Lille Olympique Sporting Club (), commonly referred to as LOSC, LOSC Lille or simply Lille, is a French professional
football 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 region, the prefecture of the No ...
,
Hauts-de-France 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. ...
, the top flight of
French football. Lille has played its home matches since 2012 at
Stade Pierre-Mauroy, 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.
Lille was founded as a result of a merger between
Olympique Lillois and
SC Fives 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. ...
and Olympique Lillois was the
league's inaugural champions. In domestic football, the club has won four
league titles, six
Coupes de France and one
Trophée des Champions 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 competi ...
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. ...
on eight occasions and won the
UEFA Intertoto Cup in
2004 after finishing as runners-up in
2002.
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 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
* ...
in 1946, and was known as ''La Machine de Guerre'' (
French
French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to:
* Something of, from, or related to France
** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents
** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with Franc ...
for "The War Machine"). Having won another double in
2011, its fourth league title in
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"), the club has a long-standing rivalry with nearby side
Lens, with whom they contest the
Derby du Nord. 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 me ...
.
History
First decade of glory : The War Machine (1944–1955)
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 opposi ...
, the city of Lille had two clubs at the top level;
Olympique Lillois and
SC Fives. 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 title in
1914, the French football top division before the creation of the French Division 1, and went to the
Coupe de France 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.
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, 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
* ...
, 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. ...
ahead of
Saint-Étienne
Saint-Étienne (; frp, Sant-Etiève; oc, Sant Estève, ) is a city and the prefecture of the Loire department in eastern-central France, in the Massif Central, southwest of Lyon in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region.
Saint-Étienne is the ...
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 con ...
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 ...
. The club won the cup again in
1948 beating main rivals
Lens, 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 Fra ...
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 final and lost against
Gre-No-Li's
AC Milan 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 con ...
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 prefectu ...
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 con ...
.
This period of glory and hegemony, occurring after the war and the
German occupation of France, has led to one of the club's nicknames: ''La Machine de Guerre'' (
French
French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to:
* Something of, from, or related to France
** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents
** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with Franc ...
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)
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 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 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)
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 o ...
and coach
Claude Puel. The club left the historical
Stade Grimonprez-Jooris
Stade Grimonprez-Jooris was a multi-purpose stadium in Lille, France, built in 1974. It was used mainly for football matches as it was home to the Lille OSC football club from 1975 until 2004, when the stadium was closed.
The club originally pl ...
to join the
Stadium Lille Métropole
Stadium Lille-Métropole is a multi-purpose stadium in Villeneuve-d'Ascq, France. The stadium was built in 1976 and is able to hold 18,154 spectators. The architect of the stadium was Roger Taillibert.
It was used as the temporary home stadium of ...
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 foo ...
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 ...
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 2006 and the 1–0 home win over
Liverpool
Liverpool is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the List of English districts by population, 10th largest English district by population and its E ...
in 2010.
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 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 sea ...
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 ...
, won the club's second double after finishing at the
2010–11 Ligue 1 top spot and defeating
Paris Saint-Germain in the
2011 Coupe de France final
The 2011 Coupe de France Final was the 93rd final of France's most prestigious football cup competition. The final took place on 14 May 2011 at the Stade de France in Saint-Denis and was contested between Paris Saint-Germain and Lille. Paris Sai ...
.
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. 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, Montpellier is the prefecture of the department of Hérault. In 2018, 290,053 people l ...
coach
René Girard was appointed as new manager. Under Girard, Lille finished at the third place in
2013–14, behind
Zlatan Ibrahimović's Paris Saint-Germain and
James Rodríguez'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 Association football, football coach and former player who is the manager of the Saudi Arabia national football team, Saudi Arabia national team.
Renard has previo ...
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 and head of recruitment. A short time afterwards, the club announced the arrival of Argentine famous manager
Marcelo Bielsa. 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 eas ...
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. 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 fr ...
3–2 in the second last game of the campaign.
Lille's following season is completely different. After the arrivals of veterans
José Fonte and
Loïc Rémy, 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, 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, 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, ገብ� ...
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
An arsenal is a place where arms and ammunition are made, maintained and repaired, stored, or issued, in any combination, whether privately or publicly owned. Arsenal and armoury (British English) or armory (American English) are mostl ...
