Sporting Club Albigeois is a professional
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 ...
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 its m ...
club playing the third-level
Nationale. During the past years it went back and forth between
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 ...
, the highest level of the
French league system and the second-level
Rugby Pro D2
Rugby Pro D2, also known as Pro D2 is the second tier of rugby union club competition division in France. It is operated by Ligue Nationale de Rugby (LNR) which also runs the division directly above, the first division Top 14. Rugby Pro D2 was in ...
. Their last time in the Top 14 was for 2009–10 after winning the
2008–09 promotion playoffs. The previous one began in 2006 and came to an end after the
2007–08 season due to financial issues. Founded in 1907, the club plays at the Stadium municipal d'Albi (capacity 12,000). They wear black and yellow. They are based in
Albi
Albi (; oc, Albi ) is a commune in southern France. It is the prefecture of the Tarn department, on the river Tarn, 85 km northeast of Toulouse. Its inhabitants are called ''Albigensians'' (french: Albigeois, Albigeoise(s), oc, albigà ...
in
Occitanie Occitanie may refer to:
*Occitania, a region in southern France called ''Occitanie'' in French
*Occitania (administrative region)
Occitania ( ; french: Occitanie ; oc, Occità nia ; ca, Occità nia ) is the southernmost administrative region of ...
.
History
Sporting Club Albigeois was founded in December 1906 as a sportsclub where, in addition to rugby,
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 ...
and
running
Running is a method of terrestrial locomotion allowing humans and other animals to move rapidly on foot. Running is a type of gait characterized by an aerial phase in which all feet are above the ground (though there are exceptions). This is ...
were practiced. Their first title came in 1926 when they beat
Stade Toulousain
Stade Toulousain () ( oc, Estadi Tolosenc), also referred to as Toulouse, is a professional rugby union club based in Toulouse, France. They compete in the Top 14, France's top division of rugby, and the European Rugby Champions Cup.
Toulou ...
in the final of the highly competitive ''championnat des Pyrénées'' (Pyrénées league).
In 1940, the
Vichy regime
Vichy France (french: Régime de Vichy; 10 July 1940 – 9 August 1944), officially the French State ('), was the fascist French state headed by Marshal Philippe Pétain during World War II. Officially independent, but with half of its terr ...
forced towns with a population below 50,000 to merge their sports clubs in single entities. (
UA Gaillac is another rugby union example). Vichy also targeted the professional
rugby league
Rugby league football, commonly known as just rugby league and sometimes football, footy, rugby or league, is a full-contact sport played by two teams of thirteen players on a rectangular field measuring 68 metres (75 yards) wide and 112 ...
and Albi was forced to bring together the two local clubs, S.C. Albi and R.C. Albi XIII under the name Albi Olympique.
In 1945, each club went its way and recovered its previous name. In 1949, SC Albi reached the First Division. In 1955, it qualified for the playoffs, managing to oust the prestigious
Racing Club de France
Racing Club de France, also known as RCF, is a French Sports club, omnisport club that was founded on 20 April 1882 under the name Racing Club.
Racing Club changed its name to Racing Club de France (RCF) on 21 November 1885. The club is located a ...
in the first round, before going down to Romans in the round of 16.
Until the 1980s, Albi went through regular ups-and-downs between the first and second divisions (Div 1 1961–1970, 1973–75, 1977–79, Div 2, 1957 – 1959, 1970–73, 1975–77, 1979–85). Their only notable performance was another playoff win against
Toulouse
Toulouse ( , ; oc, Tolosa ) is the prefecture of the French department of Haute-Garonne and of the larger region of Occitania. The city is on the banks of the River Garonne, from the Mediterranean Sea, from the Atlantic Ocean and from Par ...
in 1974. Albi remained in the second or third divisions until 2000.
The millennium was very favourable for Albi. The club reached three consecutive third division finals, all lost, in 2000, 2001 et 2002, to
FC Oloron Sainte-Marie
FC may refer to:
Businesses, organisations, and schools
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* Finncomm Airlines (IATA code)
* FranklinCovey company, NYSE stock symbol FC
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,
Oyonnax and Tours. However, the professional Pro D2 offered two promotion spots in 2002 and Albi was back in the second division.
