The Ligue Magnus, currently known as Synerglace Ligue Magnus for sponsorship reasons, is the top men's division of the French

ice hockey Ice hockey (or simply hockey) is a team sport played on ice skates, usually on an ice skating rink with lines and markings specific to the sport. It belongs to a family of sports called hockey. In ice hockey, two opposing teams use ice ...

pyramid, established in 1906. The league operated under a variety of names before taking that of its championship trophy, the Magnus Cup, in 2004. The trophy was in turn named for Frenchman and

IIHF The International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF; french: Fédération internationale de hockey sur glace; german: Internationale Eishockey-Föderation) is a worldwide governing body for ice hockey. It is based in Zurich, Switzerland, and has 83 m ...

founder

Louis Magnus Louis Magnus (25 May 1881 in Kingston, Jamaica – 1 November 1950) was a Jamaican-French competitive figure skater, representing France, and an ice hockey executive. He is considered as the builder of the International Ice Hockey Federation ( ...

Format

12 teams play a 44-game

regular season In an organized sports league, a typical season is the portion of one year in which regulated games of the sport are in session: for example, in Major League Baseball the season lasts approximately from the last week of March to the last week of ...

. The schedule is fully balanced and there are no geographic

conferences A conference is a meeting of two or more experts to discuss and exchange opinions or new information about a particular topic. Conferences can be used as a form of group decision-making, although discussion, not always decisions, are the main ...

. Regulation wins are worth 3 points, as per international rules. The top 8 teams qualify for the Magnus Cup

playoffs The playoffs, play-offs, postseason or finals of a sports league are a competition played after the regular season by the top competitors to determine the league champion or a similar accolade. Depending on the league, the playoffs may be eit ...

, with all series contested in a

best-of-seven There are a number of formats used in various levels of competition in sports and games to determine an overall champion. Some of the most common are the ''single elimination'', the ''best-of-'' series, the ''total points series'' more commonly ...

format. The remaining 4 teams play a 6-game round-robin, at the end of which the last-place team is

relegated In sports leagues, promotion and relegation is a process where teams are transferred between multiple divisions based on their performance for the completed season. Leagues that use promotion and relegation systems are often called open leagues. ...

. The Magnus Cup champions qualify for the following season's Champions Hockey League. All Ligue Magnus teams also take part in the French Cup.

Import rule

Game night rosters must include at least 10 players who have spent 3 or more years in the French hockey system before the age of 21.

French citizenship French nationality law is historically based on the principles of ''jus soli'' (Latin for "right of soil") and ''jus sanguinis'', according to Ernest Renan's definition, in opposition to the German definition of nationality, ''jus sanguinis'' ( ...

itself is not a requirement to qualify for non-import status, as long as the player meets the above criteria. Conversely, a citizen of France who was fully trained in a foreign country will count as an import regardless of his French citizenship.

Outdoor games

On December 22, 2013,

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- ...

and

Briançon Briançon (, ) is the sole subprefecture of the Hautes-Alpes department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in Southeastern France. It is the highest city in France at an altitude of , based on the national definition as a community cont ...

played an outdoor regular season game at Stade des Alpes, the home of former

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. ...

soccer club GF38. A sellout attendance of 19,767 set a league record.
Another outdoor game took place on December 30, 2016, when

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 ...

hosted

at Parc OL, the home field of seven-time Ligue 1 champions

Olympique Lyonnais Olympique Lyonnais (), commonly referred to as simply Lyon () or OL, is a men and women's French professional football club based in Lyon in Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes. The men play in France's highest football division, Ligue 1. Founded in 1950, th ...

. The event drew a record 25,182 attendance.

Title sponsors

In 2016, the league signed its first naming rights deal with Saxoprint, the online printing subsidiary of German conglomerate

Cewe Cewe is a German printing company based in Oldenburg, Lower Saxony. It is the largest photo printing company in Europe and was founded in 1961. The company has expanded through acquisitions of competing and similar companies, among which are L ...

, and became known as Saxoprint Ligue Magnus for the following two seasons. In 2018, mobile ice rink supplier Synerglace became the series' new title sponsor.

Media

Television

Select regular season and playoff games air on cable and broadband television channel Sport en France.

Internet streaming

All league games can be streamed for a monthly subscription fee of approximately €10. The service, managed by Finnish company Fanseat, employed a man-operated main camera for the first three years, before shifting to PlaySight automated technology in 2019.

