André Cheuva
André Cheuva (30 May 1908 – 5 February 1989) was a French footballer who played midfielder. After retiring, he became a manager, and won 4 Coupe de France
The Coupe de France, formerly known as the Coupe Charles Simon, is the premier k ...
won seven major trophies, including a League/Cup
double
A double is a look-alike or doppelgänger; one person or being that resembles another.
Double, The Double or Dubble may also refer to:
Film and television
* Double (filmmaking), someone who substitutes for the credited actor of a character
* Th ...
in 1946, and was known as ''La Machine de Guerre'' (
French for "The War Machine"). Having won another double in
2011
File:2011 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: a protester partaking in Occupy Wall Street heralds the beginning of the Occupy movement; protests against Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi, who was killed that October; a young man celebrate ...
, its fourth league title in
2021
File:2021 collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: the James Webb Space Telescope was launched in 2021; Protesters in Yangon, Myanmar following the 2021 Myanmar coup d'état, coup d'état; A civil demonstration against the October–November 2021 ...
as well as its first French super cup, Lille is the fourth best French club in the 21st century.
Nicknamed ''Les Dogues'' (French for "The
Mastiffs
A mastiff is a large and powerful type of dog. Mastiffs are among the largest dogs, and typically have a short coat, a long low-set tail and large feet; the skull is large and bulky, the muzzle broad and short ( brachycephalic) and the ears dr ...
"), the club has a long-standing rivalry with nearby side
Lens
A lens is a transmissive optical device which focuses or disperses a light beam by means of refraction. A simple lens consists of a single piece of transparent material, while a compound lens consists of several simple lenses (''elements''), ...
, with whom they contest the
Derby du Nord
The Derby du Nord (, ''Northern Derby'') is a football rivalry contested between French clubs Lille OSC and RC Lens, two of the region's most successful clubs. Both clubs are located in northern France, though in different departments: Lille in ...
. Lille leads in the head-to-head record between the two rivals and in terms of total trophies won. Currently owned by Luxembourg-based investment fund Merlyn Partners SCSp, it's the fifth-most followed French sports club on
social media
Social media are interactive media technologies that facilitate the creation and sharing of information, ideas, interests, and other forms of expression through virtual communities and networks. While challenges to the definition of ''social medi ...
.
History
First decade of glory : The War Machine (1944–1955)
![LilleOSC October1946](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/26/LilleOSC_October1946.jpg)
Before the
Second World War
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
, the city of Lille had two clubs at the top level;
Olympique Lillois
Olympique Lillois was a French association football club from the city of Lille. Founded in 1902 they merged with SC Fives in 1944 to form Lille OSC.
Honours
Championnat de France
*Champion: 1914, 1933
*Runner-up: 1936
Events
Jan ...
and
SC Fives
SC Fives was a French association football club from Fives, a suburb in the east of Lille. Founded in 1901, the club merged with Olympique Lillois in 1944 to form Lille OSC.
Honours
Championnat de France
*Runner-up : 1934
Coupe de France
*Fin ...
. Olympique Lillois were crowned domestic champions in
1932–33, the very firsts in the history of the championship that was created in 1932, and were runners-up in
1935–36. They also earned a
USFSA Football Championship
U.S. Figure Skating is the national Sport governing body, governing body for the sport of figure skating in the United States. It is recognized as such by the United States Olympic Committee, United States Olympic & Paralympic Committee "USOPC" u ...
title in
1914, the French football top division before the creation of the French Division 1, and went to the
Coupe de France
The Coupe de France, formerly known as the Coupe Charles Simon, is the premier knockout cup competition in French football organized by the French Football Federation (FFF). It was first held in 1917 and is open to all amateur and profession ...
final in
1939. Their neighbours, SC Fives, ranked second in
1933–34. They also went to the Coupe de France final, being defeated by
Girondins AS Port in
1941
Events
Below, the events of World War II have the "WWII" prefix.
January
* January–August – 10,072 men, women and children with mental and physical disabilities are asphyxiated with carbon monoxide in a gas chamber, at Hadamar Eu ...
.
Weakened by the war, the two clubs decided to merge in the autumn of 1944, on 23 September, giving birth to Stade Lillois, renamed Lille Olympique Sporting Club a few weeks later.
On 25 November 1944, the club is officially registered under its new name.
For its very first season, the newborn club reached the
1945 Coupe de France final
The 1945 Coupe de France Final was a soccer, football match held at Stade Olympique Yves-du-Manoir, Colombes on May 6, 1945, that saw RC Paris defeat Lille OSC 3–0 thanks to goals by André Philippot, Pierre Ponsetti and Oscar Heisserer.
Match ...
, with a squad composed of the best players of both merging teams, who are mostly natives of the
Nord department.
Next season, Lille won the
double
A double is a look-alike or doppelgänger; one person or being that resembles another.
Double, The Double or Dubble may also refer to:
Film and television
* Double (filmmaking), someone who substitutes for the credited actor of a character
* Th ...
, beating
Red Star in the
1946 Coupe de France Final and finishing at the first place of
French Division 1
Ligue 1, officially known as Ligue 1 Uber Eats for sponsorship reasons, is a French professional league for men's association football clubs. At the top of the French football league system, it is the country's primary football competition. A ...
ahead of
Saint-Étienne and
Roubaix-Tourcoing. In 1947, Lille finished in the fourth place but came back to the Coupe de France
final
Final, Finals or The Final may refer to:
*Final (competition), the last or championship round of a sporting competition, match, game, or other contest which decides a winner for an event
** Another term for playoffs, describing a sequence of cont ...
and retained the trophy, defeating
Strasbourg
Strasbourg (, , ; german: Straßburg ; gsw, label=Bas Rhin Alsatian, Strossburi , gsw, label=Haut Rhin Alsatian, Strossburig ) is the prefecture and largest city of the Grand Est region of eastern France and the official seat of the Eu ...
. The club won the cup again in
1948 beating main rivals
Lens
A lens is a transmissive optical device which focuses or disperses a light beam by means of refraction. A simple lens consists of a single piece of transparent material, while a compound lens consists of several simple lenses (''elements''), ...
, its third in a row, and were runners-up of the league the same year, behind
Marseille
Marseille ( , , ; also spelled in English as Marseilles; oc, Marselha ) is the prefecture of the French department of Bouches-du-Rhône and capital of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region. Situated in the camargue region of southern Franc ...
that became the champions after a strong
1947–48 season finishing.
They were also runners-up in
1948–49,
1949–50 and
1950–51.
On 24 June 1951, an exhausted Lille reached the
Latin Cup
The Latin Cup was an international football tournament for club sides from the Southwest European nations of France, Italy, Spain, and Portugal. In 1949 the football federations came together and requested FIFA to launch the competition. Europ ...
final and lost against
Gre-No-Li
Gre-No-Li is a contraction of the surnames of three Swedish footballers: Gunnar Gren, Gunnar Nordahl and Nils Liedholm. The denomination was colloquially used after these players composed a formidable trio of attacking players while playing for th ...
's
AC Milan
Associazione Calcio Milan (), commonly referred to as AC Milan or simply Milan, is a professional football club in Milan, Italy, founded in 1899. The club has spent its entire history, with the exception of the 1980–81 and 1982–83 seaso ...
after having played 250 minutes in the span of two days.
On 31 May 1953, they got back to winning and earned their fourth Coupe de France trophy in a 2–1
final
Final, Finals or The Final may refer to:
*Final (competition), the last or championship round of a sporting competition, match, game, or other contest which decides a winner for an event
** Another term for playoffs, describing a sequence of cont ...
win against
FC Nancy
Football club de Nancy was a French association football team playing in the city of Nancy, Meurthe-et-Moselle. The team was founded in 1901 and dissolved in 1968.
Honours
* Coupe de France
The Coupe de France, formerly known as the Cou ...
, before 60,000 spectators. The club then won its second domestic title in
1953–54, having only conceded 22 goals within 34 games. After this season, Lille is praised for its defensive proficiency and acquired a reputation as a rock-solid defense.
A year later, ''Les Dogues'' earned their fifth Coupe de France in a 5-2 win against
Bordeaux
Bordeaux ( , ; Gascon oc, Bordèu ; eu, Bordele; it, Bordò; es, Burdeos) is a port city on the river Garonne in the Gironde department, Southwestern France. It is the capital of the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region, as well as the prefectur ...
in the
final
Final, Finals or The Final may refer to:
*Final (competition), the last or championship round of a sporting competition, match, game, or other contest which decides a winner for an event
** Another term for playoffs, describing a sequence of cont ...
.
This period of glory and hegemony, occurring after the war and the
German occupation of France
The Military Administration in France (german: Militärverwaltung in Frankreich; french: Occupation de la France par l'Allemagne) was an interim occupation authority established by Nazi Germany during World War II to administer the occupied zo ...
, has led to one of the club's nicknames: ''La Machine de Guerre'' (
French for "The War Machine").
Within its first decade of existence, the club gathered the vast majority of its major trophies, winning two league titles and reaching the second place for four consecutive seasons. Lille, known as the best French club in the post-war period, accumulated five Coupe de France wins in seven finals, including five successive finals and winning the trophy three times in a row, one of the best performances in the history of the tournament.
Decline, reconstruction and reorganization (1956–2000)
![LilleOSC197980](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/70/LilleOSC197980.jpg)
Lille were relegated for the first time in 1956. The club became a mid-table side and in the late 1960s, after a long period of anonymity, and weighed down by a lack of facilities and resources, Lille abandoned its professional status. It was feared that the club might disappear. However, some young leaders, such as Max Pommerolle, came and gave new impetus to the club. Nevertheless, the results remained erratic and the only titles that ignited the fans' passions were won in the
Second Division
In sport, the Second Division, also called Division 2 or Division II is usually the second highest division of a league, and will often have promotion and relegation with divisions above and below. Following the rise of Premier League style compet ...
.
In July 1980, Lille was the first French club to opt for the status of a
mixed economy company, of which the city of Lille became the majority shareholder. Presidents Jacques Amyot, Roger Deschodt and Jacques Dewailly all struggled to compete with the top teams in the country. Amyot's resignation in 1990 led to three more difficult years for the club which compromised its very existence. It took Bernard Lecomte's arrival in 1993 to set the club finances on the road to recovery. After a final relegation in 1997, the team trained by Bosnian coach
Vahid Halilhodžić
Vahid Halilhodžić (; born 15 October 1952) is a Bosnian professional football manager and former player. He is regarded as one of the most controversially successful Bosnian football managers, due to his successful tenure in coaching various na ...
was soon promoted back to the elite, in the same year the
French Football League was privatised. Club was purchased in 1999 by
Luc Dayan
Luc or LUC may refer to:
Places
* Luc, Hautes-Pyrénées, France, a commune
* Luc, Lozère, France, a commune
* Le Luc, France, a commune
* Luč, Baranja, Croatia, a settlement
People and fictional characters
* Luc (given name)
* Luc (surn ...
and
Francis Graille
Francis Graille (born 25 April 1955) is a French businessman and executive. He has worked for various media companies, and served as the president of professional football clubs Lille OSC, Paris Saint-Germain, and AJ Auxerre.
Career
In 1982, ...
for 1 symbolic franc.
Back to the top and new double (2000–2016)
![LOSC à Bollaert (Champions League 2006-2007)](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/48/LOSC_%C3%A0_Bollaert_%28Champions_League_2006-2007%29.jpg)
In just its first season back in the top flight
2000–01 French Division 1, Lille qualified for
Europe
Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...
for the first time in the club's history, booking its place in the
2001–02 Champions League. On the back of the club's new status, Lille entered into a decisive new era under the guidance of chairman and chief executive officer
Michel Seydoux
Michel Seydoux (; born 11 September 1947) is a French businessman and film producer. He is also the former president and chairman of French professional football club Lille OSC.
In 1975-1976, Seydoux worked with director Alejandro Jodorowsky ...
and coach
Claude Puel
Claude Jacques Puel (; born 2 September 1961) is a French football manager and former player. He spent his entire playing career with Monaco, before becoming manager of the club, leading them to the league title in his first full season in char ...