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
Timothy Tarpeh Weah (born February 22, 2000) is an American professional soccer player who plays as a winger for Ligue 1 club Lille and the United States national team.
Weah is the son of former professional soccer player, Ballon d'Or winner, ...
,
Reinildo Mandava and
Benjamin André a few weeks earlier. The club then announced the arrivals of
Yusuf Yazıcı and
Renato Sanches
Renato Júnior Luz Sanches (; born 18 August 1997) is a Portuguese professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for Ligue 1 club Paris Saint-Germain and the Portugal national team.
Sanches began his career at Benfica, making his profes ...
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
Sven Adriaan Botman (born 12 January 2000) is a Dutch professional footballer who plays as a centre-back for club Newcastle United. He has represented the Netherlands at youth levels under-15 through under-21.
Club career Ajax
On 23 June 2018, ...
and
Jonathan David as well as veteran
Burak Yılmaz. 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 rivals
Lens 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 ...
at
Groupama Stadium
Parc Olympique Lyonnais, known for sponsorship reasons as Groupama Stadium, is a 59,186-seat stadium in Décines-Charpieu, in the Lyon Metropolis. The home of French football club Olympique Lyonnais, it replaced their previous stadium, Stade d ...
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 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
The 2020–21 UEFA Europa League was the 50th season of Europe's secondary club football tournament organised by UEFA, and the 12th season since it was renamed from the UEFA Cup to the UEFA Europa League.
Villarreal defeated Manchester United in ...
, 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 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, defeating Paris Saint-Germain with a
Xeka goal at
Bloomfield Stadium
Bloomfield Stadium ( he, אצטדיון בלומפילד) is a football stadium in Tel Aviv, Israel, with a capacity of 29,400. It is the home stadium of Maccabi Tel Aviv, Hapoel Tel Aviv, and Bnei Yehuda Tel Aviv. The stadium also serves the Is ...
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 competi ...
round of 16 and are defeated by
Chelsea, after qualifying from the group stage against
Salzburg
Salzburg (, ; literally "Salt-Castle"; bar, Soizbuag, label=Austro-Bavarian) is the fourth-largest city in Austria. In 2020, it had a population of 156,872.
The town is on the site of the Roman settlement of ''Iuvavum''. Salzburg was founded ...
,
Sevilla and
Wolfsburg. 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 as new head coach of the first-team.
The
2022–23 season started very well for the Northmen as they defeated
Auxerre, 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 of ...
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
Rémy Cabella (born 8 March 1990) is a French professional footballer who plays as an attacking midfielder for Ligue 1 club Lille.
He had two spells each at Montepellier and Saint-Étienne, winning the Ligue 1 title with the former in 2011– ...
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-on-
gules fleur-de-lys. 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 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 while blue, traditional colour of the team shorts, refers to
SC Fives 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 appeared for the first time in the club crest and has never left it. The nickname, ''Les Dogues'' (
French
French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to:
* Something of, from, or related to France
** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents
** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with Franc ...
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 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 ...
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 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
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 la ...
form around the neck and red sleeve ends, is inspired by the
Olympique Lillois home jersey while the "V" shape comes from
SC Fives 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, cl ...
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 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 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 and
Adidas 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 started a first spell in 1999.
Decathlon's football brand Kipsta, which is based in Lille region,
Airness and
Canterbury
Canterbury (, ) is a 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.
The Archbishop of Canterbury is the primate of t ...
, 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 1 ...
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, 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 region, the prefecture of the No ...
-made Pel d'Or
lemonade, 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, F ...
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
Linselles (; nl, Linsele; pcd, Linséles) is a commune in the Nord department in northern France. It is part of the Métropole Européenne de Lille.
On 17 August 1793, during the War of the First Coalition, it was the site of the Battle of Li ...
, 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 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 banki ...
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 enterta ...
and
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 i ...
. On 31 August 2022, Russian gambling company
1xBet
Corp N.V. (also known as "1xBet") is an online gambling company licensed by Curaçao eGaming License. It was founded in 2007 and registered in Cyprus. In 2019, they experienced considerable growth, briefly sponsoring Chelsea FC and Liverpool ...
signed a partnership deal to become their official regional partner in Middle East, North, and South Africa.
