The 2009–10 season was the 77th season of competitive professional football in France. The season began on 7 August 2009 for the

Championnat National The Championnat de France National ( en, French National Championship), commonly referred to as simply National or Division 3, serves as the third division of the French football league system behind Ligue 1 and Ligue 2. Contested by 18 clubs, ...

and Ligue 2 and on 8 August for Ligue 1 and the Championnat de France amateur. The season concluded on 14 May 2010 for Ligue 2, 15 May for Ligue 1, and 21 May for the

and the Championnat de France amateur.

News

Supercup in Canada

On 12 May, it was announced that the 2009 Trophée des Champions will be played, for the first time, on international soil at

Olympic Stadium ''Olympic Stadium'' is the name usually given to the main stadium of an Olympic Games. An Olympic stadium is the site of the opening and closing ceremonies. Many, though not all, of these venues actually contain the words ''Olympic Stadium'' as ...

Montreal Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the second-most populous city in Canada and most populous city in the Canadian province of Quebec. Founded in 1642 as '' Ville-Marie'', or "City of Mary", it is named after Mount Royal, the triple ...

, Canada. The match will contest the winners of the

2008–09 Coupe de France The 2008–09 Coupe de France was the 92nd season of the French most prestigious cup competition and was open to all clubs in French football, as well as seven teams from overseas departments and territories (Guadeloupe, French Guiana, Martiniqu ...

Guingamp Guingamp (; ) is a commune in the Côtes-d'Armor department in Brittany in northwestern France. With a population of 6,895 as of 2017, Guingamp is one of the smallest towns in Europe to have a top-tier professional football team: En Avant Gui ...

, and the

2008–09 Ligue 1 The 2008–09 Ligue 1 season was the 71st since its establishment. Bordeaux became champions for the sixth time on the last weekend of the season. The fixtures were announced on 23 May 2008. The season began on 9 August 2008 and ended on 30 May ...

champions,

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 prefect ...

, with the objective being to promote French professional football abroad.

Match ball sponsorship

On 5 June, it was announced that German

sportswear Sportswear or activewear is clothing, including footwear, worn for sport or physical exercise. Sport-specific clothing is worn for most sports and physical exercise, for practical, comfort or safety reasons. Typical sport-specific garments ...

company Puma will become the official provider of match balls for the upcoming season after agreeing to a long term

partnership A partnership is an arrangement where parties, known as business partners, agree to cooperate to advance their mutual interests. The partners in a partnership may be individuals, businesses, interest-based organizations, schools, governments ...

with the

Ligue de Football Professionnel The Ligue de Football Professionnel (, ''Professional Football League''), commonly known as the LFP, is a French governing body that runs the major professional football leagues in France. It was founded in 1944 and serves under the authority o ...

(LFP).

Presidential departures

On 17 June,

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 ...

announced that they were parting ways with longtime chairman

Pape Diouf Mababa Diouf, known as Papa Diouf or Pape Diouf (18 December 1951 – 31 March 2020) was a Franco-Senegalese football personality who was a sports journalist, agent for football players, and later president of Olympique de Marseille from ...

. Diouf had been chairman of the club for five years and was the only black chairman ever to preside over a Ligue 1 club. Jean-Claude Dassier was announced as his replacement. On 7 July,

Auxerre Auxerre ( , ) is the capital of the Yonne department and the fourth-largest city in Burgundy. Auxerre's population today is about 35,000; the urban area (''aire d'attraction'') comprises roughly 113,000 inhabitants. Residents of Auxerre are r ...

announced that Alain Dujon will become the club's new president. He replaces Jean-Claude Hamel, who had presided over the club for over 46 years. On 10 September,

Paris Saint-Germain Paris Saint-Germain Football Club (), commonly referred to as Paris Saint-Germain, Paris, Paris SG or simply PSG is a professional football club based in Paris, France. They compete in Ligue 1, the top division of French football. As Fr ...

announced that president

Sébastien Bazin Sébastien Bazin (born 9 November 1961) is a French businessman. He is the chairman and chief executive officer of AccorHotels (; ). As CEO of Accor, he has committed to the UN's HeForShe campaign that seeks to promote women's and men's rights b ...

would step down from his role in order to supervise the club's surveillance council. He was replaced by

Robin Leproux Robin Leproux (born 22 July 1959) is a French businessman. He was the president of French football club Paris Saint-Germain from 2009 to 2011. Leproux was graduated from Reims Management School (Now NEOMA Business School) at 1983. Career Prio ...