. The club left the historical
Stade Grimonprez-Jooris to join the
Stadium Lille Métropole and became a regular on the European scene. Amongst its most emphatic results was the 1–0 victory over
Manchester United at the
Stade de France
The Stade de France (, ) is the national stadium of France, located just north of Paris in the commune of Saint-Denis. Its seating capacity of 80,698 makes it the sixth-largest stadium in Europe. The stadium is used by the France national foot ...
in 2005, the 2–0 triumph over
Milan
Milan ( , , Lombard: ; it, Milano ) is a city in northern Italy, capital of Lombardy, and the second-most populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of about 1.4 million, while its metropolitan city h ...
in
San Siro
Stadio Giuseppe Meazza, commonly known as San Siro, is a football stadium in the San Siro district of Milan, Italy, which is the home of A.C. Milan and Inter Milan. It has a seating capacity of 80,018, making it one of the largest stadiums in ...
in 2006 and the 1–0 home win over
Liverpool
Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the 10th largest English district by population and its metropolitan area is the fifth largest in the United Kingdom, with a popul ...
in 2010.
![Celebration LOSC 2011](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/dd/Celebration_LOSC_2011.jpg)
In the 2010s, Lille knew a steady development on and off the pitch, and has established itself as one of the most important clubs in French Ligue 1. First, the inauguration of the vast and modern Domaine de Luchin training complex in 2007 brings the club to a new era, the center being one of the largest in France. Roughly at the same time, the construction of the 50,000-capacity
Grand Stade Lille Métropole (renamed later Stade Pierre-Mauroy), which opened in 2012, began on 29 March 2010 and will give the club the fourth-largest
football stadium in France. Successive strong results and a sporting progression under head coach
Rudi Garcia
Rudi José Garcia (; ; born 20 February 1964) is a French professional football manager and former player who is the manager of Saudi Professional League club Al Nassr.
Early life
Rudi Garcia's father, José, was a Spanish expatriate who played ...
took the club back to the top of the French league. Fifty-six years after the club's last trophy,
2010–11 first team, led by home-grown players
Yohan Cabaye
Yohan Cabaye (; born 14 January 1986) is a French former professional footballer who played as a midfielder.
Cabaye began his football career playing for hometown club US Tourcoing at the age of six. After seven years developing in the club's ...
,
Mathieu Debuchy
Mathieu Debuchy (born 28 July 1985) is a French professional footballer who plays as a right-back for Ligue 2 club Valenciennes.
Debuchy started his senior career at Lille, where he won a Ligue 1 and Coupe de France double in the 2010–11 se ...
and
Eden Hazard
Eden Michael Walter Hazard (born 7 January 1991) is a Belgian professional footballer who plays as a winger or attacking midfielder for La Liga club Real Madrid. Known for his creativity, dribbling, passing and vision, Hazard is considered o ...
, won the club's second double after finishing at the
2010–11 Ligue 1 top spot and defeating
Paris Saint-Germain
Paris Saint-Germain Football Club (), commonly referred to as Paris Saint-Germain, Paris, Paris SG or simply PSG is a professional football club based in Paris, France. They compete in Ligue 1, the top division of French football. As Fr ...
in the
2011 Coupe de France final.
In the
2011–12 and
2012–13 Ligue 1 seasons, Lille confirmed its place belong top French football teams, finishing successively at the second and sixth places and qualifying for the
2012–13 Champions League
1 (one, unit, unity) is a number representing a single or the only entity. 1 is also a numerical digit and represents a single unit of counting or measurement. For example, a line segment of ''unit length'' is a line segment of length 1 ...
. In 2013, Garcia left to join
Roma
Roma or ROMA may refer to:
Places Australia
* Roma, Queensland, a town
** Roma Airport
** Roma Courthouse
** Electoral district of Roma, defunct
** Town of Roma, defunct town, now part of the Maranoa Regional Council
*Roma Street, Brisbane, a ...
, while former
Montpellier
Montpellier (, , ; oc, Montpelhièr ) is a city in southern France near the Mediterranean Sea. One of the largest urban centres in the region of Occitania (administrative region), Occitania, Montpellier is the prefecture of the Departments of ...
coach
René Girard
René Noël Théophile Girard (; ; 25 December 1923 – 4 November 2015) was a French polymath, historian, literary critic, and philosopher of social science whose work belongs to the tradition of philosophical anthropology. Girard was the aut ...
was appointed as new manager. Under Girard, Lille finished at the third place in
2013–14, behind
Zlatan Ibrahimović
Zlatan Ibrahimović (, ; born 3 October 1981) is a Swedish professional footballer who plays as a striker for club AC Milan and the Sweden national team. Ibrahimović is renowned for his acrobatic strikes and volleys, powerful long-range sho ...
's Paris Saint-Germain and
James Rodríguez
James David Rodríguez Rubio (born 12 July 1991) is a Colombian professional footballer who plays as an attacking midfielder or a winger for Super League Greece club Olympiacos and the Colombia national team. He has been praised in the past ...
's
Monaco
Monaco (; ), officially the Principality of Monaco (french: Principauté de Monaco; Ligurian: ; oc, Principat de Mónegue), is a sovereign city-state and microstate on the French Riviera a few kilometres west of the Italian region of Lig ...
. After two years in charge of the club and a deceiving eight seed at the end of the
2014–15 Ligue 1 season, Girard left the club by mutual consent.
In May 2015, the
Ivory Coast national team head coach
Hervé Renard
Hervé Jean-Marie Roger Renard (born 30 September 1968) is a French professional football coach and former player who is the manager of the Saudi Arabia national team.
Renard has previously been the manager of Zambia national team, with whom ...
was appointed as the new manager. On 11 November 2015, Renard was terminated as manager and was replaced by
Frederic Antonetti. On 23 November 2016, a year after being appointed, Lille terminated Antonetti's contract with the club lying second last in the table.
Campos and Galtier era: sustained success (2017–2021)
In early 2017, Lille appointed
Luis Campos as
sporting director
A sporting director, or director of sport, is an executive management position in a sports club. The role is well known as a manager role for European football clubs, which are sometime also "sports clubs", offering many types of sports. The sport ...
and head of recruitment. A short time afterwards, the club announced the arrival of Argentine famous manager
Marcelo Bielsa
Marcelo Alberto Bielsa Caldera (, nicknamed ''El Loco Bielsa'' , meaning "The Crazy Bielsa"; born 21 July 1955) is an Argentine professional football manager who was most recently the head coach of Premier League club Leeds United. He is a forme ...
. In November 2017, Bielsa was suspended by Lille following an unauthorized trip to
Chile
Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in the western part of South America. It is the southernmost country in the world, and the closest to Antarctica, occupying a long and narrow strip of land between the Andes to the east a ...
with the club lying second from bottom on the table again and only managing 3 wins from the first 14 games of the season. On 23 December 2017, Bielsa was terminated by Lille and replaced with former Saint-Etienne manager
Christophe Galtier
Christophe Galtier (born 23 August 1966) is a French professional football coach and former player who is the head coach of Ligue 1 club Paris Saint-Germain.
A defender, Galtier was a journeyman professional who spent many of his 15 years as ...
. In a difficult
2017–18 season, Lille managed to avoid relegation to Ligue 2 by defeating
Toulouse
Toulouse ( , ; oc, Tolosa ) is the prefecture of the French department of Haute-Garonne and of the larger region of Occitania. The city is on the banks of the River Garonne, from the Mediterranean Sea, from the Atlantic Ocean and from Par ...
3–2 in the second last game of the campaign.
![Lille vs PSG 2019 - Stade Pierre Mauroy](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/aa/Lille_vs_PSG_2019_-_Stade_Pierre_Mauroy.jpg)
Lille's following season is completely different. After the arrivals of veterans
José Fonte
José Miguel da Rocha Fonte (born 22 December 1983) is a Portuguese professional footballer who plays as a centre-back for Ligue 1 club Lille and the Portugal national team.
Fonte started his professional career with Sporting CP B, moving to ...
and
Loïc Rémy
Loïc Alex Teliére Hubert Rémy (born 2 January 1987) is a French professional footballer who plays as a forward for Ligue 1 club Brest.
Rémy began his career playing for a local youth club in his home city of Lyon, before joining the bigge ...
, Turkish right-back
Zeki Çelik and forwards
Jonathan Bamba
Jonathan Zino Bamba (born 26 March 1996) is a French professional footballer who plays as a winger for Ligue 1 club Lille.
Club career Saint Étienne
Bamba is a graduate of the Saint Étienne youth academy, which he joined in 2011.
Bamba made ...
,
Jonathan Ikoné
Nanitamo Jonathan Ikoné (born 2 May 1998) is a French professional footballer who plays as a forward for Serie A club Fiorentina and the France national team.
Club career Paris Saint-Germain
Ikone made his professional debut on 28 September 2 ...
and
Rafael Leão
Rafael Alexandre da Conceição Leão (; born 10 June 1999) is a Portuguese professional footballer who plays as a forward for club AC Milan and the Portugal national team.
Graduating from Sporting CP youth system, Leão made his first-team ...
, the team proceeded to reel off a string of victories, losing only five games in the first part of the
2018–19 Ligue 1 season. On 14 April 2019, before a record attendance of 49,712 spectators, they defeated Paris Saint-Germain in a historic and storming 5–1 home win with goals from
Nicolas Pépé
Nicolas Pépé (born 29 May 1995) is a professional footballer who plays as a winger for club Nice, on loan from Arsenal of the . Born in France, he represents the Ivory Coast national team.
Pépé began his senior club career with Poitiers ...
, Jonathan Bamba,
Gabriel
In Abrahamic religions (Judaism, Christianity and Islam), Gabriel (); Greek: grc, Γαβριήλ, translit=Gabriḗl, label=none; Latin: ''Gabriel''; Coptic: cop, Ⲅⲁⲃⲣⲓⲏⲗ, translit=Gabriêl, label=none; Amharic: am, ገብር ...
and team captain José Fonte. At the end of the season, Lille secured the second place to qualify for the
2019–20 UEFA Champions League group stage; they returned to the competition after a seven-year absence. On 1 August 2019, club's season-top scorer Nicolas Pépé is sold to Premier League side
Arsenal in a club-record fee of €80 million (£72 million). Lille announced the recruitment of
Victor Osimhen and
Tiago Djaló on the same day, after the signings of
Timothy Weah,
Reinildo Mandava
Reinildo Isnard Mandava (born 21 January 1994) is a Mozambican professional footballer who plays as a left back for La Liga club Atlético Madrid and the Mozambique national team.
Club career
Born in Beira, Mandava began his football career wi ...
and
Benjamin André
Benjamin Michel Édouard André (born 3 August 1990) is a French professional footballer who plays as a central midfielder or defensive midfielder for Ligue 1 club Lille.
Club career Ajaccio
André was with the Corsica-based club Ajaccio since h ...
a few weeks earlier. The club then announced the arrivals of
Yusuf Yazıcı
Yusuf Yazıcı (born 29 January 1997) is a Turkish professional footballer who plays as an attacking midfielder for Süper Lig club Trabzonspor, on loan from French club Lille, and the Turkey national team.
An academy graduate of Trabzonspor, ...
and
Renato Sanches
Renato Júnior Luz Sanches (; born 18 August 1997) is a Portuguese professional Association football, footballer who plays as a midfielder for Ligue 1 club Paris Saint-Germain F.C., Paris Saint-Germain and the Portugal national football team, ...
to strengthen the midfield. In early March 2020, the Northmen were in 4th place with 49 points after 28 rounds. However, the
Ligue 1 season ended abruptly as the
LFP first suspended domestic leagues indefinitely following the outbreak of
COVID-19 in France on 13 March, and then definitely cancelled French football competitions a month and a half later.
In the 2020 summer transfer window, Lille chose to sign young talents
Sven Botman and
Jonathan David
Jonathan Christian David (born January 14, 2000) is a Canadian professional soccer player who plays as a forward for Ligue 1 club Lille. Born in the United States to Haitian parents, David was raised in Ottawa, Ontario, and represents the Ca ...
as well as veteran
Burak Yılmaz
Burak Yılmaz (born 15 July 1985) is a Turkish professional footballer who plays as a forward for Eredivisie club Fortuna Sittard.
Yılmaz is one of nine players to play for each of the Big Three clubs of Turkey, and one of only two player ...