Grounds
Stadiums
After its foundation following the merging of
Olympique Lillois and
SC Fives, Lille alternately played its home games at the stadiums of both clubs:
Stade Henri-Jooris 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. 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 river, near the
Citadel of Lille, was the home of Les Dogues until 1975 when Lille moved at
Stade Grimonprez-Jooris
Stade Grimonprez-Jooris was a multi-purpose stadium in Lille, France, built in 1974. It was used mainly for football matches as it was home to the Lille OSC football club from 1975 until 2004, when the stadium was closed.
The club originally pl ...
.
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 fo ...
's standards were made in 2002, when the club was privatized.
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 u ...
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 18,000-seat stadium in
Villeneuve-d'Ascq, and their
2005–06 UEFA Champions League 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 foo ...
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. ...
. 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.
On 1 February 2008,
Eiffage 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 cov ...
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 ...
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 vari ...
.
Stade Pierre-Mauroy, 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 Pierre Mauroy. 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 ...
and
France national rugby union team as well as some games of
UEFA Euro 2016 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 ...
,
Davis Cup,
2017 World Men's Handball Championship
The 2017 IHF World Men's Handball Championship was the 25th event hosted by the International Handball Federation. The event was held in France from 11 to 29 January 2017.
France, in a clean sweep, defended their title by defeating Norway 33–26 ...
and will host handball and basketball tournaments at the
2024 Olympic Games
)
, nations = TBA
, athletes = 10,500 ''(quota limit)''
, events = 329 in 32 sports (48 disciplines)
, opening = 26 July 2024
, closing = 11 August 2024
, opened_by =
, stadium = Stade de France Jardins du Trocadéro and River Seine
, summe ...
.
The record attendance for a sports game stands at 49,712 spectators, who witnessed Lille's 5–1 win over
Paris Saint-Germain in 2019.
Training facilities
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 coop ...
, 15 minutes away from central Lille, the Domaine de Luchin has been the club's
training ground 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
Bronze is the most popular metal for cast metal sculptures; a cast bronze sculpture is often called simply "a bronze". It can be used for statues, singly or in groups, reliefs, and small statuettes and figurines, as well as bronze elements ...
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, 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 ...
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'' (
French
French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to:
* Something of, from, or related to France
** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents
** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with Franc ...
for "The North Derby") is contested between Lille and
RC Lens. 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 region but not the same
department. Being the fourth-largest city of the
Pas-de-Calais department,
Lens 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 region, the prefecture of the No ...
,
Nord
Nord, a word meaning "north" in several European languages, may refer to:
Acronyms
* National Organization for Rare Disorders, an American nonprofit organization
* New Orleans Recreation Department, New Orleans, Louisiana, US
Film and televisi ...
department main city. The name can also refer to matches involving Lille and
Valenciennes 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 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 trophies and
Trophée des Champions 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. ...
/
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. ...
**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 d ...
**Winners (4):
1963–64,
1973–74,
1977–78,
1999–2000
Cups
*
Coupe de France
**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 knockout cup competition in French football organized by the Ligue de Football Professionnel. The tournament was established in 1993 and, unlike the Coupe de France ...
**''Runners-up (1):
2015–16''
*
Trophée des Champions
**Winners (1):
2021
**''Runners-up (2): 1955,
2011''
*
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''
*
Latin Cup
**''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. ...
/
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. ...
and
Coupe de France (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 (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 s ...
(1978–83)
*
Bernard Lama (1981–89)
*
Jean-Claude Nadon (1989–96)
*
Grégory Wimbée (1998–2004)
*
Tony Sylva
Tony Mario Sylva (born 17 May 1975) is a Senegalese former professional footballer who played as a goalkeeper.
He spent the vast majority of his 16-year professional career in France, playing in 157 Ligue 1 games during eight seasons and repre ...
(2004–08)
*
Mickaël Landreau
Mickaël Vincent André-Marie Landreau (; born 14 May 1979) is a French professional Manager (association football), football manager and former Football player, player who played as a Goalkeeper (association football), goalkeeper.
Landreau hol ...
