List of French football champions

The French football champions are the winners of the highest league of football in France, Ligue 1. Since the National Council of the French Football Federation voted in support of professionalism in French football in 1930, the professional football championship of France has been contested through Ligue 1, formerly known as Division 1 from 1933–2002.^[1][2] Prior to this, the first division championship of French football was contested through a league ran by the Union des Sociétés Françaises de Sports Athlétiques (USFSA), an organization that supported amateur sport. The USFSA's league ran from 1894–1919 and awarded 22 league titles before being suspended in 1915 due to World War I and the creation and success of the Coupe de France, which had quickly become the country's national competition.^[3] The USFSA returned in 1919 changing the league into numerous regional amateur leagues that awarded no league title. This system lasted from 1919–1926. In 1926, the first division's reigns were handed over to the French Football Federation. The federation organized and ran a league composed of the regional amateur league champions called the Championnat de France amateur from 1927–1929 and awarded three titles before the league was converted to the professional league that exists today in 1932.^[1]

The first champions of French football were Standard Athletic Club, who defeated The White Rovers 2–0 in Courbevoie on 6 May 1894.^[4] The initial championship match was held on 29 April but finished 2–2, so the match was replayed.^[4] Standard went on to win the French championship four more times over the next seven years before RC Roubaix took control of the league becoming the first French club to win three straight titles beginning in 1902.^[5] Following Roubaix's success, the ownership of the amateur league title began rotating back and forth from the north of France to the south of France with Marseille eventually winning the last amateur title in 1929.^[5]

The first French football champions of the professional era were Olympique Lillois, a predecessor of Lille, who defeated Cannes 4–3 on 14 May 1933 at the Stade Olympique Yves-du-Manoir in Colombes.^[5] Sète were crowned champions the following season and, in 1939, became the first professional club in France to win two titles.^[5] Following the conclusion of World War II, Saint-Étienne became the model club of the country winning four consecutive titles from 1966–1970.^[5] The club won all its 10 titles in a span of 25 years. Marseille repeated Saint-Étienne's feat of four consecutive titles from 1988–1992. It would take the club another 17 years to win another title. During the hiatus between Marseille's title in 1992 and the club's most recent in 2010, Lyon established themselves as a top club winning their first title in 2002. The title started a national record-breaking streak of seven successive league championships with the streak coming to an end following the 2008–09 season when Bordeaux eclipsed them winning their sixth title.^[6][7]

Saint-Étienne and Marseille have the most titles in French football having won ten each.^[8][9] The majority of Saint-Étienne's titles came during the 1960s and 1970s when the club was led by managers Jean Snella, Albert Batteux, and Robert Herbin. Marseille has nine professional league titles and one amateur title which they won in the 1928–29 season.^[9] The club initially equaled Saint-Étienne's number of titles won during the 1992–93 season, but the title was stripped after it was discovered by the Ligue de Football Professionnel (LFP) that the club's president Bernard Tapie had bribed the opposition's players.^[10][11] Tapie was later found guilty of bribery and sentenced to two years in prison.^[12] In the 2009–10 season, Marseille equaled Saint-Étienne's number of titles, amateur or professional.^[13][14] Currently, Nantes are third with eight titles and they are followed by AS Monaco and Lyon each with seven.^[15][16][17]

List of Champions

Amateur era (1893–1929)

1895–96 champions Club Français, pictured here in 1898

1918–19 champions Le Havre, pictured playing against CA Paris in 1920

1926–27 champions CA Paris, pictured at the end of the following season

Year[4]	Winner	Runner-up	Third place
1893–94	Standard Athletic Club	The White Rovers	—
1894–95	Standard Athletic Club	The White Rovers	—
1895–96	Club Français	The White Rovers	—
1896–97	Standard Athletic Club	The White Rovers	—
1897–98	Standard Athletic Club	Club Français	—
1898–99	Le Havre	Club Français	—
1899–1900	Le Havre	Club Français	—
1900–01	Standard Athletic Club	Le Havre	—
1901–02	Roubaix	RCF Paris	—
1902–03	Roubaix	RCF Paris	—
1903–04	Roubaix	Suisse Paris	—
1904–05	Gallia Club Paris	Roubaix	—
1905–06	Roubaix	CA Paris	—
1906–07	RCF Paris	Roubaix	—
1907–08	Roubaix	RCF Paris	—
1908–09	Helvétique Marseille	CA Paris	—
1909–10	US Tourcoing	Helvétique Marseille	—
1910–11	Helvétique Marseille	RCF Paris	—
1911–12	Saint-Raphaël	AS Française	—
1912–13	Helvétique Marseille	Rouen	—
1913–14	Olympique Lillois	Sète	—
1914–18	Suspended due to World War I
1918–19	Le Havre	Marseille	—
1919–26	Not Played
1926–27	CA Paris	Amiens AC	Marseille
1927–28	Stade Français [nb 1]	US Tourcoing	—
1928–29	Marseille [nb 2]	Club Français	—
1929–32	Not Played