Television deal

On 29 June, the LFP board of directors announced that

France Télévisions France Télévisions (; stylized since 2018 as ) is the French national public television broadcaster. It is a state-owned company formed from the integration of the public television channels France 2 (formerly Antenne 2) and France 3 (form ...

will be the official provider of Coupe de la Ligue coverage for the next three seasons.

French football records

On 9 August 2009, Bordeaux established a record for most consecutive league wins with 12, surpassing

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 N ...

, who won 11 consecutive matches in 1949, winning their last four games of the 1948–49 season and their first seven in the 1949–50 season. Bordeaux's streak began during the 2008–09 Ligue 1 season on 14 March 2009 following a 2–1 victory over

Nice Nice ( , ; Niçard dialect, Niçard: , classical norm, or , nonstandard, ; it, Nizza ; lij, Nissa; grc, Νίκαια; la, Nicaea) is the prefecture of the Alpes-Maritimes departments of France, department in France. The Nice urban unit, agg ...

. The club broke the record on the opening match day of this season defeating

Lens A lens is a transmissive optical device which focuses or disperses a light beam by means of refraction. A simple lens consists of a single piece of transparent material, while a compound lens consists of several simple lenses (''elements ...

4–1. The record lasted for 14 matches before coming to an end on 30 August following the club's 0–0 draw with Marseille. On 31 October 2009,

Grenoble lat, Gratianopolis , commune status = Prefecture and commune , image = Panorama grenoble.png , image size = , caption = From upper left: Panorama of the city, Grenoble’s cable cars, place Saint- ...

set a record for most consecutive losses in

French football Association football is the most popular sport in France. The French Football Federation (FFF, Fédération Française de Football) is the national governing body and is responsible for overseeing all aspects of association football in the cou ...

following the club's 11th-straight league defeat, an 0–2 loss to Lille. The previous record of ten-straight defeats, held by Sète, had been intact since 1947. The losing streak came to an end the following week, on 7 November, following the club's 0–0 draw with

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 ...

DNCG rulings

On 23 June, the

Direction Nationale du Contrôle de Gestion The Direction Nationale du Contrôle de Gestion (DNCG) (English: National Directorate of Management Control) is the organization responsible for monitoring and overseeing the accounts of professional association football clubs in France. It was fo ...

(DNC) ruled that Arles-Avignon would not be allowed to play in Ligue 2 following their promotion from the

, due to irregularities in the club's management. On 3 July, following an appeal, the DNCG reversed its decision, reinstating Arles' Ligue 2 status. Following the DNCG's annual report on clubs, on 25 June it was announced that six clubs had been relegated from the National to lower divisions: AS Beauvais, SO Cassis Carnoux,

CS Louhans-Cuiseaux Louhans-Cuiseaux Football Club is a football club located in Louhans, France. History The club was founded in 1970 as ''Club Sportif Louhans Cuiseaux 71'' after the merger of ''Club Sportif Louhannais'' (founded in 1916) and ''Club de Cuiseaux' ...

, and FC Libourne Saint-Seurin were relegated to the Championnat de France Amateurs. Meanwhile,

Besançon RC Besançon (, , , ; archaic german: Bisanz; la, Vesontio) is the prefecture of the department of Doubs in the region of Bourgogne-Franche-Comté. The city is located in Eastern France, close to the Jura Mountains and the border with Switzerl ...

US Luzenac Luzenac AP (french: Luzenac Ariège Pyrénées) is a French football club based in the commune of Luzenac (650 inhabitants) ( Ariège). It was founded in 1936. They play at the Stade Paul Fédou, which has a capacity of 1,600. The colours of the ...

, and

FC Rouen Football Club de Rouen 1899 (; commonly referred to as simply FC Rouen) is a French association football club based in Rouen, Normandy. The club was formed in 1899 and currently plays in Championnat National 2, the fourth level of French foot ...