. At the end of the
2020–21 season first half, Lille had only lost two games and was well installed in the top league rankings, having defeated
Derby du Nord
The Derby du Nord (, ''Northern Derby'') is a football rivalry contested between French clubs Lille OSC and RC Lens, two of the region's most successful clubs. Both clubs are located in northern France, though in different departments: Lille in ...
rivals
Lens
A lens is a transmissive optical device which focuses or disperses a light beam by means of refraction. A simple lens consists of a single piece of transparent material, while a compound lens consists of several simple lenses (''elements''), ...
in a 4–0 home win on 18 October 2020. The Mastiffs started the second part of the season with a six-game winning streak and lost only once until the end. On 3 April 2021, Lille won at Paris with a Jonathan David goal and took over sole possession of first place in the league. Three weeks later, Lille came back from two goals down to beat
Lyon
Lyon,, ; Occitan: ''Lion'', hist. ''Lionés'' also spelled in English as Lyons, is the third-largest city and second-largest metropolitan area of France. It is located at the confluence of the rivers Rhône and Saône, to the northwest of t ...
at
Groupama Stadium as Burak Yılmaz scored twice including a 27-yard free kick in a breathtaking 3–2 away win. Lille then defeated local rivals once again, scoring three goals at Lens and prevailing in the season with an aggregate score of 7–0. On 23 May, Lille sealed the Ligue 1 title with a 2-1 victory at
Angers
Angers (, , ) is a city in western France, about southwest of Paris. It is the prefecture of the Maine-et-Loire department and was the capital of the province of Anjou until the French Revolution. The inhabitants of both the city and the prov ...
after a dramatic Ligue 1 final round and won its fourth Ligue 1 title under the guidance of manager Christophe Galtier. At the end of the season, goalkeeper
Mike Maignan
Mike Peterson Maignan (born 3 July 1995) is a French professional footballer who plays as a goalkeeper for club AC Milan and the France national team.
Maignan came through the youth teams at Paris Saint-Germain, he was an unused substitute sev ...
finished the season with 21 clean sheets, one short of the league season all-time record. Competing also in the
2020–21 UEFA Europa League, they defeated AC Milan at San Siro, on 5 November 2020, in a big 3–0 away win with a hat-trick from Yusuf Yazıcı, but lost to
Ajax
Ajax may refer to:
Greek mythology and tragedy
* Ajax the Great, a Greek mythological hero, son of King Telamon and Periboea
* Ajax the Lesser, a Greek mythological hero, son of Oileus, the king of Locris
* ''Ajax'' (play), by the ancient Greek ...
in
round of 32
A single-elimination, knockout, or sudden death tournament is a type of elimination tournament where the loser of each match-up is immediately eliminated from the tournament. Each winner will play another in the next round, until the final matc ...
.
Stabilization and Fonseca's arrival (2021–present)
In the
2021–22 season, Lille first won its first
Trophée des Champions
The Trophée des Champions (, ) is a French association football trophy contested in an annual match between the champions of Ligue 1 and the winners of the Coupe de France. It is equivalent to the super cups found in many other countries.
His ...
, defeating Paris Saint-Germain with a
Xeka
Miguel Ângelo da Silva Rocha (born 10 November 1994), known as Xeka (), is a Portuguese professional footballer who plays as a midfielder.
Formed at Braga, he spent most of his career in France, playing for Lille, Dijon and Rennes in Ligue 1 ...
goal at
Bloomfield Stadium in
Tel Aviv
Tel Aviv-Yafo ( he, תֵּל־אָבִיב-יָפוֹ, translit=Tēl-ʾĀvīv-Yāfō ; ar, تَلّ أَبِيب – يَافَا, translit=Tall ʾAbīb-Yāfā, links=no), often referred to as just Tel Aviv, is the most populous city in the G ...
,
Israel
Israel (; he, יִשְׂרָאֵל, ; ar, إِسْرَائِيل, ), officially the State of Israel ( he, מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, label=none, translit=Medīnat Yīsrāʾēl; ), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated ...
on 1 August 2021. The Northmen then reached
UEFA Champions League
The UEFA Champions League (abbreviated as UCL, or sometimes, UEFA CL) is an annual club football competition organised by the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) and contested by top-division European clubs, deciding the competit ...
round of 16 and are defeated by
Chelsea
Chelsea or Chelsey may refer to:
Places Australia
* Chelsea, Victoria
Canada
* Chelsea, Nova Scotia
* Chelsea, Quebec
United Kingdom
* Chelsea, London, an area of London, bounded to the south by the River Thames
** Chelsea (UK Parliament consti ...
, after qualifying from the group stage against
Salzburg
Salzburg (, ; literally "Salt-Castle"; bar, Soizbuag, label=Bavarian language, Austro-Bavarian) is the List of cities and towns in Austria, fourth-largest city in Austria. In 2020, it had a population of 156,872.
The town is on the site of the ...
,
Sevilla
Seville (; es, Sevilla, ) is the capital and largest city of the Spain, Spanish autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Andalusia and the province of Seville. It is situated on the lower reaches of the Guadalquivir, River Gua ...
and
Wolfsburg
Wolfsburg (; Eastphalian: ''Wulfsborg'') is the fifth largest city in the German state of Lower Saxony, located on the river Aller. It lies about east of Hanover and west of Berlin.
Wolfsburg is famous as the location of Volkswagen AG's hea ...
. According to an analysis report published at the end of the
Ligue 1 season, Lille is the fourth best French club in Ligue 1, in the 21st century, behind Paris Saint-Germain, Lyon and Marseille.
On 29 June 2022, the club appointed
Paulo Fonseca
Paulo Alexandre Rodrigues Fonseca (born 5 March 1973) is a Portuguese professional Association football, football Manager (association football), manager and former player who played as a central defender. He is the current head coach of French ...
as new head coach of the first-team.
The
2022–23 season started very well for the Northmen as they defeated
Auxerre
Auxerre ( , ) is the capital of the Yonne department and the fourth-largest city in Burgundy. Auxerre's population today is about 35,000; the urban area (''aire d'attraction'') comprises roughly 113,000 inhabitants. Residents of Auxerre are r ...
, on 7 August, in a 4–1 home win. On 9 October, they defeated close rivals Lens in a 1–0 home win. Being one of the best offensive teams in the league, Fonseca's Lille is praised for its stylish, slick passing game and its attacking system. Since the beginning of the season, Lille have played in an open, offensive
4–2–3–1 formation with
Angel Gomes
Adilson Angel Abreu de Almeida Gomes (born 31 August 2000) is an English professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for Ligue 1 club Lille and the England under-21 national team.
He began his career with Manchester United at the age ...
playing as a
central midfielder
A midfielder is an outfield position in association football.
Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in that case known as defensive midfielders. As central midfielders often go across boundarie ...
behind playmaker
Rémy Cabella and lone striker Jonathan David. Following 4–3 home win over Monaco on 23 October, only Lyon and Paris Saint-Germain have had more possession in France in the
2022–23 Ligue 1 season.
Identity and colours
Crest and nicknames
Lille's crest has changed many times. The very first crest of the newborn club was simply the
escutcheon of the city of Lille dating from
1235 that shows an
argent
In heraldry, argent () is the tincture of silver, and belongs to the class of light tinctures called "metals". It is very frequently depicted as white and usually considered interchangeable with it. In engravings and line drawings, regions to b ...
-on-
gules
In heraldry, gules () is the tincture with the colour red. It is one of the class of five dark tinctures called "colours", the others being azure (blue), sable (black), vert (green) and purpure (purple).
In engraving, it is sometimes depict ...
fleur-de-lys
The fleur-de-lis, also spelled fleur-de-lys (plural ''fleurs-de-lis'' or ''fleurs-de-lys''), is a lily (in French, and mean 'flower' and 'lily' respectively) that is used as a decorative design or symbol.
The fleur-de-lis has been used in the ...
. The fleur-de-lys refers to the name and the insularity of the city. "''Lille''", or "''Lile''" and "''Lysle''" depending on the past forms, is phonetically close to "''Lisle''", an old spelling of "''Lys''". The lys also makes reference to the
water flag, which were rife through the
marshes
A marsh is a wetland that is dominated by herbaceous rather than woody plant species.Keddy, P.A. 2010. Wetland Ecology: Principles and Conservation (2nd edition). Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, UK. 497 p Marshes can often be found at ...
surrounding the city. The colours of the heraldry, argent (white) and gules (red), embody wisdom and wealth for the first one, and passion and faithfulness for the second.
White and red were the colours of
Olympique Lillois
Olympique Lillois was a French association football club from the city of Lille. Founded in 1902 they merged with SC Fives in 1944 to form Lille OSC.
Honours
Championnat de France
*Champion: 1914, 1933
*Runner-up: 1936
Events
Jan ...
while blue, traditional colour of the team shorts, refers to
SC Fives
SC Fives was a French association football club from Fives, a suburb in the east of Lille. Founded in 1901, the club merged with Olympique Lillois in 1944 to form Lille OSC.
Honours
Championnat de France
*Runner-up : 1934
Coupe de France
*Fin ...
and is also present in the first-ever club crest from 1946. Red remains the main colour used by the club in its imagery, on its website or its social media.
The club adopted the colours of his founding and merging parents, and the fleur-de-lys symbol that can be seen in the first badges. In 1981, the
mastiff
A mastiff is a large and powerful type of dog. Mastiffs are among the largest dogs, and typically have a short coat, a long low-set tail and large feet; the skull is large and bulky, the muzzle broad and short ( brachycephalic) and the ears dr ...
appeared for the first time in the club crest and has never left it. The nickname, ''Les Dogues'' (
French for "The Mastiffs"), evokes and emphasizes the team's aggressiveness and dedication, and was first used in the 1920s for Olympique Lillois players.
Other nicknames or designations are frequently used, like ''Les Nordistes'' (French for "The Northmen") or ''Les Lillois'' (), the
demonym
A demonym (; ) or gentilic () is a word that identifies a group of people (inhabitants, residents, natives) in relation to a particular place. Demonyms are usually derived from the name of the place (hamlet, village, town, city, region, province, ...
corresponding to Lille.
In 1989, a new crest was unveiled which combines the fleur-de-lys and a mastiff that seems jumping out of the flower. The acronym "''LOSC''" is supplemented by the term "''Lille Métropole''" to enhance the
Métropole Européenne de Lille
The Métropole Européenne de Lille (MEL; en, "European Metropolis of Lille") is the ''métropole'', an intercommunal structure, composed by a network of big cities (Lille, Roubaix, Tourcoing, Villeneuve d'Ascq, Armentières etc.) whose major c ...
size and importance in Western Europe. The club officials at that time wanted to entrench the club in its region, not only in the city but in a 1,000,000-inhabitants area where the club moved some facilities. This badge was marginally revised in 1997 but was replaced in 2002 with a more stylish one where the dog and the acronym are prominent. In 2012, the fleur-de-lys once again became a central element in the logo. The badge shape recalls the previous heraldry, and only the city and club name appear at the top of the logo like a crown.
The latest crest, which was unveiled in 2018, uses every club symbol (the club initials, the mastiff, the fleur-de-lys and the three colours) inside a
regular pentagon
In geometry, a pentagon (from the Greek πέντε ''pente'' meaning ''five'' and γωνία ''gonia'' meaning ''angle'') is any five-sided polygon or 5-gon. The sum of the internal angles in a simple pentagon is 540°.
A pentagon may be simpl ...
shape, form of the
Citadel of Lille's heart.
Blason ville fr Lille (Nord).svg, 1944–1946
LOSC 1946-1955.svg, 1946–1955
LilleOSC5574.svg, 1955–1974
LilleOSC7481.svg, 1974–1981
LilleOSC8189.svg, 1981–1989
LilleOSC8997.svg, 1989–1997
LilleOSC9702.svg, 1997–2002
LilleOSC0212.svg, 2002–2012
LilleOSC1218.svg, 2012–2018
Lille OSC 2018 logo.svg, 2018–
;Notes
Kits and sponsors
![Lille - Saint-Etienne (13-01-2017) 5](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/4a/Lille_-_Saint-Etienne_%2813-01-2017%29_5.jpg)
Born from the union of two teams, Lille OSC embraced different shirts elements and symbols of both founding clubs. The first club's home kit was white and blue. The white jersey, with a large red "V" or
chevron
Chevron (often relating to V-shaped patterns) may refer to:
Science and technology
* Chevron (aerospace), sawtooth patterns on some jet engines
* Chevron (anatomy), a bone
* '' Eulithis testata'', a moth
* Chevron (geology), a fold in rock ...
form around the neck and red sleeve ends, is inspired by the
Olympique Lillois
Olympique Lillois was a French association football club from the city of Lille. Founded in 1902 they merged with SC Fives in 1944 to form Lille OSC.