Professional era (1932–present)

Alain Giresse played on the Bordeaux teams that won back-to-back titles in 1983–84 and 1984–85.

Paul Le Guen managed Lyon to three league titles.

Laurent Blanc led Bordeaux to their first league title of the millennium in 2008–09.

Didier Deschamps played on two of Marseille's ten championship winning teams and also managed the club to one league title.

Year	Winner[2][21][22]	Runner-up	Third place
1932–33	Olympique Lillois	Cannes	—
1933–34	Sète	Fives	Marseille
1934–35	Sochaux	Strasbourg	RCF Paris
1935–36	RCF Paris	Lille	Strasbourg
1936–37	Marseille	Sochaux	RCF Paris
1937–38	Sochaux	Marseille	Sète
1938–39	Sète	Marseille	RCF Paris
1939–45	Suspended due to World War II
1945–46	Lille	Saint-Étienne	RC Roubaix
1946–47	Roubaix–Tourcoing	Stade Reims	Strasbourg
1947–48	Marseille	Lille	Stade Reims
1948–49	Stade Reims	Lille	Marseille
1949–50	Bordeaux	Lille	Stade Reims
1950–51	Nice	Lille	Le Havre
1951–52	Nice	Bordeaux	Lille
1952–53	Stade Reims	Sochaux	Bordeaux
1953–54	Lille	Stade Reims	Bordeaux
1954–55	Stade Reims	Toulouse	Lens
1955–56	Nice	Lens	AS Monaco
1956–57	Saint-Étienne	Lens	Stade Reims
1957–58	Stade Reims	Nîmes	AS Monaco
1958–59	Nice	Nîmes	RCF Paris
1959–60	Stade Reims	Nîmes	RCF Paris
1960–61	AS Monaco	RCF Paris	Stade Reims
1961–62	Stade Reims	RCF Paris	Nîmes
1962–63	AS Monaco	Stade Reims	Sedan
1963–64	Saint-Étienne	AS Monaco	Lens
1964–65	Nantes	Bordeaux	Valenciennes
1965–66	Nantes	Bordeaux	Valenciennes
1966–67	Saint-Étienne	Nantes	Angers
1967–68	Saint-Étienne	Nice	Sochaux
1968–69	Saint-Étienne	Bordeaux	Metz
1969–70	Saint-Étienne	Marseille	Sedan
1970–71	Marseille	Saint-Étienne	Nantes
1971–72	Marseille	Nîmes	Sochaux
1972–73	Nantes	Nice	Marseille
1973–74	Saint-Étienne	Nantes	Lyon
1974–75	Saint-Étienne	Marseille	Lyon
1975–76	Saint-Étienne	Nice	Sochaux
1976–77	Nantes	Lens	Bastia
1977–78	AS Monaco	Nantes	Strasbourg
1978–79	Strasbourg	Nantes	Saint-Étienne
1979–80	Nantes	Sochaux	Saint-Étienne
1980–81	Saint-Étienne	Nantes	Bordeaux
1981–82	AS Monaco	Saint-Étienne	Sochaux
1982–83	Nantes	Bordeaux	Paris Saint-Germain
1983–84	Bordeaux	AS Monaco	Auxerre
1984–85	Bordeaux	Nantes	AS Monaco
1985–86	Paris Saint-Germain	Nantes	Bordeaux
1986–87	Bordeaux	Marseille	Toulouse
1987–88	AS Monaco	Bordeaux	Montpellier
1988–89	Marseille	Paris Saint-Germain	AS Monaco
1989–90	Marseille	Bordeaux	AS Monaco
1990–91	Marseille	AS Monaco	Auxerre
1991–92	Marseille	AS Monaco	Paris Saint-Germain
1992–93	— [nb 3]	Paris Saint-Germain	AS Monaco
1993–94	Paris Saint-Germain	Marseille	Auxerre
1994–95	Nantes	Lyon	Paris Saint-Germain
1995–96	Auxerre	Paris Saint-Germain	AS Monaco
1996–97	AS Monaco	Paris Saint-Germain	Nantes
1997–98	Lens	Metz	AS Monaco
1998–99	Bordeaux	Marseille	Lyon
1999–2000	AS Monaco	Paris Saint-Germain	Lyon
2000–01	Nantes	Lyon	Lille
2001–02	Lyon	Lens	Auxerre
2002–03	Lyon	AS Monaco	Marseille
2003–04	Lyon	Paris Saint-Germain	AS Monaco
2004–05	Lyon	Lille	AS Monaco
2005–06	Lyon	Bordeaux	Lille
2006–07	Lyon	Marseille	Toulouse
2007–08	Lyon	Bordeaux	Marseille
2008–09	Bordeaux	Marseille	Lyon
2009–10	Marseille	Lyon	Auxerre
2010–11	Lille	Marseille	Lyon
2011–12	Montpellier	Paris Saint-Germain	Lille
2012–13	Paris Saint-Germain	Marseille	Lyon
2013–14	Paris Saint-Germain	AS Monaco	Lille
2014–15	Paris Saint-Germain	Lyon	AS Monaco
2015–16	Paris Saint-Germain

