Racing Club de France Football (, also known as Racing Paris, RCF Paris, Matra Racing, Racing Club, or Racing) is a French association football club based in

Colombes Colombes () is a commune in the northwestern suburbs of Paris, France. It is located from the centre of Paris. In 2019, Colombes was the 53rd largest city in France. Name The name Colombes comes from Latin ''columna'' (Old French ''colombe'') ...

, a suburb of Paris. Racing was founded in 1882 as a multi-discipline

sports club A sports club or sporting club, sometimes an athletics club or sports society or sports association, is a group of people formed for the purpose of playing sports. Sports clubs range from organisations whose members play together, unpaid, and ...

, and is one of the oldest clubs in French football history. The team plays in the Championnat National 2, the fourth level of French football. Racing is managed by Guillaume Norbert and hosts its home matches at the Stade Lucien-Choine, a smaller stadium next to the

Stade Olympique Yves-du-Manoir The Stade Yves-du-Manoir (officially Stade olympique Yves-du-Manoir, also known as the Stade olympique de Colombes, or simply Colombes to the locals) is a rugby, track and association football stadium in Colombes, near Paris, France, Paris, Fran ...

in Colombes. Racing Club de France, founded in 1882, was a founding member of

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 club has won one Ligue 1 title (in 1935–36) and five Coupe de France titles, and is tied for fourth-best. Racing also played in the

Union des Sociétés Françaises de Sports Athlétiques The Union of French Athletic Sports Societies (french: Union des sociétés françaises de sports athlétiques (USFSA)) was a former sports governing body in France. During the 1890s and early 1900s it organised numerous sports including athleti ...

-sanctioned league, France's first championship league. The club debuted in the league in 1899 and won the championship in 1907 after finishing second in 1902 and 1903. The club holds the Ligue 1 record for most goals scored during a 38-match season with 118 goals in 1959–60. Notable players include

Roger Marche Roger Gaston Louis Marche (5 March 1924 – 1 November 1997) was a French footballer who played as a defender. He was part of the French national team during the 1954 and 1958 World Cup tournaments. He was nicknamed '' Le Sanglier des Ardennes ...

Oscar Heisserer Oscar Heisserer (18 July 1914 – 7 October 2004) was a French footballer. Born in Schirrhein, Alsace-Lorraine, he played for RC Strasbourg, and appeared for France in the 1938 World Cup, where he scored a goal. He died in Strasbourg S ...

Thadée Cisowski Thadée Cisowski (16 February 1927 – 24 February 2005), originally Tadeusz Cisowski, was a French former footballer who played as a striker. A son of Polish immigrants, he was one of the best goalscorers in Championnat de France. In the Worl ...

Raoul Diagne Raoul Diagne (10 November 1910 – 12 November 2002) was a French footballer who played defender professionally in France and for the France national football team. He worked as a coach after his playing career. Born in Saint-Laurent-du-Maroni i ...

, Luis Fernández,

Maxime Bossis Maxime Jean Marcel Bossis (; born 26 June 1955) is a French retired professional footballer who played as a defender. Bossis spent most of his career playing for Nantes, a club he helped win three Ligue 1 titles and one Coupe de France. He ob ...

, David Ginola,

Luís Sobrinho Luís Fernando Peixoto Gonçalves Sobrinho (born 5 May 1961) is a Portuguese retired footballer who played as a central defender. Club career Born in Setúbal, Sobrinho started playing professionally with local Vitória F.C. after graduating ...

, Pierre Littbarski,

Enzo Francescoli Enzo Francescoli Uriarte (; born 12 November 1961), nicknamed "El Príncipe" ("The Prince"), is a Uruguayan former footballer who played as a attacking midfielder. He is regarded as one of the best playmakers of his generation and as one of Uru ...

, Alfred Bloch, and

Rubén Paz Ruben Wálter Paz Márquez (born 8 August 1959) is a Uruguayan former professional footballer who played as a midfielder. Paz played at two FIFA World Cups for Uruguay and was also South American Footballer of the Year in 1988. He retired in 20 ...

. Diagne spent a decade with the club (1930–1940) and, in 1931, was the first black player on the France national team. He played in the

1938 FIFA World Cup The 1938 FIFA World Cup was the third edition of the World Cup, the quadrennial international football championship for senior men's national teams and was held in France from 4 June until 19 June 1938. Italy defended its title in the final, beat ...

with

Abdelkader Ben Bouali Abdelkader Ben Bouali (25 October 1912 in Sendjas, Chlef Province – 23 February 1997 in Algiers) was a professional French football Association football is the most popular sport in France. The French Football Federation (FFF, Fédérati ...