(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 (1944–50)
*
Jean-Marie Prévost (1945–52)
*
Marceau Somerlinck (1945–57)
*
Jacques Van Cappelen (1949–55)
*
Cor van der Hart (1950–54)
*
Guillaume Bieganski (1953–56)
*
Robert Lemaître (1951–59)
*
Antoine Pazur (1952–60)
*
Bernard Stakowiak (1958–69)
*
Claude Andrien (1962–69)
*
Marcel Adamczyk (1963–68)
*
Jean-Luc Buisine (1962–69)
*
Ignacio Prieto (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 he re ...
(1976–82)
*
René Marsiglia
René Marsiglia (17 September 1959 – 25 September 2016) was a football defender and most recently the manager of Nîmes Olympique. He was born in Aubagne, France.
Marsiglia was named head coach of OGC Nice on 15 November 2011. Before tha ...
(1978–83)
*
Éric Péan (1981–87)
*
Noureddine Kourichi (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 Yugoslavian ...
(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 nation ...
(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 an ...
(1989–95)
*
Fabien Leclercq (1989–99)
*
Pascal Cygan (1995–2002)
*
Grégory Tafforeau
Grégory Tafforeau (born 29 September 1976) is a French former professional footballer who played as a defender.
Career
After eight years at Lille OSC, Tafforeau, along with club officials, chose to prematurely terminate his contract. On 4 Jul ...
(2001–09)
*
Eric Abidal (2002–04)
*
Matthieu Chalmé
Matthieu Chalmé (born 7 October 1980) is a French former professional footballer who played as a right-back.
Career
Born in Bruges, Chalmé started his career playing with the Bordeaux reserves and FC Libourne-Saint-Seurin in the French four ...
(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 sea ...
(2003–13)
*
Nicolas Plestan (2003–10)
*
Stathis Tavlaridis
Stathis Tavlaridis ( el, Στάθης Ταυλαρίδης; born 25 January 1980) is a Greek former professional footballer who played as a centre-back. Tavlaridis has earned the nickname ''"Taureau"'' in France which means ''"The Bull"'' due t ...
(2004–07)
*
Stephan Lichtsteiner
Stephan Lichtsteiner (; born 16 January 1984) is a Swiss former professional footballer. An attacking right-back or wing-back, he was known for his energetic runs down the right wing, as well as his stamina and athleticism, which earned him the ...
(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 a ...
(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 play ...
(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 sig ...
(2007–13)
*
David Rozehnal (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.
He ...
(2010–15)
*
Marko Baša
Marko Baša ( sr-Cyrl, Марко Баша, ; born 29 December 1982) is a Montenegrin retired professional footballer who played as a centre back.
Club career
Lille
On 23 June 2011, Baša returned to France after three years in Russia with L ...
(2011–17)
*
Lucas Digne (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 (2013–21)
*
Sébastien Corchia (2014–17)
*
Benjamin Pavard (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, ገብ� ...
(2017–20)
*
Zeki Çelik (2018–22)
*
Reinildo Mandava (2018–22)
*
Sven Botman
Sven Adriaan Botman (born 12 January 2000) is a Dutch professional footballer who plays as a centre-back for club Newcastle United. He has represented the Netherlands at youth levels under-15 through under-21.
Club career Ajax
On 23 June 2018, ...
(2020–22)
Midfielders
*
Jules Bigot (1944–50)
*
François Bourbotte (1944–47)
*
Roger Carré (1944–50)
*
Albert Dubreucq (1945–53)
*
Roland Clauws (1953–60, 62–64)
*
Alain de Martigny (1970–76)
*
Alain Verhoeve (1970–74)
*
Alberto Fouillioux (1972–75)
*
Serge Besnard (1975–79)
*
Alain Grumelon (1976–83)
*
Arnaud Dos Santos
Arnaud Dos Santos (born 19 September 1945) is a French former footballer and coach.
He played for US Boulogne, FC Rouen, AS Monaco FC, FC Girondins de Bordeaux, Troyes AC and Lille OSC.
After his playing career, he became a coach with Ligue 1 a ...
(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 (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 United ...
(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 (1999–2003)
*
Sylvain N'Diaye (2000–03)
*
Jean Makoun (2001–08)
*
Philippe Brunel (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 caree ...
