Racing Club Chalonnais, also known simply as RC Chalon is a French

rugby union Rugby union, commonly known simply as rugby, is a close-contact team sport that originated at Rugby School in the first half of the 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand. In it ...

club from Chalon-sur-Saône. They competed in

Fédérale 1 Le championnat de France de première division fédérale, a.k.a. Fédérale 1, is a French rugby union club competition, the fifth highest level of amateur rugby. The competition has been organised by the Fédération Française de Rugby since 2 ...

, the third level of the French league system, in the 2009–10 season, but recent financial troubles saw them relegated two levels, to Fédérale 3, for 2010–11. Le Journal de Saône-et-Loire, 12/06/2010, p. 2 They have since returned to Fédérale 1.

History

RC Chalon was founded in 1899 Le Journal de Saône-et-Loire, ''special edition'', 31/05/2009 They were promoted to the first division at the end of the 1957–58 season. Their best result remains a qualification for the last 32 in 1963. In 1970, historical president Louis Brailly resigned and the club were relegated to second division. Their gained promotion again the next year, only to be relegated again in 1974. They had to wait until 1988 when a 12–10 win over

Chambéry Chambéry (, , ; Arpitan: ''Chambèri'') is the prefecture of the Savoie department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region of eastern France. The population of the commune of Chambéry was 58,917 as of 2019, while the population of the Chamb ...

gave them the right to compete in the elite again. Arguably one of the most glorious wins in the history of the club occurred on April 26, 1992 when they defeated defending champions Bègles-Bordeaux 19–18. At the end of the 1992–93 season, Chalon were relegated to Groupe B, and would spend all the subsequent years in

, with the exception of the 2002–03 season spent in

Fédérale 2 Fédérale 2 is a rugby union club championship division in France. It is the sixth division of rugby above Fédérale 3. Teams can earn promotion to Fédérale 1, and subsequently, to the National 2 and Nationale leagues, and on to the professi ...

Recent years

Since the 2005–06 season, boosted by the arrival of former Brive player and

Belgian Belgian may refer to: * Something of, or related to, Belgium * Belgians, people from Belgium or of Belgian descent * Languages of Belgium, languages spoken in Belgium, such as Dutch, French, and German *Ancient Belgian language, an extinct languag ...

international backrow Loïc Van Der Linden, Chalon have managed to reach the knockout stage of the Trophée Jean Prat every year: in 2006, there were eliminated in the quarter-finals by Blagnac (26–26, 14–27); in 2007, again in the quarters, this time by

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 province of Bresse ( frp, Brêsse, links=no). In 2018, ...

(12–12, 12–29); in 2008 they came excruciatingly close to promotion, losing to

Lannemezan Lannemezan (; Gascon Occitan ''Lanamesa'', "heath of the middle") is a commune in the Hautes-Pyrénées department and the Occitanie region in south-western France. The inhabitants are called Lannemezanais. Lannemezan is the largest city ...

by one point on aggregate in the semis (9–16, 15–9). In 2009, they were heavy favorites for promotion but lost again in the quarters, this time to Saint-Étienne (3–12, 20–24). Moreover, it was revealed that Chalon were in deep financial trouble, with a debt of 600 000 to 850 000 euros. Le Journal de Saône-et-Loire, 09/06/2010, p. 24 On June 10, the club declared bankruptcy.

Notes and references

{{Rugby union in France Chalon-sur-Saone Sport in Saône-et-Loire Rugby clubs established in 1899 1988 establishments in France