It took them four more years to take the last step. After finishing second to
US Montauban
US Montauban ( oc, Union Esportiva Montalban) is a French rugby union club that currently competes in Rugby Pro D2, the second level of the country's professional league system. They have also competed at the top level, Top 14, in the past, most ...
in the 2006 regular season, they went on to beat
AS Béziers
As, AS, A. S., A/S or similar may refer to:
Art, entertainment, and media
* A. S. Byatt (born 1936), English critic, novelist, poet and short story writer
* "As" (song), by Stevie Wonder
* , a Spanish sports newspaper
* , an academic male voic ...
and
US Dax
Union sportive dacquoise, also known as US Dax, is a French rugby union club currently playing in Nationale, the third level of the French league system.
They were founded in 1904. They play at Stade Maurice Boyau (capacity 16,170). They wear ...
in the promotion playoffs and secure the final spot in the élite league
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 ...
. They remained in Top 14 until the 2007–08 season. Although they finished 12th that season, which would normally have kept them in the top flight, they were forcibly relegated to Pro D2 due to financial issues.
The following season, they finished third on the regular-season table, qualifying for the promotion playoffs. Their home playoff semifinal against
La Rochelle
La Rochelle (, , ; Poitevin-Saintongeais: ''La Rochéle''; oc, La Rochèla ) is a city on the west coast of France and a seaport on the Bay of Biscay, a part of the Atlantic Ocean. It is the capital of the Charente-Maritime department. With ...
ended 12–12 in regulation. Each team slotted a penalty in extra time, which ended 15–15. Under French rules, the first tiebreaker in such a situation is fewest red cards. Since neither side had a player sent off, the next tiebreaker is number of tries, followed by number of penalties scored. Albi went through because they had kicked 5 penalties to La Rochelle's 4 (and one drop goal). They defeated
Oyonnax 14–12 in the playoff final on 31 May 2009 in
Montpellier
Montpellier (, , ; oc, Montpelhièr ) is a city in southern France near the Mediterranean Sea. One of the largest urban centres in the region of Occitania (administrative region), Occitania, Montpellier is the prefecture of the Departments of ...
to secure their place in the Top 14 2009–2010 season.
By April 2010 the club had already been relegated from the Top 14 after recording only 3 wins all season.
Honours
* French league, Division 1: (predecessor to today's Top 14)
**Round of 16 : 1955, 1974
* Rugby Pro D2:
** Promotion playoff winners: 2006, 2009
* French League, Division 1, B Group: (second division; predecessor to today's Pro D2)
**semi-final: 1980, 1986
* French league, Nationale 1: (Div 3, highest amateur level)
**Runner-up: 2000
*French league, Promotion Nationale: (Div 3, highest amateur level)
**Runner-up: 2001
* French league, Fédérale 1: (Div 3, highest amateur level)
**Runner-up: 2002
* Championnat des Pyrénées:
**Winner 1926
Current standings
Current squad
The current Albi squad is:
Notable former players
* Robert Basauri
* René Bousquet. 9 caps. One of the 15 Frenchmen who defeated England for the first time in 1927.
* Pierre Danos
* Charles-Antoine Gonnet. 16 cap. Also beat the English in 1927.
* Bernard Momméjat. 9 caps with SCA.
French president
Georges Pompidou accepted to be honorary chairman of the club in 1969 and paid his fees regularly until he died in 1974
See also
*
List of rugby union clubs in France
Contents : A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z By League
__NOTOC__
The oldest rugby club in France is Le Havre AC, founded in 1872 making it the oldest association football and rugby club registered in Fra ...
*
Rugby union in France
Rugby union in France is a popular team sport. Rugby union was first introduced in the early 1870s by British residents, which makes the country one of the few early exponents of the sport. Elite French clubs participate in the professional domes ...
References
External links
*
SC AlbiOfficial website
*
Club volunteers’ website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sc Albi
Albi
Albi (; oc, Albi ) is a commune in southern France. It is the prefecture of the Tarn department, on the river Tarn, 85 km northeast of Toulouse. Its inhabitants are called ''Albigensians'' (french: Albigeois, Albigeoise(s), oc, albigà ...
Rugby clubs established in 1906
Midi-Pyrénées
Occitania (administrative region)
Sport in Albi
1906 establishments in France