, his Racing teammate who was one of the first

North Africa North Africa, or Northern Africa is a region encompassing the northern portion of the African continent. There is no singularly accepted scope for the region, and it is sometimes defined as stretching from the Atlantic shores of Mauritania in ...

n players on the national team. From 2009 to 2012, the club moved to nearby Levallois-Perret after reaching a financial agreement with the commune.

History

During the

1900 Summer Olympics The 1900 Summer Olympics (french: Jeux olympiques d'été de 1900, link=no), today officially known as the Games of the II Olympiad () and also known as Paris 1900, were an international multi-sport event that took place in Paris, France, from 1 ...

, Racing Club de France hosted the

athletics Athletics may refer to: Sports * Sport of athletics, a collection of sporting events that involve competitive running, jumping, throwing, and walking ** Track and field, a sub-category of the above sport * Athletics (physical culture), competiti ...

events at Croix-Catelan Stadium (the club's previous home). Racing's zenith was the 1930s and 1940s, when the club won

1936 Events January–February * January 20 – George V of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions and Emperor of India, dies at his Sandringham Estate. The Prince of Wales succeeds to the throne of the United Kingdom as King E ...

and the Coupe de France in 1936, 1939, 1940, 1945 and 1949. The club was also successful in the early 1960s, finishing second in the first division in

1961 Events January * January 3 ** United States President Dwight D. Eisenhower announces that the United States has severed diplomatic and consular relations with Cuba ( Cuba–United States relations are restored in 2015). ** Aero Flight 311 ...

and

1962 Events January * January 1 – Western Samoa becomes independent from New Zealand. * January 3 – Pope John XXIII excommunicates Fidel Castro for preaching communism. * January 8 – Harmelen train disaster: 93 die in the wors ...

. However, Racing was a focal point of the financial crisis affecting French football during the mid-1960s. The club's financial struggles resulted in its relegation to the lower divisions. In 1982, businessman

Jean-Luc Lagardère Jean-Luc Lagardère (10 February 1928, Aubiet – 14 March 2003, Paris) was a major French businessman, CEO of the Lagardère Group, one of the largest French conglomerates. Jean-Luc Lagardère was a '' Supelec'' engineer. He began his caree ...

wanted to build a team of stars and invested in the club as a second major club in Paris (with Paris Saint-Germain). Although he considered a merger of Paris FC and Racing, the Racing management refused due to a lack of detailed information on PFC finances. Lagardère bought the Paris FC (incurring a debt of more than four million francs) and renamed it "Paris Racing 1". Lagardère invested in experienced players in 1982 and 1983. Lagardère, determined to lead his club to the European Cup draws in 1987, hired Portuguese coach Artur Jorge after Jorge's victory in the

European Cup 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 ...

with

FC Porto Futebol Clube do Porto, MHIH, OM (), commonly known as FC Porto or simply Porto, is a Portuguese professional sports club based in Porto. It is best known for the professional football team playing in the Primeira Liga, the top flight of Portu ...

. He completed the team with

Gérard Buscher Gérard Buscher (born 5 November 1960 in Algiers) is a French association football manager and former professional player. Buscher has a son, Mickaël Buscher who last played for Tunisian CA Bizertin Club Athlétique Bizertin ( ar, الن� ...

and

Pascal Olmeta Pascal Olmeta (born 7 April 1961 in Bastia) is a French former professional footballer who played as a goalkeeper for Olympique de Marseille and Olympique Lyonnais in the 1990s. Olmeta is good friends with Eric Cantona and has played in two te ...

. However, the club fell on hard times and attendance declined. During the late 1980s, Racing lost 300 million francs. The club, relegated to the amateur levels, sought firmer financial footing. In December 2008,

Georgios Kintis AEK FC ( el, ΠΑΕ A.E.K. ; Αθλητική Ένωσις Κωνσταντινουπόλεως; ''Athlitikí Énosis Konstantinoupόleos'', meaning ''Athletic Union of Constantinople'') is a Greek professional football club based in Nea Filade ...

tried unsuccessfully to buy the club. Before the 2009–10 season, Racing reached a financial agreement with the city of Levallois. The club's association and support from the commune resulted in a name change to ''Racing Club de France Levallois 92''. Despite assistance from Levallois, Racing was relegated to the

Championnat de France amateur 2 The Championnat National 3, commonly referred to as simply National 3 and formerly known as Championnat de France Amateur 2, is a football league competition. The league serves as the fifth division of the French football league system behind ...

by the DNCG in July 2010 after it was determined that the club had a €500,000 debt. On 21 November 2010, Racing Levallois and UJA Alfortville announced plans to merge for the following season. In 2012, the club returned to

as Racing Club de France Colombes 92.