Video game

''Hockey Dangles '16: Saxoprint Magnus Edition'', an

arcade Arcade most often refers to: * Arcade game, a coin-operated game machine ** Arcade cabinet, housing which holds an arcade game's hardware ** Arcade system board, a standardized printed circuit board * Amusement arcade, a place with arcade games * ...

-style

mobile video game A mobile game, or smartphone game, is a video game that is typically played on a mobile phone. The term also refers to all games that are played on any portable device, including from mobile phone (feature phone or smartphone), tablet, PDA to h ...

based on the league, was released for Android and iOS devices in September 2016.

2021/22 teams

Former teams

* Albatros de Brest * Chamois de Chamonix *

Corsaires de Dunkerque The Corsaires de Dunkerque are an ice hockey team in Dunkerque, France. They were founded in 1979, and play in the FFHG Division 1, the second level of French ice hockey. The Corsaires previously played in the Ligue Magnus. History The Corsair ...

Drakkars de Caen Hockey Club de Caen is a French ice hockey team based in Caen, Normandy playing in the Division 1. The team is also known as "Drakkars de Caen" (Caen Longships). The team was formerly called the Léopards de Caen. The team was founded in 1968 an ...

Ducs de Dijon The Dijon Hockey Club is a French ice hockey team based in Dijon. They are currently playing in the FFHG Division 3 and formerly played in the Ligue Magnus from 2002 until 2017. The team currently use the name of "Ducs de Dijon" (Dijon Dukes) The ...

* Jets de Viry-Essonne *

Ours de Villard-de-Lans ‌ Ours de Villard-de-Lans (Villard-de-Lans Bears) is a French ice hockey team based in Villard-de-Lans playing in the FFHG Division 2. The team was founded in 1931 and plays home games at the Patinoire municipale de Villard-de-Lans. Former play ...

* Pingouins de Morzine-Avoriaz * Sangliers Arvernes * Avalanche du Mont-Blanc

Defunct teams

Diables Noirs de Tours Association des sports de glace de Tours is a former France, French ice hockey team based in Tours. The team was champion of Ligue Magnus, Magnus league in 1980 and folded in 2010. The team was also known as "Diables noirs de Tours" (Tours Black De ...

* Hockey Club de Mulhouse * Séquanes de Besançon * Reims HC

Previous winners

Titles by team

Awards

* Charles Ramsay Trophy (top scorer) * Albert Hassler Trophy (most valuable French player) * Marcel Claret Trophy (most sportsmanlike team) * Raymond Dewas Trophy (most sportsmanlike player) * Jean-Pierre Graff Trophy (most promising player) * Jean Ferrand Trophy (most valuable goaltender) * Camil Gélinas Trophy (coach of the year)

Notable players

Philippe Bozon Philippe Bozon (born November 30, 1966) is a former French professional ice hockey player who played for the St. Louis Blues in the National Hockey League (NHL) between the 1991–92 and 1994-95 seasons. He is the first of only seven French-bo ...

(

St. Louis Blues The St. Louis Blues are a professional ice hockey team based in St. Louis. The Blues compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Central Division in the Western Conference. The franchise was founded in 1967 as one of the ...

Genève-Servette HC The Genève-Servette HC (also called Servette or GSHC) is a professional ice hockey club based in Geneva, Switzerland and competing in the National League (NL), the top tier of the Swiss hockey league system. The team plays their home games at the ...

) * Alain Daigle (

Chicago Blackhawks The Chicago Blackhawks (spelled Black Hawks until 1986, and known colloquially as the Hawks) are a professional ice hockey team based in Chicago. The Blackhawks compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Central Divisio ...

) *

Evgeny Davydov Yevgeni Vitalievich Davydov (russian: Евгений Витальевич Давыдов); born May 27, 1967) is a Russian former professional ice hockey player who played in the National Hockey League for the Winnipeg Jets, Florida Panthers and ...

(

HC CSKA Moscow HC CSKA Moscow (1946–present, russian: ЦСКА Москва, Центральный Спортивный Клуб Армии, ''Central Sports Club of the Army, Moscow'') is a Russian professional ice hockey club based in Moscow. The club ...

Winnipeg Jets The Winnipeg Jets are a professional ice hockey team based in Winnipeg. The team competes in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Central Division in the Western Conference, and is owned by True North Sports & Entertainment, p ...