, who were all recently promoted, were relegated to

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

, while Sète and

Calais RUFC Calais Racing Union FC (Calais RUFC) was a French football club based in Calais, France. Calais RUFC was founded in 1974 after a merger of two local clubs and, as an amateur club, reached the 2000 Coupe de France Final which it lost to top-fligh ...

were relegated to the

Division d'Honneur Division or divider may refer to: Mathematics *Division (mathematics), the inverse of multiplication * Division algorithm, a method for computing the result of mathematical division Military *Division (military), a formation typically consisting ...

. All clubs relegated were allowed to appeal the decision. Following an appeal from the aforementioned clubs, Rouen, Beauvais and Luzenac had their appeals successfully overturned, meaning they will remain in the Championnat National. Some clubs were, however, unsuccessful. For example, Sète's appeal was upheld relegating them to the Division d'Honneur; Stade Plabennecois will replace them in the Championnat National. Libourne Saint-Seurin, Besançon and Calais' appeals were also rejected by the DNCG, though all three clubs have decided to take their case to the CNOSF, the National Sporting Committee of France which governs

sport in France Sport in France plays an important role in French society, which is reflected in its popularity among the French people and the nation's strong sporting history. Various types of sports are played and followed in France, notably cycling, football, ...

. Both Calais and Besançon's rulings were determined on 23 July. The CNOSF determined that Besançon should be relegated to the CFA and not CFA 2, while Calais should respect and oblige the DNCG's ruling relegated them to CFA 2. Libourne's ruling was determined on 27 July, when the CNOSF informed the club that they should honor the DNCG's ruling and suffer relegation to the CFA. Libourne's chairman Bernard Layda responded by announcing the club will file for bankruptcy, restructure the club and oblige the ruling. Besançon and Libournce are slated to be replaced by ES Fréjus and

AS Moulins Académie Sportive Moulins Football, commonly known as AS Moulins or simply Moulins, is a French football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''fo ...

. Both Louhans-Cuiseaux and Cassis Carnoux had their appeals heard by the DNCG on 9 July. On 10 July, the DNGC ruled that both Louhans-Cuiseaux and Cassis-Carnoux rulings had been overturned, meaning they will play in the Championnat National this season. On 6 August, just three days before the start of the season, the CNSOF ruled that CFA 2 club

Olympique Saumur Olympique de Saumur Football Club is a French association football club founded in 2000. They are based in Saumur, Pays de la Loire and since 2022–23 they play in the Championnat National 2, the fourth tier of the French football league system. ...

would be allowed promotion to the CFA on the assumption that the club was ranked second behind Les Herbiers VF in terms of the promotion chart following a current CFA club's relegation by means of a federation ruling. With Besançon's relegation to the CFA, it has been determined that two groups will have an allocation of 20 clubs, while one group will have an allocation of 19 clubs. Due to the sudden circumstances, on 7 August the France Football Federation (FFF) devised a brand new schedule for the CFA. The FFF also announced that they had rejected the CNOSF's proposal for integrating Saumur into the CFA. Saumur responding by announcing their intent to appeal the judgment in Administrative Court.

Turmoil at 2010 FIFA World Cup

On 19 June 2010, France international striker

Nicolas Anelka Nicolas Sébastien Anelka (; born 14 March 1979) is a French professional football manager and retired player who played as a forward. As a player, he regularly featured in his country's national team, often scoring at crucial moments. Known f ...

was dismissed from the national team at the

2010 FIFA World Cup , image = 2010 FIFA World Cup.svg , size = 200px , caption = ''Ke Nako. (Tswana and Sotho for "It's time") Celebrate Africa's Humanity'It's time. Celebrate Africa's Humanity'' (English)''Dis tyd. Vier Afrika se mensd ...

after reportedly having a dispute, in which obscenities were passed with team

manager Management (or managing) is the administration of an organization, whether it is a business, a nonprofit organization, or a government body. It is the art and science of managing resources of the business. Management includes the activities ...

Raymond Domenech Raymond Manuel Albert Domenech (; born 24 January 1952) is a French football manager and former player. He managed the France national team from 2004 to 2010, reaching the 2006 FIFA World Cup Final. He was dismissed after their elimination from ...

during the team's 2–0 loss against

Mexico Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...