Honours
Championnat de France
*Champion: 1914, 1933
*Runner-up: 1936
Events
Jan ...
home jersey while the "V" shape comes from
SC Fives
SC Fives was a French association football club from Fives, a suburb in the east of Lille. Founded in 1901, the club merged with Olympique Lillois in 1944 to form Lille OSC.
Honours
Championnat de France
*Runner-up : 1934
Coupe de France
*Fin ...
kits as well as the blue shorts and socks. White was the jersey primary color with little shades of red. The red chevron was part of each jersey until 1964 when it disappeared to give place to an immaculate white jersey that only kept red collar and sleeve ends. This jersey version, white with only few red shades around collar and sleeves, remains substantially the same for decades.
In the 1990s, the different kit manufacturers successively added different red shapes around shoulders like a red
check pattern, a large
Reebok
Reebok International Limited () is an American fitness footwear and clothing manufacturer that is a part of Authentic Brands Group. It was established in England in 1958 as a companion company to J.W. Foster and Sons, a sporting goods company ...
logo that lines the top of the shirt or a plain red pattern enabling the presence of a white chevron with red borders. The
1992-93 season marked the quick return of the red chevron. 1999 marked an significant moment in LOSC kits history. At the beginning of this season, the club chose to switch the principal colour of the kits. Home jerseys are now dominated by red, while away ones are white overall.
The club exceptionally returns to a white home kit for the
2016–17 Ligue 1 season in order to celebrate the
league
League or The League may refer to:
Arts and entertainment
* ''Leagues'' (band), an American rock band
* ''The League'', an American sitcom broadcast on FX and FXX about fantasy football
Sports
* Sports league
* Rugby league, full contact footba ...
and
cup
A cup is an open-top used to hold hot or cold liquids for pouring or drinking; while mainly used for drinking, it also can be used to store solids for pouring (e.g., sugar, flour, grains, salt). Cups may be made of glass, metal, china, clay, ...
double 70-year anniversary.
Third kits are traditionally used for European games. Being initially blue in the early 2000s, third kits then used and incorporated
flag of Flanders
The flag of Flanders, called the ''Vlaamse Leeuw'' ("Flemish Lion") or ''leeuwenvlag'' ("Lion flag"), is the flag of the Flemish Community and Flemish Region in Belgium. The flag was officially adopted by the Cultural Council for the Dutch Cultura ...
colours: black and yellow. Since the beginning of the twenty-first century, the club released more than a dozen black or yellow third kits.
Lille have known many
sporting goods manufacturers in its history. From its creation until the 1970s, Lille didn't have a proper kit supplier. The first club's kit manufacturer was
Le Coq Sportif
Le Coq Sportif (, "the athletic rooster") is a French manufacturing company of sports equipment. Founded in 1882 by Émile Camuset and located in Entzheim, the company first issued items branded with its now-famous rooster trademark in 1948. The ...
which made Lille's first branded jerseys until 1975. In the 1980s, the club's supplier was
Puma, one of the famous Lille's kit maker. Puma's sponsorship lasted for nine years, and the German brand shirts remain engraved in people's memories. After this period, many suppliers have come and gone including
Lotto Lotto may refer to:
* Lotto, original, 15th century name of the Italian lottery
* Lotto (Milan Metro), a railway station in Milan, Italy
* Lotto carpet, a carpet having a lacy arabesque pattern
* Lotto Sport Italia, an Italian sports apparel manu ...
and
Adidas
Adidas AG (; stylized as adidas since 1949) is a German multinational corporation, founded and headquartered in Herzogenaurach, Bavaria, that designs and manufactures shoes, clothing and accessories. It is the largest sportswear manufactur ...
for brief contracts.
Reebok
Reebok International Limited () is an American fitness footwear and clothing manufacturer that is a part of Authentic Brands Group. It was established in England in 1958 as a companion company to J.W. Foster and Sons, a sporting goods company ...
received the contract in 1996, stayed three seasons, before
Nike
Nike often refers to:
* Nike (mythology), a Greek goddess who personifies victory
* Nike, Inc., a major American producer of athletic shoes, apparel, and sports equipment
Nike may also refer to:
People
* Nike (name), a surname and feminine give ...
started a first spell in 1999.
Decathlon
The decathlon is a combined event in Athletics (sport), athletics consisting of ten track and field events. The word "decathlon" was formed, in analogy to the word "pentathlon", from Greek language, Greek δέκα (''déka'', meaning "ten") and ...
's football brand Kipsta, which is based in Lille region,
Airness
Airness is a footwear trademark founded in 1999 in Saint-Denis (France) by Malamine Koné. The logo includes the image of a black panther.
Sponsorships
Teams and athletes using Airness equipment are:
Basketball
Previous club teams
* SLUC Nan ...
and
Canterbury
Canterbury (, ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and UNESCO World Heritage Site, situated in the heart of the City of Canterbury local government district of Kent, England. It lies on the River Stour, Kent, River Stour.
...
, the rugby-specialized company, followed. In 2013,
Umbro
Umbro is an English sports equipment manufacturer founded in 1924 in Wilmslow, Cheshire and based in Manchester. They specialise in football and rugby sportswear featuring their ''Double Diamond'' logo. Umbro products are marketed in over 10 ...
took over until Nike started a second spell in 2013 that lasted three years.
On 22 June 2016, Lille announced a five-year partnership with
New Balance
New Balance Athletics, Inc. (NB), best known as simply New Balance, is one of the world's major sports footwear and apparel manufacturers. Based in Boston, Massachusetts, the multinational corporation was founded in 1906 as the New Balance Arch ...
, becoming one of the biggest football teams that have signed with the
Boston
Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...
-based sportswear manufacturer. Partnership is renewed in 2021 on a new five-season contract until June 2026.
The first main sponsors of the club were
Jean Caby butchery that appeared two seasons in the front of the jersey, and
Lille
Lille ( , ; nl, Rijsel ; pcd, Lile; vls, Rysel) is a city in the northern part of France, in French Flanders. On the river Deûle, near France's border with Belgium, it is the capital of the Hauts-de-France Regions of France, region, the Pref ...
-made Pel d'Or
lemonade
Lemonade is a sweetened lemon-flavored beverage.
There are varieties of lemonade found throughout the world. In North America and South Asia, cloudy still lemonade is the most common variety. There it is traditionally a homemade drink using ...
, produced by the very famous
Pelforth
Heineken N.V. is a Dutch brewer which owns a worldwide portfolio of over 170 beer brands, mainly pale lager, though some other beer styles are produced. The two largest brands are Heineken and Tecate; though the portfolio includes Amstel, Fo ...
brewery. One of the most iconic Lille sponsors is French nappy and baby products manufacturer
Peaudouce that lasted more than ten years. Production factories were located in
Linselles, in the Lille region and the nine red letters are now part of the identity of the club.
However, Peaudouce was acquired by Sweden consumer products company
SCA
SCA may refer to:
Biology and health
* Sickle cell disease, also known as sickle cell anaemia
* Spinocerebellar ataxia, a neurological condition
* Statistical coupling analysis, a method to identify covarying pairs of amino acids in protein mult ...
which decided to end the sponsorship. Foodservice company Eurest, banks
Crédit Agricole and
ING Direct
The ING Group ( nl, ING Groep) is a Dutch multinational banking and financial services corporation headquartered in Amsterdam. Its primary businesses are retail banking, direct banking, commercial banking, investment banking, wholesale bankin ...
are famous main sponsors too, that lasted at least two seasons.
Subsequently, the famous "P" of French
casino
A casino is a facility for certain types of gambling. Casinos are often built near or combined with hotels, resorts, restaurants, retail shopping, cruise ships, and other tourist attractions. Some casinos are also known for hosting live entertai ...
and
resort
A resort (North American English) is a self-contained commercial establishment that tries to provide most of a vacationer's wants, such as food, drink, swimming, lodging, sports, entertainment, and shopping, on the premises. The term ''resort ...
company
Partouche appeared on Lille's jersey in 2003 for the first time. Based in the north of France, Partouche is Lille's most loyal sponsor: the brand logo was on the club's shirt during fourteen seasons. The most recent main sponsors are French consumer electronics retailer
Boulanger and British online car retailer
Cazoo
Cazoo is a British online car retailer based in London, England which was founded in 2018 by Alex Chesterman.
History
Cazoo was founded in 2018 by British internet entrepreneur Alex Chesterman. It launched an online marketplace for used cars in ...
. On 31 August 2022, Russian gambling company
1xBet signed a partnership deal to become their official regional partner in Middle East, North, and South Africa.
Grounds
Stadiums
![LilleOM-1937](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/96/LilleOM-1937.jpg)
After its foundation following the merging of
Olympique Lillois
Olympique Lillois was a French association football club from the city of Lille. Founded in 1902 they merged with SC Fives in 1944 to form Lille OSC.
Honours
Championnat de France
*Champion: 1914, 1933
*Runner-up: 1936
Events
Jan ...
and
SC Fives
SC Fives was a French association football club from Fives, a suburb in the east of Lille. Founded in 1901, the club merged with Olympique Lillois in 1944 to form Lille OSC.
Honours
Championnat de France
*Runner-up : 1934
Coupe de France
*Fin ...
, Lille alternately played its home games at the stadiums of both clubs:
Stade Henri-Jooris
Stade Henri-Jooris was a sports stadium in Lille, France. The stadium, used mostly for football matches was able to hold 15,000 people and was home stadium of Olympique Lillois and Lille OSC.
Originally it was known as ''Stade de l'avenue de Du ...
of Olympique Lillois and Stade Jules-Lemaire of SC Fives. However, in 1949, the club chose to keep the first as his home ground and to use the second as a
training ground
A training ground is an area where professional association football teams prepare for matches, with activities primarily concentrating on skills and fitness. They also sometimes form part of a club's youth system, as clubs consider it important t ...
. Becoming more and more obsolete, Stade Jules-Lemaire will be destroyed ten years later, in 1959. Named after Henri Jooris, the iconic president of Olympique Lillois, the 15,000-seat stadium, located by the
Deûle
The Deûle (; nl, Deule) is a river of northern France which is channeled for the main part of its course (from Lens to Lille). The upstream part is still partly free-flowing and is known as the Souchez. The Deûle flows into the Lys (right ban ...
river, near the
Citadel of Lille, was the home of Les Dogues until 1975 when Lille moved at
Stade Grimonprez-Jooris.
Located inside the citadel park, not far from the former venue, the stadium's original capacity was 25,000 at the time it was opened, but this was reduced to around 17,000 by 2000 due to the evolution of safety standards. In 2000, the stadium was renovated and its capacity was increased to 21,000. However, it still failed to meet
FIFA
FIFA (; stands for ''Fédération Internationale de Football Association'' ( French), meaning International Association Football Federation ) is the international governing body of association football, beach football and futsal. It was found ...
licensing regulations and plans to build a new stadium compliant with
UEFA
Union of European Football Associations (UEFA ; french: Union des associations européennes de football; german: Union der europäischen Fußballverbände) is one of six continental bodies of governance in association football. It governs f ...
's standards were made in 2002, when the club was privatized.
![Stadium Nord (Champions League)](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/12/Stadium_Nord_%28Champions_League%29.png)
In June 2003, the club's board agreed to a new proposal put forward by the city mayor to build a new 33,000-seat stadium on the site of the Stade Grimonprez-Jooris.
Preliminary works which included dismantling of training grounds were undertaken, and the delivery was scheduled for 31 December 2004 but was postponed. Construction work was then planned to begin in early 2005, but the project faced opposition from
preservationists Preservationist is generally understood to mean ''historic preservationist'': one who advocates to preserve architecturally or historically significant buildings, structures, objects, or sites from demolition or degradation. Historic preservation us ...
who successfully prevented the project to obtain necessary permits as the site of the stadium was close to the 17th-century citadel.
In May 2004, the stadium closed its doors and the delays forced Lille to play its league matches at
Stadium Nord Lille Métropole
A stadium (plural, : stadiums or stadia) is a place or venue for (mostly) outdoor sports, concerts, or other events and consists of a field or stage either partly or completely surrounded by a tiered structure designed to allow spectators to ...
, a 18,000-seat stadium in
Villeneuve-d'Ascq
Villeneuve-d'Ascq (; pcd, Neuvile-Ask) is a commune in the Nord department in northern France. With more than 60,000 inhabitants and 50,000 students, it is one of the main cities of the Métropole Européenne de Lille and the largest in area (2 ...