) *

Steve Gainey Steve Gainey (born January 26, 1979) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey forward who played in parts of four seasons in the National Hockey League (NHL) for the Dallas Stars and Phoenix Coyotes. He is the son of former NHL player and exec ...

(

Dallas Stars The Dallas Stars are a professional ice hockey team based in Dallas. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Central Division in the Western Conference, and were founded during the 1967 NHL expansion as the Minne ...

Phoenix Coyotes The Arizona Coyotes are a professional ice hockey team based in the Phoenix metropolitan area. The Coyotes compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Central Division in the Western Conference and currently play at the Mull ...

) *

Cristobal Huet Cristobal Huet (; born September 3, 1975) is a French- Swiss former professional ice hockey goaltender who is currently a goalie coach for Lausanne HC of the National League (NL). He previously played for HC Lugano and HC Fribourg-Gottéron and ...

(

Los Angeles Kings The Los Angeles Kings are a professional ice hockey team based in Los Angeles. The team competes in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Pacific Division in the Western Conference and was founded on June 5, 1967, after Jack Kent ...

Montreal Canadiens The Montreal CanadiensEven in English, the French spelling is always used instead of ''Canadians''. The French spelling of ''Montréal'' is also sometimes used in the English media. (french: link=no, Les Canadiens de Montréal), officially ...

Washington Capitals The Washington Capitals (colloquially known as the Caps) are a professional ice hockey team based in Washington, D.C. The team competes in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern Conference, a ...

) *

Steve Montador Steven Richard "The Matador" Montador (December 21, 1979 – February 15, 2015) was a Canadian professional ice hockey defenceman who played 571 games in the National Hockey League (NHL) for the Calgary Flames, Florida Panthers, Anaheim Ducks, B ...

(

Calgary Flames The Calgary Flames are a professional ice hockey team based in Calgary. The Flames compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Pacific Division in the Western Conference, and are the third major professional ice hockey te ...

Florida Panthers The Florida Panthers are a professional ice hockey team based in the Miami metropolitan area. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Atlantic Division in the Eastern Conference, and initially played their home g ...

Anaheim Ducks The Anaheim Ducks are a professional ice hockey team based in Anaheim, California. The Ducks compete in the Western Conference of the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Pacific Division, and play their home games at Honda Center ...

Boston Bruins The Boston Bruins are a professional ice hockey team based in Boston. The Bruins compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Atlantic Division in the Eastern Conference. The team has been in existence since 1924, making ...

Buffalo Sabres The Buffalo Sabres are a professional ice hockey team based in Buffalo, New York. The Sabres compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Atlantic Division in the Eastern Conference. The team was established in 1970, alon ...

) * Steven Reinprecht (

Colorado Avalanche The Colorado Avalanche (colloquially known as the Avs) are a professional ice hockey team based in Denver. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Central Division (NHL), Central Division in the Western Conference (N ...

) * Mark Rycroft (

) * Richard Sévigny (

Quebec Nordiques The Quebec Nordiques (french: Nordiques de Québec, pronounced in Quebec French, in Canadian English; translated "Quebec City Northmen" or "Northerners") were a professional ice hockey team based in Quebec City. The Nordiques played in the W ...

) * Claude Verret (

, Lausanne HC,

Rochester Americans The Rochester Americans (colloquially known as the Amerks) are a professional ice hockey team in the American Hockey League; the team is an owned and operated affiliate of the Buffalo Sabres. The team plays its home games in Rochester, New York, a ...

) In addition,

Bob Gainey Robert Michael Gainey (born December 13, 1953) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey player who played for the Montreal Canadiens from 1973 until 1989. After retiring from active play, he became a hockey coach and later an executive wit ...

(

) and

Brian Propp Brian Phillip Propp (born February 15, 1959) is a Canadian former professional Ice hockey left winger who played 15 seasons in the National Hockey League (NHL) from 1979 until 1994. Playing career Propp started his career with the Melvill ...

(

Philadelphia Flyers The Philadelphia Flyers are a professional ice hockey team based in Philadelphia. The Flyers compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern Conference (NHL), Eastern Conference. The team play ...

) have played in the second tier of French hockey.

Notes

References

External links

French Ice Hockey FederationLigue MagnusAJPH (players' association)
{{Ice Hockey Leagues Recurring sporting events established in 1907 1907 establishments in France Professional ice hockey leagues in France Top tier ice hockey leagues in Europe