Performance

Performance by club in Amateur era & Professional era

Georges Bereta won six league titles while playing for Saint-Étienne.

Juninho Pernambucano won seven straight league titles with Lyon from 2002–2008.

Club	Winners	Runners-up	Winning Years
Marseille	10	12	1928–29, 1936–37, 1947–48, 1970–71, 1971–72, 1988–89, 1989–90, 1990–91, 1991–92, 2009–10
Saint-Étienne	10	3	1956–57, 1963–64, 1966–67, 1967–68, 1968–69, 1969–70, 1973–74, 1974–75, 1975–76, 1980–81
Nantes	8	7	1964–65, 1965–66, 1972–73, 1976–77, 1979–80, 1982–83, 1994–95, 2000–01
AS Monaco	7	6	1960–61, 1962–63, 1977–78, 1981–82, 1987–88, 1996–97, 1999–00
Lyon	7	4	2001–02, 2002–03, 2003–04, 2004–05, 2005–06, 2006–07, 2007–08
Bordeaux	6	9	1949–50, 1983–84, 1984–85, 1986–87, 1998–99, 2008–09
Paris Saint-Germain	6	7	1985–86, 1993–94, 2012–13, 2013–14, 2014–15, 2015–16
Stade de Reims	6	3	1948–49, 1952–53, 1954–55, 1957–58, 1959–60, 1961–62
Lille	5	6	1913-14, 1932-33, 1945–46, 1953–54, 2010–11
Roubaix	5	2	1901–02, 1902–03, 1903–04, 1905–06, 1907–08
Standard Athletic Club	5	–	1893–94, 1894–95, 1896–97, 1897–98, 1900–01
Nice	4	3	1950–51, 1951–52, 1955–56, 1958–59
Helvétique Marseille	3	1	1908–09, 1910–11, 1912–13
Le Havre	3	1	1898–99, 1899–00, 1918–19
RC Paris	2	6	1906–07, 1935–36
Sochaux	2	3	1934–35, 1937–38
Sète	2	1	1933–34, 1938–39
Club Français	1	4	1895–96
Lens	1	4	1997–98
CA Paris	1	2	1926–27
US Tourcoing	1	1	1909–10
Strasbourg	1	1	1978–79
Gallia Club Paris	1	–	1904–05
Saint-Raphaël	1	–	1911–12
Stade Français	1	–	1927–28
Roubaix-Tourcoing	1	–	1946–47
Auxerre	1	–	1995–96
Montpellier	1	–	2011–12
The White Rovers	–	4	–
Nîmes	–	4	–
Suisse Paris	–	1	–
AS Française	–	1	–
Rouen	–	1	–
Amiens	–	1	–
Cannes	–	1	–
Fives	–	1	–
Toulouse	–	1	–
Metz	–	1	–

Notes:

• Bold indicates clubs currently playing in 2015–16 Ligue 1.
• Lille OSC is the legal heir of Olympique Lillois