, and their
2005–06 UEFA Champions League
The 2005–06 UEFA Champions League was the 51st season of UEFA's premier European club football tournament, the UEFA Champions League and the 14th since it was rebranded from the European Cup in 1992. 74 teams from 50 football associations took p ...
games at
Stade de France
The Stade de France (, ) is the national stadium of France, located just north of Paris in the commune of Saint-Denis. Its seating capacity of 80,698 makes it the sixth-largest stadium in Europe. The stadium is used by the France national foot ...
in the
Paris region
Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...
. After two years of court battles, local courts had declared issued building permits void in July and December 2005, which meant that ''Grimonprez-Jooris II'' would never come into existence. Grimonprez-Jooris was demolished in 2010, six years after Lille OSC's departure. The club stayed at Stadium Lille Métropole until the end of the
2011-12 Ligue 1 season. While LOSC was struggling with its venue problems, the administrative landscape of the Lille area changed. The new administration, now in charge of the whole area, decided to launch a new stadium project.
![Grand Stade Lille Métropole LOSC first match](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/2c/Grand_Stade_Lille_M%C3%A9tropole_LOSC_first_match.JPG)
On 1 February 2008,
Eiffage
Eiffage S.A. is a French civil engineering construction company. it was the third largest company of its type in France, and the fifth largest in Europe.
History
The company was formed in 1992 through the merger of several long standing com ...
was selected during a general meeting to build a 50,000-seat capacity multi-purpose stadium with a
retractable roof
A retractable roof is a roof system designed to roll back the roof of a structure so that the interior of the facility is open to the outdoors. Retractable roofs are sometimes referred to as operable roofs or retractable skylights. The term op ...
. The stadium has also a particularity: it can become a fully functional arena of 30,000 seats that can host
basketball
Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appr ...
,
tennis
Tennis is a racket sport that is played either individually against a single opponent ( singles) or between two teams of two players each ( doubles). Each player uses a tennis racket that is strung with cord to strike a hollow rubber ball ...
or
handball
Handball (also known as team handball, European handball or Olympic handball) is a team sport in which two teams of seven players each (six outcourt players and a goalkeeper) pass a ball using their hands with the aim of throwing it into the g ...
games as well as
concerts
A concert is a live music performance in front of an audience. The performance may be by a single musician, sometimes then called a recital, or by a musical ensemble, such as an orchestra, choir, or band. Concerts are held in a wide variet ...
.
Stade Pierre-Mauroy
The Stade Pierre-Mauroy, also known as the Decathlon Arena – Stade Pierre-Mauroy for sponsorship reasons, is a multi-use retractable roof stadium in Villeneuve-d'Ascq (Métropole Européenne de Lille), France, that opened in August 2012. It ha ...
, known for sponsorship reasons as Decathlon Arena – Stade Pierre-Mauroy since 2022, was inaugurated on 17 August 2012. Originally named the ''Grand Stade Lille Métropole'', the stadium was renamed in 2013 in honor of the former Mayor of Lille and former
Prime Minister of France
The prime minister of France (french: link=no, Premier ministre français), officially the prime minister of the French Republic, is the head of government of the French Republic and the leader of the Council of Ministers.
The prime minister ...
Pierre Mauroy
Pierre Mauroy (; 5 July 1928 – 7 June 2013) was a French Socialist politician who was Prime Minister of France from 1981 to 1984 under President François Mitterrand. Mauroy also served as Mayor of Lille from 1973 to 2001. At the time of his de ...
. The stadium venue is located in Villeneuve-d'Ascq and has a seating capacity of 50,186 people, becoming France's fourth largest stadium.
The stadium hosted
France national football team
The France national football team (french: Équipe de France de football) represents France in men's international football matches. It is governed by the French Football Federation (FFF; ), the governing body for football in France. It is a ...
and
France national rugby union team
The France national rugby union team () represents France in men's international rugby union and it is administered by the French Rugby Federation. They traditionally play in blue shirts emblazoned with the national emblem of a golden rooster ...
as well as some games of
UEFA Euro 2016
The 2016 UEFA European Football Championship, commonly referred to as UEFA Euro 2016 (stylised as UEFA EURO 2016) or simply Euro 2016, was the 15th UEFA European Championship, the quadrennial international men's football championship of Europe ...
and many
Top 14
The Top 14 () is a professional rugby union club competition that is played in France. Created in 1892, the Top 14 is at the top of the national league system operated by the French National Rugby League, also known by its French initialism o ...
matches.
It has been chosen to be one of the nine venues selected for France's hosting of the
2023 Rugby World Cup.
The 30,000-seat arena hosted
EuroBasket 2015
EuroBasket 2015 was the 39th edition of the EuroBasket championship that was organized by FIBA Europe. It was co-hosted by Croatia, France, Germany, and Latvia, making it the first EuroBasket held in more than one country. It started on 5 S ...
,
Davis Cup
The Davis Cup is the premier international team event in men's tennis. It is run by the International Tennis Federation (ITF) and is contested annually between teams from competing countries in a knock-out format. It is described by the organis ...
,
2017 World Men's Handball Championship and will host handball and basketball tournaments at the
2024 Olympic Games.
The record attendance for a sports game stands at 49,712 spectators, who witnessed Lille's 5–1 win over
Paris Saint-Germain
Paris Saint-Germain Football Club (), commonly referred to as Paris Saint-Germain, Paris, Paris SG or simply PSG is a professional football club based in Paris, France. They compete in Ligue 1, the top division of French football. As Fr ...
in 2019.
Training facilities
![HazardBerlinWallLille](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a4/HazardBerlinWallLille.png)
Located in
Camphin-en-Pévèle
Camphin-en-Pévèle () is a commune in the Nord department in northern France.
Heraldry
See also
*Communes of the Nord department
The following is a list of the 648 communes of the Nord department of the French Republic.
The communes coo ...
, 15 minutes away from central Lille, the Domaine de Luchin has been the club's
training ground
A training ground is an area where professional association football teams prepare for matches, with activities primarily concentrating on skills and fitness. They also sometimes form part of a club's youth system, as clubs consider it important t ...
since 2007. A 43-hectare estate, it houses nine full-size pitches (including one
artificial turf pitch), one goalkeepers training field, the club headquarters, the academy facility, classrooms and bedrooms as well as a medical pole, a fitness centre, press areas and the famous ''Dogue de Bronze'', a
bronze statue of a mastiff which has been installed in 2011 and appeared in many pictures and videos of the club.
A stadium of 1,000 spectators, including 500 seats, can host matches for the academy teams and the women's team.
A segment of the
Berlin Wall
The Berlin Wall (german: Berliner Mauer, ) was a guarded concrete barrier that encircled West Berlin from 1961 to 1989, separating it from East Berlin and East Germany (GDR). Construction of the Berlin Wall was commenced by the government ...
, with a
graffiti
Graffiti (plural; singular ''graffiti'' or ''graffito'', the latter rarely used except in archeology) is art that is written, painted or drawn on a wall or other surface, usually without permission and within public view. Graffiti ranges from s ...
of
Eden Hazard
Eden Michael Walter Hazard (born 7 January 1991) is a Belgian professional footballer who plays as a winger or attacking midfielder for La Liga club Real Madrid. Known for his creativity, dribbling, passing and vision, Hazard is considered o ...
by French artist
C215 painted on it, has been unveiled in 2016 and is on display inside the centre.
Club rivalries
The ''
Derby du Nord
The Derby du Nord (, ''Northern Derby'') is a football rivalry contested between French clubs Lille OSC and RC Lens, two of the region's most successful clubs. Both clubs are located in northern France, though in different departments: Lille in ...
'' (
French for "The North Derby") is contested between Lille and
RC Lens
Racing Club de Lens (, commonly referred to as RC Lens or simply Lens) is a French professional football club based in the northern city of Lens in the Pas-de-Calais department. Its nickname, ''les sang et or'' (''the blood and gold''), co ...
. The derby name refers only to their geographical location in France; both clubs and cities only being located in the northern part of France, within the
Hauts-de-France
Hauts-de-France (; pcd, Heuts-d'Franche; , also ''Upper France'') is the northernmost Regions of France, region of France, created by the territorial reform of French regions in 2014, from a merger of Nord-Pas-de-Calais and Picardy. Its Prefectu ...
region but not the same
department. Being the fourth-largest city of the
Pas-de-Calais
Pas-de-Calais (, " strait of Calais"; pcd, Pas-Calés; also nl, Nauw van Kales) is a department in northern France named after the French designation of the Strait of Dover, which it borders. It has the most communes of all the departments ...
department,
Lens
A lens is a transmissive optical device which focuses or disperses a light beam by means of refraction. A simple lens consists of a single piece of transparent material, while a compound lens consists of several simple lenses (''elements''), ...
is located 30 kilometres south of regional prefecture and nerve centre
Lille
Lille ( , ; nl, Rijsel ; pcd, Lile; vls, Rysel) is a city in the northern part of France, in French Flanders. On the river Deûle, near France's border with Belgium, it is the capital of the Hauts-de-France Regions of France, region, the Pref ...
,
Nord department main city. The name can also refer to matches involving Lille and
Valenciennes
Valenciennes (, also , , ; nl, label=also Dutch, Valencijn; pcd, Valincyinnes or ; la, Valentianae) is a commune in the Nord department, Hauts-de-France, France.
It lies on the Scheldt () river. Although the city and region experienced a s ...
as both clubs are located within Nord, however, the match historically refers to matches involving Lille and Lens. As a result, the Lille–Valenciennes match is sometimes referred to as ''Le Petit Derby du Nord'' (French for "The Little North Derby").
The two clubs first met in 1937 when Lille were playing under the
Olympique Lillois
Olympique Lillois was a French association football club from the city of Lille. Founded in 1902 they merged with SC Fives in 1944 to form Lille OSC.
Honours
Championnat de France
*Champion: 1914, 1933
*Runner-up: 1936
Events
Jan ...
emblem. Due to each club's close proximity towards each other being separated by only and sociological differences between each club's supporters, a fierce rivalry developed. The North Derby is underpinned by social and economic differences, since the city of Lens is known as an old, working-class, industrial city and Lille as a middle-class, modern, internationally oriented one. This social class opposition is no longer relevant: both fanbases now come from lower and middle classes.
As of 2022, the teams have played more than 115 matches in all competitions, Lille winning 45, Lens 37, and the remaining 34 having been drawn. Lille have won the most
top division titles, the most
Coupe de France
The Coupe de France, formerly known as the Coupe Charles Simon, is the premier knockout cup competition in French football organized by the French Football Federation (FFF). It was first held in 1917 and is open to all amateur and profession ...
trophies and
Trophée des Champions
The Trophée des Champions (, ) is a French association football trophy contested in an annual match between the champions of Ligue 1 and the winners of the Coupe de France. It is equivalent to the super cups found in many other countries.
His ...
titles. The Mastiffs have also played more games in domestic and European top competitions and have more game wins in French top division than their nearby rivals.
Honours
Domestic
League
*
French Division 1
Ligue 1, officially known as Ligue 1 Uber Eats for sponsorship reasons, is a French professional league for men's association football clubs. At the top of the French football league system, it is the country's primary football competition. A ...
/
Ligue 1
Ligue 1, officially known as Ligue 1 Uber Eats for sponsorship reasons, is a French professional league for men's association football clubs. At the top of the French football league system, it is the country's primary football competition. A ...
**Winners (4):
1945–46,
1953–54,
2010–11,
2020–21
The dash is a punctuation mark consisting of a long horizontal line. It is similar in appearance to the hyphen but is longer and sometimes higher from the baseline. The most common versions are the endash , generally longer than the hyphen b ...
**''Runners-up (6):
1947–48,
1948–49,
1949–50,
1950–51,
2004–05,
2018–19''
*
French Division 2
Ligue 2 (, League 2), also known as Ligue 2 BKT due to sponsorship by Balkrishna Industries, is a French professional football league. The league serves as the second division of French football and is one of two divisions making up the Ligue de ...
**Winners (4):
1963–64,
1973–74,
1977–78,
1999–2000
Cups
*
Coupe de France
The Coupe de France, formerly known as the Coupe Charles Simon, is the premier knockout cup competition in French football organized by the French Football Federation (FFF). It was first held in 1917 and is open to all amateur and profession ...