(2003–07)
*
Stéphane Dumont
Stéphane Dumont (born 6 September 1982) is a French professional football manager and former player who played as a midfielder. He is currently the head coach of Ligue 2 club Guingamp.
Playing career
Lille
Born in Seclin, Dumont started hi ...
(2003–11)
*
Milenko Ačimovič (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 (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 Fren ...
(2010–15)
*
Joe Cole (2011–12)
*
Dimitri Payet (2011–13)
*
Benoît Pedretti (2011–13)
*
Rony Lopes (2014–15, 16–17)
*
Yves Bissouma (2016–18)
*
Thiago Mendes (2017–19)
*
Boubakary Soumaré
Boubakary Soumaré (born 27 February 1999) is a French professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for Premier League club Leicester City. He is a former France youth international.
Club career Early career
In his early footballing year ...
(2017–21)
*
Xeka (2017–22)
*
Renato Sanches
Renato Júnior Luz Sanches (; born 18 August 1997) is a Portuguese professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for Ligue 1 club Paris Saint-Germain and the Portugal national team.
Sanches began his career at Benfica, making his profes ...
(2019–22)
*
Amadou Onana (2021–22)
Forwards
*
Jean Baratte (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 f ...
(1944–52)
*
Roger Vandooren (1944–50)
*
Bolek Tempowski (1945–51)
*
Marius Walter (1945–52)
*
André Strappe (1948–58)
*
Bernard Lefèvre (1949–56, 62–63)
*
Erik Kuld Jensen (1950–53)
*
Jean Vincent (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 (1957–59, 65–66)
*
René Fatoux (1957–62)
*
André Guy
André Guy (born 3 March 1941, in Bourg-en-Bresse
Bourg-en-Bresse (; frp, Bôrg) is the prefecture of the Ain department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region in Eastern France. Located northeast of Lyon, it is the capital of the ancient prov ...
(1965–67)
*
Christian Coste (1973–77)
*
Stanislav Karasi (1974–77)
*
Žarko Olarević
Žarko Olarević (; born 28 July 1950) is a Serbian former football manager and player.
Playing career
Olarević made his competitive debut for Partizan in the second half of the 1967–68 season. He later spent two seasons at Proleter Zrenja ...
(1977–81)
*
Pierre Pleimelding (1977–81)
*
Dušan Savić (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 (1988–90)
*
Per Frandsen (1990–94)
*
Éric Assadourian (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 Lil ...
(2001–06)
*
Nicolas Fauvergue (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 wi ...
(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 (2005–07)
*
Michel Bastos (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 ...
(2007–12)
*
Patrick Kluivert (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 he ...
(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 200 ...
(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 (2009–10)
*
Gervinho (2009–11)
*
Moussa Sow (2010–12)
*
Salomon Kalou (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 y ...
(2012–15)
*
Nolan Roux (2012–15)
*
Sofiane Boufal (2015–16)
*
Eder (2016–18)
*
Martin Terrier (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 Valenciennes ...
(2017–18)
*
Nicolas Pépé (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 (2018–19)
*
Loïc Rémy (2018–20)
*
Victor Osimhen (2019–20)
*
Burak Yılmaz (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 football (soccer), 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 national ...
(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 team ...
(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
Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, Kick (football), kicking a Football (ball), ball to score a Goal (sport), goal. Unqualified, Footbal ...
(1993–94), who was formerly the assistant coach of the France national team and
Vahid Halilhodžić (1998–02), who can be credited with the club's revival in the late nineties.
Rudi Garcia, who played for Lille from 1980 to 1988, replaced
Claude Puel 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 metropo ...
to replace
José Mourinho and league rivals Lyon to replace
Alain Perrin; he finally decided to join Lyon after six seasons at the club.
Christophe Galtier (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. ...
in
2021 and was replaced by
Jocelyn Gourvennec
Jocelyn François Gourvennec (born 22 March 1972) is a French professional football manager and former player who most recently was the head coach of Ligue 1 club Lille. He played as a midfielder for clubs such as Lorient, Rennes, Nantes, Mar ...
(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
;Notes
Highest transfer fees received
;Notes
See also
*
Lille OSC in European football
*
List of football clubs in France
*
Football records and statistics in France
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