Name changes

Racing Club de France: (1896–1932, 1966–1981, 2005–2007) * Racing Club de Paris: (1932–1966, 1981–1987, 1999–2005) *

Matra Matra (an acronym for Mécanique Aviation Traction) was a French industrial conglomerate. During its years of operation, it was engaged in a wide range of business activities, primarily focused around automobiles, bicycles, aeronautics and we ...

Racing: (1987–1989) * Racing Paris 1: (1989–1991) * Racing 92: (1991–1995) * Racing Club de France 92: (1995–1999) * Racing Club de France football 92: (2007–2009) * Racing Club de France Levallois 92: (2009–2012) * Racing Club de France Colombes 92: (2012–2018) * Racing Club de France Football: (2018–present)

Players

Current squad

As of 18 August 2022

Past players

The following players have represented Racing in

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 international competition since the club's foundation in 1882. They have played in at least 100 official matches for the club, or achieved prominence elsewhere. For a complete list of RCF Paris players, see :Racing Club de France football Colombes 92 players. *

Pierre Allemane Richard Louis Pierre Allemane (19 January 1882 – 24 May 1956) was a French football defender. He was born in Montpellier and died in Autreville, Aisne. Allemane played for Passy (before 1900), Club Français (1900–1902), Racing Club de Fran ...

Manuel Anatol Manuel Anatol Aristegi (8 May 1903 – 17 May 1990) was a naturalized French professional footballer and athlete. Football career Anatol was born in Irun, a town in the Basque Country of Spain. A defender, he played for three clubs in the c ...

Henri Bard Henri Louis Bard (29 April 1892 – 26 January 1951) was a French professional footballer. Born in Lyon, Bard started his career in Switzerland, when his parents lived there. His first club was Servette. From 1911 he played as forward for Racing ...

* Alfred Bloch * Luis Fernández *

Edmond Delfour Edmond Delfour (1 November 1907 – 19 December 1990) was a French international footballer who played as a midfielder, before later becoming a manager. Career Delfour was born in Ris-Orangis. He played for Viry-Châtillon, Draveil, Juvisy-sur ...

* David Ginola *

Youssef Darbaki Yusuf ( ar, يوسف ') is a male name of Arabic origin meaning "God increases" (in piety, power and influence).From the Hebrew יהוה להוסיף ''YHWH Lhosif'' meaning "YHWH will increase/add". It is the Arabic equivalent of the Hebrew name ...

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 ...

Auguste Jordan August "Auguste" Jordan (21 February 1909 – 17 May 1990) was a French football midfielder, who became a coach after his playing career. Playing career Born in Austria as August Jordan, he moved to France in 1933 and became French in 1938. ...

Jean-Jacques Marcel Jean-Jacques Marcel (13 June 1931 – 3 October 2014) was a French international footballer who played midfielder. He was an integral part of the French national teams of the 1950s. Playing career The south Frenchman was signed in 1949 by the ...

* Sonny Silooy *

Roger Quenolle Roger Quenolle (19 July 1925 – 13 July 2004) was a French professional footballer who played as a striker. During his career, he played for RC Paris, Rouen, Strasbourg, Red Star, and Stade Saint-Germain. He was capped twice for France. Quen ...

Ernest Vaast Ernest Vaast (28 October 1922 – ) was a French international football midfielder. He scored 11 goals in 15 matches for France and was a main player at RC Paris Racing Club de France Football (, also known as Racing Paris, RCF Paris, Matr ...

Guy Van Sam Guy Van Sam (20 December 1935 – 8 February 2024) was a French footballer who played as a striker for Montpellier, RC Paris, and Toulon. He made three appearances for the France national team. Personal life Guy was born in Beirut on 20 Dece ...

* Émile Veinante *

René Vignal René Vignal (12 August 1926 – 21 November 2016) was a French footballer who played as a goalkeeper. He played for Toulouse, RC Paris and Béziers Béziers (; oc, Besièrs) is a Subprefectures in France, subprefecture of the Hérault Departm ...

Halim Benmabrouk Abdelhamid Halim Ben Mabrouk ( ar, عبد الحميد حليم بن مبروك; born June 25, 1960) is a retired Algerian footballer who played as a midfielder. He spent his career in France and played for Algeria, most notably at the 1986 FIF ...