**Winners (6):
1945–46,
1946–47,
1947–48,
1952–53,
1954–55,
2010–11
**''Runners-up (2):
1944–45,
1948–49''
*
Coupe de la Ligue
The Coupe de la Ligue (), known outside France as the French League Cup, was a Single-elimination tournament, knockout cup competition in Football in France, French football organized by the Ligue de Football Professionnel. The tournament was est ...
**''Runners-up (1):
2015–16''
*
Trophée des Champions
The Trophée des Champions (, ) is a French association football trophy contested in an annual match between the champions of Ligue 1 and the winners of the Coupe de France. It is equivalent to the super cups found in many other countries.
His ...
**Winners (1):
2021
File:2021 collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: the James Webb Space Telescope was launched in 2021; Protesters in Yangon, Myanmar following the 2021 Myanmar coup d'état, coup d'état; A civil demonstration against the October–November 2021 ...
**''Runners-up (2): 1955,
2011
File:2011 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: a protester partaking in Occupy Wall Street heralds the beginning of the Occupy movement; protests against Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi, who was killed that October; a young man celebrate ...
''
*
Coupe Charles Drago
The Coupe Charles Drago was an elimination cup competition organised by the Ligue de Football Professionnel, between clubs that are knocked out before the quarter-finals of the Coupe de France
The Coupe de France, formerly known as the Coupe ...
**''Runners-up (2): 1954, 1956''
Europe
*
UEFA Intertoto Cup
**Winners (1):
2004
**''Runners-up (1):
2002
File:2002 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The 2002 Winter Olympics are held in Salt Lake City; Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother and her daughter Princess Margaret, Countess of Snowdon die; East Timor gains East Timor independence, indepe ...
''
*
Latin Cup
The Latin Cup was an international football tournament for club sides from the Southwest European nations of France, Italy, Spain, and Portugal. In 1949 the football federations came together and requested FIFA to launch the competition. Europ ...
**''Runners-up (1):
1951''
Doubles
*
French Division 1
Ligue 1, officially known as Ligue 1 Uber Eats for sponsorship reasons, is a French professional league for men's association football clubs. At the top of the French football league system, it is the country's primary football competition. A ...
/
Ligue 1
Ligue 1, officially known as Ligue 1 Uber Eats for sponsorship reasons, is a French professional league for men's association football clubs. At the top of the French football league system, it is the country's primary football competition. A ...
and
Coupe de France
The Coupe de France, formerly known as the Coupe Charles Simon, is the premier knockout cup competition in French football organized by the French Football Federation (FFF). It was first held in 1917 and is open to all amateur and profession ...
(2):
1945–46,
2010–11
Results
Domestic results
Continental results
Players
First-team squad
Out on loan
Reserve team
Notable former players
Goalkeepers
*
Robert Germain (1946–49)
*
César Ruminski (1952–55)
*
Jean Van Gool (1954–68)
*
Charles Samoy
Charles Samoy (born 30 April 1939) is a former French football player and manager. As a player, Samoy played for AC Denain, CO Roubaix-Tourcoing, Le Havre and Lille, and participated in the 1960 Summer Olympics
The 1960 Summer Olympics ( it ...
(1963–74)
*
Philippe Bergeroo
Philippe Bergeroo (born 28 January 1954) is a French former professional footballer who played as a goalkeeper. For France, he earned a total number of three international caps during the late 1970s, early 1980s. He was a member of the French sq ...
(1978–83)
*
Bernard Lama
Bernard Pascal Maurice Lama (born 7 April 1963) is a French football coach and former professional player who played as a goalkeeper. He spent a large part of his career at Paris Saint-Germain. He was also a member of the France national team ...
(1981–89)
*
Jean-Claude Nadon (1989–96)
*
Grégory Wimbée (1998–2004)
*
Tony Sylva (2004–08)
*
Mickaël Landreau
Mickaël Vincent André-Marie Landreau (; born 14 May 1979) is a French professional football manager and former player who played as a goalkeeper.
Landreau holds the record for Ligue 1 appearances, with 618 for Nantes, Paris Saint-Germain, L ...
(2009–12)
*
Vincent Enyeama
Vincent Enyeama (born 29 August 1982) is a Nigerian former professional footballer who played as a goalkeeper.
Despite his below-average height for a goalkeeper, he is popularly regarded as one of the greatest African goalkeepers of all time a ...
(2011–18)
*
Mike Maignan
Mike Peterson Maignan (born 3 July 1995) is a French professional footballer who plays as a goalkeeper for club AC Milan and the France national team.
Maignan came through the youth teams at Paris Saint-Germain, he was an unused substitute sev ...
(2015–21)
Defenders
*
Joseph Jadrejak
Joseph Jadrzejczak, known as Joseph Jadrejak (born 20 February 1918 in Gladbeck, Westphalia, Germany - died 24 November 1990 in Saint-André-lez-Lille), was a French international footballer and manager who played as a defender and was part of the ...
(1944–50)
*
Jean-Marie Prévost (1945–52)
*
Marceau Somerlinck (1945–57)
*
Jacques Van Cappelen (1949–55)
*
Cor van der Hart
Cor van der Hart (25 January 1928 – 12 December 2006) was a Dutch footballer. He is known as one of the best defenders of the Netherlands national team in history, who was physically strong, who read the game very well and who had a qualit ...
(1950–54)
*
Guillaume Bieganski
Guillaume Bieganski (3 November 1932 – 8 October 2016) was a French association football defender of Polish origin.
References
External links
*
*
Guillaume Bieganskiat RC Lens
Racing Club de Lens (, commonly referred to as RC Lens ...
(1953–56)
*
Robert Lemaître
Robert Lemaître (7 March 1929 – 9 March 2019) was a former French professional footballer who played as a defender.
Career
Lemaître was born in Plancoët, a commune in the Brittany region. He began his career playing for his hometown club. ...
(1951–59)
*
Antoine Pazur
Antoine Pazur (3 January 1931 – 20 October 2011) was a French footballer who played as a defender. He made one appearance for the France national team in 1953. He was also named in France's squad for the Group 4 qualification tournament ...
(1952–60)
*
Bernard Stakowiak (1958–69)
*
Claude Andrien (1962–69)
*
Marcel Adamczyk (1963–68)
*
Jean-Luc Buisine (1962–69)
*
Ignacio Prieto
Ignacio Prieto Urrejola (born September 23, 1943) is a former Chilean footballer who played for 5 clubs and in the Chile national football team in the FIFA World Cup England 1966.
Teams (Player)
* Universidad Católica 1962-1967
* Nacional 196 ...
(1971–76)
*
Pierre Dréossi
Pierre Dréossi (born 12 October 1959) is a French football manager and former player.
He played as a defender for Lille OSC, FC Sochaux-Montbéliard, OGC Nice, Paris Saint-Germain and AS Cannes.
He was head coach of Stade Rennais until ...
(1976–82)
*
René Marsiglia (1978–83)
*
Éric Péan (1981–87)
*
Noureddine Kourichi
Noureddine Abdallah Kourichi (born 12 April 1954) is a former footballer who played as a defender for several different French and Swiss clubs. Born in France, he represented Algeria at international level and was later the assistant manager o ...
(1982–86)
*
Boro Primorac
Boro Primorac (; born 5 December 1954) is a Bosnian professional football manager and former player who most recently managed Croatian First Football League club Hajduk Split.
Playing career Club
Primorac featured as a centre half with Yugosl ...
(1983–86)
*
Éric Prissette (1983–90)
*
Dominique Thomas (1983–88, 89–93)
*
Jocelyn Angloma
Jocelyn Angloma (born 7 August 1965) is a football manager and former professional player who played as a defender. Born in Guadeloupe, he represented both the France and Guadeloupe national teams. He is the head coach of the Guadeloupe nationa ...
(1987–90)
*
Jakob Friis-Hansen
Jakob Friis-Hansen (born 6 March 1967) is a Danish former professional footballer who played as a defender. At club level, he spent most of his career with French club Lille OSC. For the Denmark national team, he made 19 appearances.
He is a ...
(1989–95)
*
Fabien Leclercq (1989–99)
*
Pascal Cygan
Pascal Cygan (born 29 April 1974) is a French former footballer. His favoured position was central defender, but he could also play as a left back.
After starting out at Lille in his country, Cygan would play four years in the Premier League wi ...
(1995–2002)
*
Grégory Tafforeau (2001–09)
*
Eric Abidal
Eric Sylvain Abidal (; born 11 September 1979) is a French former professional footballer who played as a left-back or centre-back.
In his career, he played mainly for Lyon and Barcelona, winning 18 trophies with both teams combined, including t ...
(2002–04)
*
Matthieu Chalmé (2002–07)
*
Mathieu Debuchy
Mathieu Debuchy (born 28 July 1985) is a French professional footballer who plays as a right-back for Ligue 2 club Valenciennes.
Debuchy started his senior career at Lille, where he won a Ligue 1 and Coupe de France double in the 2010–11 se ...
(2003–13)
*
Nicolas Plestan (2003–10)
*
Stathis Tavlaridis (2004–07)
*
Stephan Lichtsteiner (2005–08)
*
Emerson (2006–11)
*
Adil Rami
Adil Rami (born 27 December 1985) is a French professional footballer who plays as a centre-back for club Troyes, for which he is the captain.
Rami began his football career playing for amateur club Étoile Fréjus Saint-Raphaël, then known ...
(2006–11)
*
Franck Béria
Franck Béria (born 23 May 1983) is a French former professional footballer who played as a right-back. He works as a director of professional football at Lille.
Club career
At the end of the 2016–17 season, Béria ended his career as a playe ...
(2007–17)
*
Aurélien Chedjou
Aurélien Bayard Chedjou Fongang (; born 20 June 1985) is a Cameroonian former professional footballer who played as a centre back for LOSC Lille, Galatasaray, Bursaspor, Adana Demirspor and the Cameroon national team.
Club career
Chedjou sign ...
(2007–13)
*
David Rozehnal
David Sebastian Klement Rozehnal (born 5 July 1980) is a Czech former footballer who currently plays as a defender for amateur club Sokol Kožušany (Czech 7th tier). He previously played for a host of European clubs, making over 400 appearances ...
(2010–15)
*
Pape Souaré
Pape N'Diaye Souaré (; born 6 June 1990) is a Senegalese professional footballer who plays as a left back for Morecambe.
Club career
Born in Mbao, Pikine Department, Souaré spent his early career with Diambars, Lille II, Lille and Reims. ...
(2010–15)
*
Marko Baša (2011–17)
*
Lucas Digne
Lucas Digne (; born 20 July 1993) is a French professional footballer who plays as a left-back for club Aston Villa and the France national team.
Digne began his career at Lille before joining Paris Saint-Germain in 2013. After spending a sea ...
(2011–13)
*
Djibril Sidibé (2012–16)
*
Simon Kjær
Simon Thorup Kjær (born 26 March 1989) is a Danish professional footballer who plays as a centre-back for club AC Milan and captains the Denmark national team.
He was named 2007 Danish under-19 talent of the year and 2009 Danish Talent of t ...
(2013–15)
*
Adama Soumaoro
Adama Soumaoro (born 18 June 1992) is a French professional association football, footballer who plays as a Defender (association football), centre-back for Serie A club Bologna F.C. 1909, Bologna.
Career
On 31 January 2020, Soumaoro joined Ser ...
(2013–21)
*
Sébastien Corchia (2014–17)
*
Benjamin Pavard
Benjamin Jacques Marcel Pavard (born 28 March 1996) is a French professional footballer who plays as a right-back for club Bayern Munich and the France national team. Although usually deployed as a right-back, he is also capable of playing ...
(2015–16)
*
Gabriel
In Abrahamic religions (Judaism, Christianity and Islam), Gabriel (); Greek: grc, Γαβριήλ, translit=Gabriḗl, label=none; Latin: ''Gabriel''; Coptic: cop, Ⲅⲁⲃⲣⲓⲏⲗ, translit=Gabriêl, label=none; Amharic: am, ገብር ...
(2017–20)
*
Zeki Çelik (2018–22)
*
Reinildo Mandava
Reinildo Isnard Mandava (born 21 January 1994) is a Mozambican professional footballer who plays as a left back for La Liga club Atlético Madrid and the Mozambique national team.
Club career
Born in Beira, Mandava began his football career wi ...
(2018–22)
*
Sven Botman (2020–22)
Midfielders
*
Jules Bigot
Jules Bigot (22 October 1915, Bully-les-Mines, Pas-de-Calais – 24 October 2007) was a French football player and manager. He played club football most notably with Lille
Lille ( , ; nl, Rijsel ; pcd, Lile; vls, Rysel) is a city in the ...