. The FFF condemned the actions and, following a meeting with Anelka, Domenech and team captain

Patrice Evra Patrice Latyr Evra (; born 15 May 1981) is a French football coach and former professional player. Originally a forward, he primarily played as a left-back. Evra served as captain for both Manchester United and the France national team. His ...

, the FFF agreed to send the player home. The following day, Evra engaged in a heated confrontation with team trainer Robert Duverne, with Duverne having to be restrained by Domenech. The resulting confrontation led to the players returning to the team bus and canceling practice. The team's managing director, Jean-Louis Valentin, announced his resignation from his position and the FFF the same day, stating he was "sickened and disgusted" by the actions of the team. The team, through Domenech, later released a statement criticizing the FFF for sending Anelka home based on reports from the media. The FFF responded to the statement by declaring the player's boycott "unacceptable" and apologizing to the world for the conduct of the players. The FFF also announced that following the World Cup, the Federal Council would convene to discuss the current state of the team. Five players were identified as having been key to the embarrassing events at the World Cup – Nicolas Anelka, Patrice Evra,

Franck Ribéry Franck Henry Pierre Ribéry (; born 7 April 1983) is a French former professional footballer who primarily played as a winger, preferably on the left side, and was known for his pace, energy, skill, and precise passing. Ribéry has been des ...

Jérémy Toulalan Jérémy Toulalan (born 10 September 1983) is a French former professional footballer who played as a defensive midfielder, but was also utilized as a central defender. He is best known for his humble demeanor, simple distribution, good techniqu ...

and

Eric Abidal Eric Sylvain Abidal (; born 11 September 1979) is a French former professional footballer who played as a left-back or centre-back. In his career, he played mainly for Lyon and Barcelona, winning 18 trophies with both teams combined, including t ...

– and all were summoned to a hearing before the FFF disciplinary committee on 17 August 2010. After the expulsion of Anelka and ensuing training strike, Evra and Ribéry were summoned for failing in their duties as captain and vice-captain respectively; Toulalan was seen as the originator of the statement read out by coach Domenech to the media; while Abidal was accused of refusing to play in the final group match. After the hearing, Anelka was banned from playing for France for 18 games, Evra was banned for five, Ribéry for three and Toulalan for one, while Abidal was not punished. Anelka dismissed the sanction as irrelevant, considering himself already retired from international football.

Promotion and relegation

Teams promoted to

2009–10 Ligue 1 The 2009–10 Ligue 1 season was the 72nd since its establishment. Bordeaux were the defending champions. The fixtures were announced on 5 June 2009, and play commenced on 8 August and ended on 15 May 2010. There were three promoted teams from L ...

* Champions:

* Runners-up: Montpellier * 3rd Place: Boulogne Teams relegated from

* 18th Place: Caen * 19th Place: Nantes * 20th Place:

Le Havre Le Havre (, ; nrf, Lé Hâvre ) is a port city in the Seine-Maritime department in the Normandy region of northern France. It is situated on the right bank of the estuary of the river Seine on the Channel southwest of the Pays de Caux, very ...

Teams promoted to

2009–10 Ligue 2 The Ligue 2 2009–10 season was the sixty-ninth edition since its establishment. The fixtures were announced on 5 June 2009, and the league began on 7 August and ended on 14 May 2010. German sportswear company Puma became the official provide ...

* Champions:

Istres Istres (; Occitan: Istre) is a commune in southern France, some 60 km (38 mi) northwest of Marseille. It is in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region, in the Bouches-du-Rhône department, of which it is a subprefecture. Location ...

* Runners-up: Laval * 3rd Place: Arles-Avignon Teams relegated from 2008–09 Ligue 2 * 18th Place:

Amiens Amiens (English: or ; ; pcd, Anmien, or ) is a city and commune in northern France, located north of Paris and south-west of Lille. It is the capital of the Somme department in the region of Hauts-de-France. In 2021, the population of ...

* 19th Place: Reims * 20th Place: Troyes Teams promoted to

2009–10 Championnat National The 2009–10 Championnat National was the 17th edition of the 3rd division league. Play commenced on 7 August 2009 and ended on 21 May 2010. Promotion and relegation Teams relegated from 2008–09 Ligue 2 * 18th Place: Amiens * 19th Place: Rei ...