Rabah Madjer Rabah Mustapha Madjer ( ar, رابح مصطفى ماجر; born 15 December 1958) is an Algerian former professional footballer who played as a striker. He reached stardom as a Porto player during the 1980s, being widely regarded as one of the ...

* Rodolphe Hiden *

Joseph Ujlaki Joseph Ujlaki ( hu, Újlaki József) (10 August 1929 – 13 February 2006) was a French footballer of Hungarian descent, one of the best strikers in Division 1 (190 goals) in the 1950s and 1960s. He acquired French nationality by naturalizati ...

* Pierre Littbarski *

Abderrahman Mahjoub Abderrahmane Mahjoub or Abderrahmane Belmahjoub ( ar, عبد الرحمن بلمحجوب; 25 April 1929 – 31 August 2011) was a French and Moroccan international football midfielder. Known as ''Prince du Parc'' (Prince of the Park) in his pla ...

* Vahap Özaltay *

Miloš Milutinović Miloš Milutinović ( sr-Cyrl, Милош Милутиновић; 5 February 1933 – 28 January 2003) was a Serbian professional footballer and manager from Yugoslavia. Milutinović is regarded as one of the most talented players in his country ...

* Albert Guðmundsson * Walid Regragui

Officials

*''President'' : Patrick Norbert *''Vice-president'' : Guillaume Norbert *''General secretary'' : – *''Manager'' : Guillaume Norbert *''Assistant manager'' : Serge Gnonsoro

Managers

Honours

*''

champions'':

**''Runners-up'':

*''

Ligue 2 Ligue 2 (, League 2), also known as Ligue 2 BKT due to sponsor (commercial), 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 ...

champions'':

1986 The year 1986 was designated as the International Year of Peace by the United Nations. Events January * January 1 ** Aruba gains increased autonomy from the Netherlands by separating from the Netherlands Antilles. **Spain and Portugal ente ...

* Championnat National 2: 2004 (Group D) *

Championnat National 3 The Championnat National 3, commonly referred to as simply National 3 and formerly known as Championnat de France Amateur 2, is a football league competition. The league serves as the fifth division of the French football league system behind ...

: 2007 (Group F), 2022 (Group L) *''Division d'Honneur (Paris Île-de-France) championship'': 1973 *'' Coupe de France champions'':

1939 This year also marks the start of the Second World War, the largest and deadliest conflict in human history. Events Below, the events of World War II have the "WWII" prefix. January * January 1 ** Third Reich *** Jews are forbidden to ...

1940 A calendar from 1940 according to the Gregorian calendar, factoring in the dates of Easter and related holidays, cannot be used again until the year 5280. Events Below, the events of World War II have the "WWII" prefix. January *January ...

1945 1945 marked the end of World War II and the fall of Nazi Germany and the Empire of Japan. It is also the only year in which nuclear weapons have been used in combat. Events Below, the events of World War II have the "WWII" prefix. Januar ...

1949 Events January * January 1 – A United Nations-sponsored ceasefire brings an end to the Indo-Pakistani War of 1947. The war results in a stalemate and the division of Kashmir, which still continues as of 2022. * January 2 – Luis ...

**''Runners-up'':

1930 Events January * January 15 – The Moon moves into its nearest point to Earth, called perigee, at the same time as its fullest phase of the Lunar Cycle. This is the closest moon distance at in recent history, and the next one will be ...

1950 Events January * January 1 – The International Police Association (IPA) – the largest police organization in the world – is formed. * January 5 – 1950 Sverdlovsk plane crash, Sverdlovsk plane crash: ''Aeroflot'' Lisunov Li-2 cr ...

1990 File:1990 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The 1990 FIFA World Cup is played in Italy; The Human Genome Project is launched; Voyager I takes the famous Pale Blue Dot image- speaking on the fragility of Humankind, humanity on Earth, Astroph ...

*''

Championship'': 1907 *''USFSA Paris Championship'': 1902, 1903, 1907, 1908, 1911, 1919 *''FFFA Ligue de Paris champions'': 1931, 1932 *''Coupe Dewar champions'': 1905, 1906, 1907, 1912 **''Runners-up'': 1901

References

External links

*
Official Facebook
{{Original Ligue 1 Clubs 1882 establishments in France Association football clubs established in 1882 Football clubs in Paris Racing Club de France Sport in Hauts-de-Seine Ligue 1 clubs