(1944–50)
*
François Bourbotte
François Bourbotte (24 February 1913 – 15 December 1972) was a French professional footballer who played as a defender and midfielder
A midfielder is an outfield position in association football.
Midfielders may play an exclusive ...
(1944–47)
*
Roger Carré
Roger is a given name, usually masculine, and a surname. The given name is derived from the Old French personal names ' and '. These names are of Germanic origin, derived from the elements ', ''χrōþi'' ("fame", "renown", "honour") and ', ' ...
(1944–50)
*
Albert Dubreucq
Albert may refer to:
Companies
* Albert (supermarket), a supermarket chain in the Czech Republic
* Albert Heijn, a supermarket chain in the Netherlands
* Albert Market, a street market in The Gambia
* Albert Productions, a record label
* Alber ...
(1945–53)
*
Roland Clauws (1953–60, 62–64)
*
Alain de Martigny (1970–76)
*
Alain Verhoeve (1970–74)
*
Alberto Fouillioux
Alberto Jorge Fouillioux Ahumada (22 November 1940 – 23 June 2018) was a Chilean football midfielder and striker who earned 70 caps and scored 12 goals for the Chile national team during his career.
Career
Fouillioux made his debut for Uni ...
(1972–75)
*
Serge Besnard (1975–79)
*
Alain Grumelon (1976–83)
*
Arnaud Dos Santos (1977–81)
*
Stéphane Plancque (1977–87)
*
Didier Simon (1977–82)
*
Pascal Plancque (1980–87)
*
Philippe Périlleux (1984–91, 95–96)
*
Alain Fiard (1987–93)
*
Victor Da Silva (1988–92)
*
Arnaud Duncker (1994–98)
*
Patrick Collot (1995–2002)
*
Christophe Landrin
Christophe Landrin (born 30 June 1977 in Roubaix) is a French football midfielder. His brother, Sebastien, is one of the main players of the French national rink hockey team.
Honours
Lille
*UEFA Intertoto Cup: 2004
Paris Saint-Germain
*Coupe ...
(1996–2005)
*
Bruno Cheyrou
Bruno Olivier Cheyrou (born 10 May 1978) is a French former professional footballer who played as a midfielder.
Club career
Cheyrou was born in Suresnes, Hauts-de-Seine. After success with Lille OSC, where he scored against Manchester Unite ...
(1998–2002)
*
Benoît Cheyrou
Benoît Benjamin Cheyrou (born 3 May 1981) is a French former professional footballer who played as a central midfielder, and often acted as a deep-lying playmaker for the attack. He is the assistant manager of French amateur club La Salesienne d ...
(1999–2004)
*
Fernando D'Amico
Fernando D'Amico (born 10 February 1975) is an Argentine retired footballer.
Personal life
He is the twin brother of Patricio D'Amico.
References
1975 births
Living people
Argentine men's footballers
Argentine twins
Men's associatio ...
(1999–2003)
*
Sylvain N'Diaye (2000–03)
*
Jean Makoun
Jean II Makoun (, born 29 May 1983) is a Cameroonian former footballer who played as a central midfielder. He played for the Cameroon national football team from 2003 to 2015.
Career
LOSC Lille
Born in Yaoundé, Cameroon, Makoun began his ca ...
(2001–08)
*
Philippe Brunel
Philippe Brunel (born 28 February 1973) is a French former professional footballer who played as a midfielder. He was a midfielder or playmaker with a wide range of passing.
Career
Lens
Brunel began his career at RC Lens in 1991. From then unt ...
(2002–05)
*
Mathieu Bodmer
Mathieu Bodmer (born 22 November 1982) is a French retired professional footballer who played as a midfielder. A former French youth international, he is known for his technique, playmaking skills and striking ability.
Club career
Early career ...
(2003–07)
*
Stéphane Dumont (2003–11)
*
Milenko Ačimovič
Milenko "Mile" Ačimovič (; ; born 15 February 1977) is a Slovenian former professional footballer who played as a midfielder. Besides Slovenia, he has played in FR Yugoslavia, England, France, Saudi Arabia, and Austria.
Club career
Born to S ...
(2004–06)
*
Yohan Cabaye
Yohan Cabaye (; born 14 January 1986) is a French former professional footballer who played as a midfielder.
Cabaye began his football career playing for hometown club US Tourcoing at the age of six. After seven years developing in the club's ...
(2004–11)
*
Florent Balmont
Florent Balmont (born 2 February 1980) is a French former professional footballer who played as a midfielder.
Career
Balmont began his career at Olympique Lyonnais in the 2002–03 Ligue 1 season after coming through the junior ranks. In the ...
(2008–16)
*
Rio Mavuba
Rio Antonio Zoba Mavuba (born 8 March 1984) is a French former professional footballer who played as a midfielder. He works as assistant manager at Bordeaux II.
He spent most of his professional career with Bordeaux and Lille, winning the 201 ...
(2008–17)
*
Idrissa Gueye
Idrissa Gana Gueye (born 26 September 1989) is a Senegalese professional footballer who plays as a defensive midfielder for club Everton and the Senegal national team.
Starting his career at Diambars in his native Senegal, Gueye joined Frenc ...
(2010–15)
*
Joe Cole
Joseph John Cole (born 8 November 1981) is an English football coach and former professional footballer who played as an attacking midfielder or winger in the Premier League, Ligue 1, League One and United Soccer League. He is regarded as on ...
(2011–12)
*
Dimitri Payet
Dimitri Payet (; born 29 March 1987) is a French professional footballer who plays for Ligue 1 club Marseille. A set-piece specialist, known for his accurate, bending free kicks, he primarily plays as an attacking midfielder, and is described a ...
(2011–13)
*
Benoît Pedretti
Benoît Pedretti (born 12 November 1980) is a French football manager and former player who is the manager of the reserve team of Nancy. A midfielder, he was a deep-lying playmaker well-known for his wide range of passing.
He started his profe ...
(2011–13)
*
Rony Lopes
Marcos Paulo Mesquita "Rony" Lopes (born 28 December 1995) is a Portuguese professional Association football, footballer who plays as an attacking midfielder or Winger (association football), right winger for Primeira Liga club S.C. Braga.
Earl ...
(2014–15, 16–17)
*
Yves Bissouma
Yves Bissouma (born 30 August 1996) is a professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for club Tottenham Hotspur. Born in the Ivory Coast, he represents the Mali national team.
Club career Early career
Born in Issia, Ivory Coast, Bissou ...
(2016–18)
*
Thiago Mendes
Thiago Henrique Mendes Ribeiro (born 15 March 1992) is a Brazilian professional Association football, footballer who plays as a defensive midfielder and centre-back for Qatar Stars League club Al-Rayyan SC, Al-Rayyan.
Career Lille
On 8 July 20 ...
(2017–19)
*
Boubakary Soumaré (2017–21)
*
Xeka
Miguel Ângelo da Silva Rocha (born 10 November 1994), known as Xeka (), is a Portuguese professional footballer who plays as a midfielder.
Formed at Braga, he spent most of his career in France, playing for Lille, Dijon and Rennes in Ligue 1 ...
(2017–22)
*
Renato Sanches
Renato Júnior Luz Sanches (; born 18 August 1997) is a Portuguese professional Association football, footballer who plays as a midfielder for Ligue 1 club Paris Saint-Germain F.C., Paris Saint-Germain and the Portugal national football team, ...
(2019–22)
*
Amadou Onana (2021–22)
Forwards
*
Jean Baratte
Jean Baratte (7 June 1923, Lambersart, Nord – 1 July 1986) was a French international footballer who played as striker and was a manager. He played for Lille OSC and was the twelfth goal scorer in Ligue 1.
Honours
Lille
* Division 1: 1945 ...
(1944–53, 56–57)
*
René Bihel
René Bihel (2 September 1916 – 8 September 1997) was a French professional football player who became a trainer.
Biography
His first appearance was in 1929 with the US Trèfileries youth team in Le Havre. He played professionally as a cent ...
(1944–46)
*
Jean Lechantre
Jean Lechantre (13 February 1922 – 12 February 2015) was a Belgian-born French footballer. He played club football most notably with Lille and CO Roubaix-Tourcoing and was capped three times for France; he ended his career as a player-coach for ...
(1944–52)
*
Roger Vandooren
Roger is a given name, usually masculine, and a surname. The given name is derived from the Old French personal names ' and '. These names are of Germanic origin, derived from the elements ', ''χrōþi'' ("fame", "renown", "honour") and ', ' ...
(1944–50)
*
Bolek Tempowski (1945–51)
*
Marius Walter (1945–52)
*
André Strappe
André Strappe (23 February 1928 – 9 February 2006) was a French professional footballer who played as a forward, and later served as a manager.
Club career
Strappe was a player for Lille, Le Havre, and Nantes, and then a player-manager f ...
(1948–58)
*
Bernard Lefèvre (1949–56, 62–63)
*
Erik Kuld Jensen
Erik Kuld Jensen (10 June 1925 – 14 April 2004) was a Danish footballer. He was also part of Denmark's squad for the football tournament at the 1948 Summer Olympics
The 1948 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XIV Olympiad and ...
(1950–53)
*
Jean Vincent
Jean Vincent (29 November 1930 – 13 August 2013) was a French international footballer and manager.
Playing career
Playing primarily at outside-left, Vincent enjoyed a highly successful career at club and international level, winning numero ...
(1950–56)
*
Gérard Bourbotte (1952–58, 63–68)
*
Yvon Douis
Yvon Douis (16 May 1935 – 28 January 2021) was a French professional footballer who played as a striker.
Career
Douis was born in Les Andelys. During his career he played for Lille OSC (1953–59), Le Havre AC (1959–61), AS Monaco (1961 ...
(1953–59)
*
Fernand Devlaminck (1956–59)
*
François Heutte
François Heutte (born 21 February 1938) is a French former football (soccer), football Striker (football), striker. He appeared for France national football team, France in the first edition of the 1960 European Nations' Cup tournament.
Referen ...
(1957–59, 65–66)
*
René Fatoux (1957–62)
*
André Guy (1965–67)
*
Christian Coste
Christian Coste (born 23 February 1949 in Saint-Christol, Hérault) is a former professional French footballer.
External links
*
*
*
1949 births
Living people
French footballers
France international footballers
Ligue 1 players
FC ...
(1973–77)
*
Stanislav Karasi
Stanislav Karasi (; born 8 November 1946) is a Serbian former football manager and player.
Club career
After coming through the youth system of Red Star Belgrade, Karasi started his senior career with Yugoslav Second League side Borovo. He ret ...
(1974–77)
*
Žarko Olarević (1977–81)
*
Pierre Pleimelding (1977–81)
*
Dušan Savić
Dušan "Dule" Savić ( sr-cyr, Душан "Дуле" Савић; born 1 June 1955) is a Serbian former footballer.
Club career
Savić started playing football in the local side Jedinstvo Ub in his hometown. He arrived for a tryout at Red Star ...
(1983–85)
*
Erwin Vandenbergh
Erwin Vandenbergh (; born 26 January 1959) is a Belgian retired football who played as a forward. Between 1979 and 1991, he finished six times topscorer of the Belgian First Division (a record as of 2020), with three clubs (the first three wit ...
(1986–90)
*
Abedi Pele
Abedi Ayew ( ; born 5 November 1964), known professionally as Abedi Pele, is a Ghanaian former professional footballer who played as an attacking midfielder and who served as captain of the Ghana national team. He is regarded as one of the g ...
(1988–90)
*
Per Frandsen
Per Frandsen (born 6 February 1970) is a Danish football manager and former professional football player. He is currently the manager of Hvidovre IF.
He won the 1994–95 Danish Cup with F.C. Copenhagen, and played 265 league games as a midfi ...
(1990–94)
*
Éric Assadourian
Éric Assadourian ( hy, Էրիկ Ասադուրյան, born on 24 June 1966) is a former professional Association football, footballer who played as a Striker (association football), striker. As of 2020, he is the head of the academy of RC Lens, ...
(1990–95)
*
Antoine Sibierski
Antoine Sibierski (born 5 August 1974) is a French former footballer who played as a midfielder. He started his career at hometown club Lille OSC, going on to play for AJ Auxerre, Nantes, with whom he won the Coupe de France twice, and RC Lens. ...