* Champions, Groupe A:

Besançon Besançon (, , , ; archaic german: Bisanz; la, Vesontio) is the prefecture of the department of Doubs in the region of Bourgogne-Franche-Comté. The city is located in Eastern France, close to the Jura Mountains and the border with Switzer ...

* Champions, Groupe B:

Hyères Hyères (), Provençal Occitan: ''Ieras'' in classical norm, or ''Iero'' in Mistralian norm) is a commune in the Var department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in southeastern France. The old town lies from the sea clustered arou ...

* Champions, Groupe C: Luzenac * Champions, Groupe D: Rouen * 2nd Place, Groupe D: Plabennec Teams relegated from Championnat National 2008–09 * 17th Place:

Niort Niort (; Poitevin: ''Niàu''; oc, Niòrt; la, Novioritum) is a commune in the Deux-Sèvres department, western France. It is the prefecture of Deux-Sèvres. The population of Niort is 58,707 (2017) and more than 177,000 people live in the ...

* 18th Place: Calais * 19th Place: Cherbourg * 20th Place: L'Entente Teams promoted to 2009–10 Championnat de France Amateur Promoted from

CFA 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 ...

* Champions, Groupe A: Marck * Champions, Groupe B: Drancy * Champions, Groupe C:

Épinal Épinal (; german: Spinal) is a commune in northeastern France and the prefecture of the Vosges department. Geography The commune has a land area of . It is situated on the river Moselle, south of Nancy. Épinal station has rail connecti ...

* Champions, Groupe D: Grenoble B * 2nd Place, Groupe E: Le Pontet¹ * Champions, Groupe F: Toulouse Fontaines * 2nd Place, Groupe G:

Les Herbiers Les Herbiers () is a commune in the Vendée department in the Pays de la Loire region, western France. Population Sport Les Herbiers is host to the Chrono des Nations, an annual one-day individual time trial bicycle race, held in October. Le ...

² * Champions, Groupe H: Carquefou * 2nd Place, Groupe B :

Ivry-sur-Seine Ivry-sur-Seine () is a commune in the Val-de-Marne department in the southeastern suburbs of Paris, France. It is located from the centre of Paris. Paris's main Asian district, the Quartier Asiatique in the 13th arrondissement, borders the ...

* 2nd Place, Groupe C : Amnéville * 2nd Place, Groupe D : Bourg-Peronnas * 2nd Place, Groupe H : Avranches ¹ Saint-Raphael finished as Champions, but won't participate in next season's CFA because the club will fuse with ES Fréjus to form a new club. As such, Le Pontet was allowed to take their promotion spot. ² Tours B finished as Champions, but won't participate in next season's CFA because the DNCG deemed the formation structure of the reserves inadequate. Les Herbiers were allowed to take their promotion spot. Teams relegated from Championnat de France Amateurs 2008–09 * 16th Place, Groupe A:

Vesoul Vesoul () is a commune in the Haute-Saône department in the region of Bourgogne-Franche-Comté located in eastern France. It is the most populated municipality of the department with inhabitants in 2014. The same year, the Communauté d'agglo ...

* 17th Place, Groupe A: Metz B * 18th Place, Groupe A: Sainte-Geneviève * 16th Place, Groupe B: Saint-Étienne B * 17th Place, Groupe B: Saint-Priest * 18th Place, Groupe B: AS Monaco B * 16th Place, Groupe C: Châtellerault * 17th Place, Groupe C: Bordelais * 18th Place, Groupe C: Bergerac * 16th Place, Groupe D: Red Star * 17th Place, Groupe D: Guingamp B * 18th Place, Groupe D: Vitré

Managerial changes

Ligue 1

In season

Ligue 2

In season

Championnat National

In season

Transfers

Notable transfers

completes the signing of

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 ...

Yoann Gourcuff Yoann Miguel Gourcuff (born 11 July 1986) is a French former professional footballer who played mainly as an attacking midfielder. He could also be utilized as a withdrawn striker, and was described as a "playmaker of real quality" who "is an a ...

after the player spent the entire 2008–09 season on loan from Italian club

Milan Milan ( , , Lombard: ; it, Milano ) is a city in northern Italy, capital of Lombardy, and the second-most populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of about 1.4 million, while its metropolitan city h ...