(1992–96)
*
Kennet Andersson
Bernt Kennet Andersson (born 6 October 1967) is a Swedish former professional footballer who played as a forward. Starting off his career with IFK Eskilstuna in the mid-1980s, he went on to play professionally in Sweden, Belgium, France, Italy, ...
(1993–94)
*
Djézon Boutoille (1993–2004)
*
Matt Moussilou
Matt Devlin Moussilou Massamba (born 1 June 1982) is a professional footballer who plays as a striker for FC Meyrin. Born in France, he has been capped by Congo at international level.
Club career
On 2 April 2005, he scored four goals for Li ...
(2001–06)
*
Nicolas Fauvergue
Nicolas Fauvergue (born 13 October 1984) is a retired French professional footballer who played as a forward.
Career
On 5 August 2009, RC Strasbourg signed Fauverge on loan from OSC Lille. On 23 June 2010, CS Sedan Ardennes signed him on loan ...
(2003–11)
*
Kevin Mirallas
Kevin Antonio Joel Gislain Mirallas y Castillo (born 5 October 1987), known as Kevin Mirallas (), is a Belgian professional footballer who plays as a winger for Cypriot side AEL Limassol.
Mirallas started his professional career in France wit ...
(2004–08)
*
Peter Odemwingie
Peter Osaze Odemwingie (born 15 July 1981) is a retired Nigerian professional footballer who played as a forward and winger.
Odemwingie grew up in Uzbekistan and Russia and began his career with Bendel Insurance in the Nigeria Premier League. ...
(2004–07)
*
Kader Keïta Kader may refer to:
* ''Kader'' (film), a 2006 Turkish drama film
*Kader Group, a toy manufacturer of Hong Kong
People with the given name
* Kader Abdolah (born 1954), Iranian-Dutch writer, poet and columnist.
*Kader Asmal (1934–2011), South Af ...
(2005–07)
*
Michel Bastos
Michel Fernandes Bastos (born 2 August 1983) is a Brazilian retired professional footballer who mainly played as a left winger.
Bastos started his career at hometown club Pelotas before moving to the Netherlands, where he played for Feyenoord ...
(2006–09)
*
Eden Hazard
Eden Michael Walter Hazard (born 7 January 1991) is a Belgian professional footballer who plays as a winger or attacking midfielder for La Liga club Real Madrid. Known for his creativity, dribbling, passing and vision, Hazard is considered o ...
(2007–12)
*
Patrick Kluivert
Patrick Stephan Kluivert (; born 1 July 1976) is a Dutch former football player, coach and sporting director. He played as a striker, most notably for AFC Ajax, FC Barcelona and the Netherlands national team.
He was part of Ajax's Golden Gen ...
(2007–08)
*
Ludovic Obraniak
Ludovic Joseph Obraniak (; born 10 November 1984) is a football manager and former professional footballer. He primarily played as an attacking midfielder. Born in France, he played for the Poland national team. He was appointed to his first h ...
(2007–12)
*
Túlio de Melo
Túlio Vinícius Fróes de Melo (born 31 January 1985) is a Brazilian footballer who plays as a striker.
Career
Early career & Breakthrough (2003–08)
Túlio de Melo started his career with Atlético Mineiro, and moved to Europe in 2004 ...
(2008–14)
*
Pierre-Alain Frau
Pierre-Alain Frau (born 15 April 1980) is a French former professional footballer. He played as a striker or winger for Sochaux (two spells), Lyon, Lens, Paris Saint-Germain, Lille, and Caen in France and for Al-Wakrah.
Career
Nicknamed ''PA ...
(2008–11)
*
Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang
Pierre-Emerick Emiliano François Aubameyang (born 18 June 1989) is a professional footballer who plays as a striker for Premier League club Chelsea. He is renowned for his pace, finishing, and off-ball movement. Born in France, he is a former ...
(2009–10)
*
Gervinho
Gervais Yao Kouassi (born 27 May 1987), known as Gervinho, is an Ivorian professional footballer who plays as a forward for Greek Super League club Aris and the Ivory Coast national team.
Gervinho began his career at ASEC Abidjan and Toumod ...
(2009–11)
*
Moussa Sow (2010–12)
*
Salomon Kalou
Salomon Armand Magloire Kalou (born 5 August 1985) is an Ivorian professional footballer who plays as a forward and winger for Djiboutian club Arta/Solar7.
He previously played for Feyenoord from 2003 to 2006 and Chelsea from 2006 to 2012. ...
(2012–14)
*
Divock Origi
Divock Okoth Origi (born 18 April 1995) is a Belgian professional footballer who plays as a forward for club AC Milan and the Belgium national team.
Origi began his career at Lille, and scored on his professional debut for them in 2013. A ...
(2012–15)
*
Nolan Roux
Nolan Roux (born 1 March 1988) is a French professional footballer who plays as a striker for Championnat National club Châteauroux. He is a former French youth international, having previously represented the France under-21 team.
Club care ...
(2012–15)
*
Sofiane Boufal
Sofiane Boufal ( ar, سفيان بوفال; born 17 September 1993) is a professional footballer who plays as a winger or attacking midfielder for Qatar club Al-Rayyan. Born in France, he plays for the Morocco national team.
Club career Angers ...
(2015–16)
*
Eder (2016–18)
*
Martin Terrier
Martin Albert Frédéric Terrier (born 4 March 1997) is a French professional association football, footballer who plays as winger (association football), winger or forward (association football), forward for Ligue 1 club Stade Rennais F.C., Ren ...
(2016–18)
*
Luiz Araújo (2017–21)
*
Lebo Mothiba
Lebogang Mothiba (born 28 January 1996) is a South African professional soccer player who plays as a striker for Ligue 1 club Strasbourg and the South Africa national team.
He made his professional debut in 2017 for Ligue 2 side Valencie ...
(2017–18)
*
Nicolas Pépé
Nicolas Pépé (born 29 May 1995) is a professional footballer who plays as a winger for club Nice, on loan from Arsenal of the . Born in France, he represents the Ivory Coast national team.
Pépé began his senior club career with Poitiers ...
(2017–19)
*
Jonathan Ikoné
Nanitamo Jonathan Ikoné (born 2 May 1998) is a French professional footballer who plays as a forward for Serie A club Fiorentina and the France national team.
Club career Paris Saint-Germain
Ikone made his professional debut on 28 September 2 ...
(2018–22)
*
Rafael Leão
Rafael Alexandre da Conceição Leão (; born 10 June 1999) is a Portuguese professional footballer who plays as a forward for club AC Milan and the Portugal national team.
Graduating from Sporting CP youth system, Leão made his first-team ...
(2018–19)
*
Loïc Rémy
Loïc Alex Teliére Hubert Rémy (born 2 January 1987) is a French professional footballer who plays as a forward for Ligue 1 club Brest.
Rémy began his career playing for a local youth club in his home city of Lyon, before joining the bigge ...
(2018–20)
*
Victor Osimhen (2019–20)
*
Burak Yılmaz
Burak Yılmaz (born 15 July 1985) is a Turkish professional footballer who plays as a forward for Eredivisie club Fortuna Sittard.
Yılmaz is one of nine players to play for each of the Big Three clubs of Turkey, and one of only two player ...
(2020–22)
Notable past line-ups
Club officials
* Owner of Lille Olympique Sporting Club – LOSC Lille: Merlyn Partners SCSp
Board of directors
Coaching and medical staff
Coaching history
Former coaches include
Georges Heylens
Georges Heylens (born 8 August 1941 in Etterbeek) is a Belgian former footballer. He played with R.S.C. Anderlecht and the Belgium national football team. He took part in the match between Belgium and the Netherlands in 1964, with 10 teammates ...
(1984–89), a former
Belgian international
The Belgian International is an international badminton open tournament, held since 1958 but in irregular periods.
Since 2005, Yonex has become title sponsor of the event, which also become an International Challenge tournament within the Badminto ...
player,
Jacques Santini
Jacques Jean Claude Santini (born 25 April 1952) is a French former professional footballer and manager. He played for Saint-Étienne during the 1970s, and reached the European Cup final with them in 1976. He has coached the French national tea ...
(1989–92), who coached the
France national team between 2002 and 2004,
Bruno Metsu
Bruno Jean Cornil Metsu (28 January 1954 – 15 October 2013) was a French footballer and football manager. During his senior playing career from 1973 to 1987, he played for seven different clubs in his native France. From 1988 until his death, ...
(1992–93), who coached the
Senegal national team at the 2002 World Cup,
Pierre Mankowski
Pierre Mankowski (born 5 November 1951) is a French former football striker who later became a coach. He is of Polish descent.
Mankowski is currently a football advisor at Scottish club Caledonian Braves.
External linksProfile References
...
(1993–94), who was formerly the assistant coach of the France national team and
Vahid Halilhodžić
Vahid Halilhodžić (; born 15 October 1952) is a Bosnian professional football manager and former player. He is regarded as one of the most controversially successful Bosnian football managers, due to his successful tenure in coaching various na ...
(1998–02), who can be credited with the club's revival in the late nineties.
Rudi Garcia
Rudi José Garcia (; ; born 20 February 1964) is a French professional football manager and former player who is the manager of Saudi Professional League club Al Nassr.
Early life
Rudi Garcia's father, José, was a Spanish expatriate who played ...
, who played for Lille from 1980 to 1988, replaced
Claude Puel
Claude Jacques Puel (; born 2 September 1961) is a French football manager and former player. He spent his entire playing career with Monaco, before becoming manager of the club, leading them to the league title in his first full season in char ...
at the beginning of the 2008 season. Puel had been with Lille since 2002. Thanks to his successes with the club, Puel had been approached by Portuguese club
Porto
Porto or Oporto () is the second-largest city in Portugal, the capital of the Porto District, and one of the Iberian Peninsula's major urban areas. Porto city proper, which is the entire municipality of Porto, is small compared to its metropol ...
to replace
José Mourinho
José Mário dos Santos Mourinho Félix GOIH (; born 26 January 1963), is a Portuguese professional football manager and former player who is the current head coach of Italian Serie A club Roma. Once dubbed "The Special One" by the British ...
and league rivals Lyon to replace
Alain Perrin
Alain André Christian Perrin (born 7 October 1956) is a French professional football manager and former player.
Perrin made his managerial breakthrough at Troyes, whom he took from the fourth tier to Ligue 1 and UEFA Cup qualification by winni ...
; he finally decided to join Lyon after six seasons at the club.
Christophe Galtier
Christophe Galtier (born 23 August 1966) is a French professional football coach and former player who is the head coach of Ligue 1 club Paris Saint-Germain.
A defender, Galtier was a journeyman professional who spent many of his 15 years as ...
(2017–21) won
Ligue 1
Ligue 1, officially known as Ligue 1 Uber Eats for sponsorship reasons, is a French professional league for men's association football clubs. At the top of the French football league system, it is the country's primary football competition. A ...
in
2021
File:2021 collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: the James Webb Space Telescope was launched in 2021; Protesters in Yangon, Myanmar following the 2021 Myanmar coup d'état, coup d'état; A civil demonstration against the October–November 2021 ...
and was replaced by
Jocelyn Gourvennec (2021-22) who won the
2021 Trophée des Champions.
Records and statistics
Managerial records
Winning head coaches
Players records
Most appearances
Top scorers
Transfers records
Highest transfer fees paid
![JonathanDavidFCSalzburg(cropped)](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d1/JonathanDavidFCSalzburg%28cropped%29.jpg)
;Notes
Highest transfer fees received
![Nicolas Pepe LOSC](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e4/Nicolas_Pepe_LOSC.jpg)
;Notes
See also
*
Lille OSC in European football
*
List of football clubs in France
This is a list of notable men's and women's football clubs that competed within the leagues and divisions of the French football league system during the 2022–23 season. Also included are clubs from outside France that play within the French sy ...
*
Football records and statistics in France This page details football records and statistics in France.
National team
League
:''.''
Titles
*Most top-flight League titles: 10, Saint-Étienne and Paris Saint-Germain
*Most consecutive League titles: 7, Lyon
Top-flight appearances
*Most ...
References
External links
*
Lille Olympique Sporting Club – Ligue 1Lille Olympique Sporting Club – UEFA.com
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lille OSC
Sport in Lille
Villeneuve-d'Ascq
Association football clubs established in 1944
1944 establishments in France
UEFA Intertoto Cup winning clubs
Football clubs in France
Football clubs in Hauts-de-France