. The transfer fee was priced at €15 million. Defending Portuguese Liga champions

Porto Porto or Oporto () is the second-largest city in Portugal, the capital of the Porto District, and one of the Iberian Peninsula's major urban areas. Porto city proper, which is the entire municipality of Porto, is small compared to its metropol ...

lose four players to three Ligue 1 title chasers, with

signing

Lucho González Luis Óscar "Lucho" González (; born 19 January 1981) is an Argentine former professional footballer, currently a manager. A versatile midfielder who was able to play in different positions but mainly in the centre, he was well known for his f ...

for €18 million,

Lyon Lyon,, ; Occitan language, Occitan: ''Lion'', hist. ''Lionés'' also spelled in English as Lyons, is the List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, third-largest city and Urban area (France), second-largest metropolitan area of F ...

signing both striker Lisandro López for €24 million and defender

Aly Cissokho Aly Cissokho (, born 15 September 1987) is a French professional association football, footballer who plays for Lamphun Warriors F.C., Lamphun Warriors. He plays as a left back and has been described as a "sprightly left-back with good speed and ...

for €15 million, and

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 Pa ...

signing

Paulo Machado Paulo Ricardo Ribeiro de Jesus Machado (born 31 March 1986) is a Portuguese former professional footballer who played as a central midfielder. Formed at Porto, he amassed Primeira Liga totals of 103 matches and eight goals over five seasons, ...

for a modest €3.5 million. Porto also lost veteran defender João Paulo to Le Mans for a fee of €1.5 million.

striker

Eduardo Eduardo is the Spanish and Portuguese form of the male given name Edward. Another version is Duarte. It may refer to: Association football * Eduardo Bonvallet, Chilean football player and sports commentator * Eduardo Carvalho, Portuguese footba ...

, who wrote his name into French football history by scoring both his team's goals in a 2–1 triumph in the Coupe de France final against Rennes, moves to recently promoted

for approximately €3 million. Four French national team goalkeepers move clubs, with Cédric Carrasso joining Bordeaux for €8 million,

Mickaël Landreau Mickaël Vincent André-Marie Landreau (; born 14 May 1979) is a French professional football manager and former player who played as a goalkeeper. Landreau holds the record for Ligue 1 appearances, with 618 for Nantes, Paris Saint-Germain, L ...

joining

from

for €2 million,

Yohann Pelé Yohann Pelé (born 4 November 1982) is a French former professional footballer who played as a goalkeeper. Club career Le Mans Born in Brou-sur-Chantereine, Pelé spent most of his career at Le Mans, making his debut in Ligue 2 in a 1–0 de ...

moving to Toulouse from Le Mans on a

Bosman transfer ''Union Royale Belge des Sociétés de Football Association ASBL v Jean-Marc Bosman'' (1995) C-415/93 (known as the Bosman ruling) is a 1995 European Court of Justice decision concerning freedom of movement for workers, freedom of associatio ...

, and

Grégory Coupet Grégory Coupet (born 31 December 1972) is a French former professional footballer who played as a goalkeeper. Throughout his playing career, he represented Saint-Étienne, Lyon, Atlético Madrid and Paris Saint-Germain, as well as the Franc ...

makes his return Ligue 1 signing with PSG from

La Liga The Campeonato Nacional de Liga de Primera División, commonly known simply as Primera División in Spain, and as La Liga in English-speaking countries and officially as LaLiga Santander for sponsorship reasons, stylized as LaLiga, is the men' ...

side Atlético Madrid. PSG sign two Ligue 1 stars for a total on €12 million, committing four years to both Turkish striker Mevlüt Erdinç and

Lorient Lorient (; ) is a town ('' commune'') and seaport in the Morbihan department of Brittany in western France. History Prehistory and classical antiquity Beginning around 3000 BC, settlements in the area of Lorient are attested by the presen ...

midfielder Christophe Jallet. Nancy recruits three Bordeaux youngsters:

Mali Mali (; ), officially the Republic of Mali,, , ff, 𞤈𞤫𞤲𞥆𞤣𞤢𞥄𞤲𞤣𞤭 𞤃𞤢𞥄𞤤𞤭, Renndaandi Maali, italics=no, ar, جمهورية مالي, Jumhūriyyāt Mālī is a landlocked country in West Africa. Mal ...

an striker Cheick Diabaté, French defender Florian Marange and the

Togo Togo (), officially the Togolese Republic (french: République togolaise), is a country in West Africa. It is bordered by Ghana to the west, Benin to the east and Burkina Faso to the north. It extends south to the Gulf of Guinea, where its c ...

lese

Floyd Ayité Floyd Ama Nino Ayité (born 15 December 1988) is a professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for French club Valenciennes and the Togo national team. He mainly plays a winger. He is Jonathan Ayité's younger brother. Club career Ayit ...

. All join the club, with Diabaté and Ayité joining on loan for the entire season and Marange signing a one-year contract. Saint-Étienne sign two Argentine internationals from the Primera División of

Argentina Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the second-largest country in South America after Brazil, th ...

. The first signing being striker Gonzalo Bergessio, formerly of San Lorenzo, for an undisclosed fee, and midfielder Augusto Fernández, who joins the club on loan for the entire season from River Plate.

Honours

National teams

France

2010 FIFA World Cup qualification Friendly 2010 FIFA World Cup Last updated: 28 March 2010
Source
French Football Federation Les matches de l'équipe de France
/small>

France (women's)

2011 FIFA Women's World Cup qualification Friendly 2011 FIFA Women's World Cup qualification Friendly 2011 FIFA Women's World Cup qualification Last updated: 28 March 2010
Source
French Football Federation Women's Schedule
/small>

France U-21

Friendly 2011 UEFA European Under-21 Football Championship qualification Friendly 2011 UEFA European Under-21 Football Championship qualification Friendly

France U-20

* The France under-20 team competed in the quad-annual Mediterranean Games football tournament that was contested from 25 June to 5 July in

Pescara Pescara (; nap, label= Abruzzese, Pescàrë; nap, label= Pescarese, Piscàrë) is the capital city of the Province of Pescara, in the Abruzzo region of Italy. It is the most populated city in Abruzzo, with 119,217 (2018) residents (and approxim ...

, Italy.Pescara 2009 – Football – Technical Book
(Published 16 February 2009) France finished in a respectable 4th place losing to

Libya Libya (; ar, ليبيا, Lībiyā), officially the State of Libya ( ar, دولة ليبيا, Dawlat Lībiyā), is a country in the Maghreb region in North Africa. It is bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to the north, Egypt to the east, Suda ...

on penalties in the third place match. The U-20 team will also compete in the 2009 edition of the Francophone Games that will be held in

Beirut Beirut, french: Beyrouth is the capital and largest city of Lebanon. , Greater Beirut has a population of 2.5 million, which makes it the third-largest city in the Levant region. The city is situated on a peninsula at the midpoint o ...

Lebanon Lebanon ( , ar, لُبْنَان, translit=lubnān, ), officially the Republic of Lebanon () or the Lebanese Republic, is a country in Western Asia. It is located between Syria to Lebanon–Syria border, the north and east and Israel to Blue ...

to begin on 26 September. ---- ---- ---- ---- ---- Last updated: 30 March 2010
Source
French Football Federation U-21 Schedule
/small>

France U-19

2009 Sendaï Cup Friendly Tournio de Limoges Friendly Unofficial Friendly 2010 UEFA European Under-19 Football Championship Last updated: 28 March 2010
Source
French Football Federation U-19 Schedule
/small>

France U-17

2010 UEFA European Under-17 Football Championship First Round qualification 2010 UEFA European Under-17 Football Championship Elite Round qualification 2010 UEFA European Under-17 Football Championship Last updated: 27 March 2010
Source
French Football Federation U-17 Schedule
/small>

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:2009-10 in French football Seasons in French football

News

Supercup in Canada

Match ball sponsorship

Presidential departures

Television deal

French football records

DNCG rulings

Turmoil at 2010 FIFA World Cup

Promotion and relegation

Managerial changes

Ligue 1

In season

Ligue 2

In season

Championnat National

In season

Transfers

Notable transfers

Honours

National teams

France

France (women's)

France U-21

France U-20

France U-19

France U-17

See also

References