Performance by club in Professional era

Club	Winners	Runners-up	Winning Years
Saint-Étienne	10	3	1956–57, 1963–64, 1966–67, 1967–68, 1968–69, 1969–70, 1973–74, 1974–75, 1975–76, 1980–81
Marseille	9	11	1936–37, 1947–48, 1970–71, 1971–72, 1988–89, 1989–90, 1990–91, 1991–92, 2009–10
Nantes	8	7	1964–65, 1965–66, 1972–73, 1976–77, 1979–80, 1982–83, 1994–95, 2000–01
AS Monaco	7	6	1960–61, 1962–63, 1977–78, 1981–82, 1987–88, 1996–97, 1999–00
Lyon	7	4	2001–02, 2002–03, 2003–04, 2004–05, 2005–06, 2006–07, 2007–08
Bordeaux	6	9	1949–50, 1983–84, 1984–85, 1986–87, 1998–99, 2008–09
Paris Saint-Germain	6	7	1985–86, 1993–94, 2012–13, 2013–14, 2014–15, 2015–16
Stade de Reims	6	3	1948–49, 1952–53, 1954–55, 1957–58, 1959–60, 1961–62
Nice	4	3	1950–51, 1951–52, 1955–56, 1958–59
Lille	3	6	1945–46, 1953–54, 2010–11
Sochaux	2	3	1934–35, 1937–38
Sète	2	–	1933–34, 1938–39
Lens	1	4	1997–98
RCF Paris	1	2	1935–36
Strasbourg	1	1	1978–79
Olympique Lillois	1	–	1932–33
Roubaix-Tourcoing	1	–	1946–47
Auxerre	1	–	1995–96
Montpellier	1	–	2011–12
Nîmes	–	4	–
Cannes	–	1	–
Fives	–	1	–
Toulouse	–	1	–
Metz	–	1	–

Notes:

• Bold indicates clubs currently playing in 2015–16 Ligue 1.
• Marseille were stripped of their title by the LFP after being found guilty of bribery in 1992–93 French Division 1. No winner was declared for that season.

Performance by club in Amateur era

Club	Winners	Runners-up	Winning Years
Roubaix	5	2	1901–02, 1902–03, 1903–04, 1905–06, 1907–08
Standard Athletic Club	5	–	1893–94, 1894–95, 1896–97, 1897–98, 1900–01
Helvétique Marseille	3	1	1908–09, 1910–11, 1912–13
Le Havre	3	1	1898–99, 1899–00, 1918–19
Club Français	1	4	1895–96
RCF Paris	1	4	1906–07
CA Paris	1	2	1926–27
US Tourcoing	1	1	1909–10
Marseille	1	1	1928–29
Gallia Club Paris	1	–	1904–05
Saint-Raphaël	1	–	1911–12
Olympique Lillois	1	–	1913–14
Stade Français	1	–	1927–28
The White Rovers	–	4	–
Suisse Paris	–	1	–
AS Française	–	1	–
Rouen	–	1	–
Sète	–	1	–
Amiens	–	1	–

Notes:

• RCF Paris, Marseille, Olympique Lillois are the only teams who managed to Win in Amateur era and also in Professional era.

Notes

1. For the 1927–28 and 1928–29 seasons, the French Football Federation eliminated the league table format used in the previous season and used a playoff system. No third-place match was held.^{[5][18][19][20]}
2. For the 1927–28 and 1928–29 seasons, the French Football Federation eliminated the league table format used in the previous season and used a playoff system. No third-place match was held.^{[5][18][19][20]}
3. Marseille were stripped of their title by the LFP after being found guilty of bribery. No winner was declared for that season.^[10][11]

References

1. Gilles Gauthey, Le football professionnel français, Paris, 1961, p.18. Éditée et diffusée par l'auteur. OCLC 41613347
2. "Palmarès". Ligue 1 (Ligue de Football Professionnel). Retrieved 5 June 2010.
3. "French find recipe for success". Union of European Football Associations. 21 February 2010. Retrieved 11 June 2010.
4. Pauron, Frédéric (24 April 2004). "France 1892–1919". Rec.Sport.Soccer Statistics Foundation. Retrieved 5 June 2010.
5. Pauron, Frédéric (21 May 2010). "France – List of Champions". Rec.Sport.Soccer Statistics Foundation. Retrieved 5 June 2010.
6. "Lyon, France's enduring champions". Fédération Internationale de Football Association. Retrieved 5 June 2010.
7. Lyttleton, Ben (1 June 2009). "Bordeaux claim Ligue 1 title to justify faith in Laurent Blanc". The Guardian (Guardian Media Group). Retrieved 5 June 2010.
8. "Palmarès". AS Saint-Étienne. Retrieved 5 June 2010.
9. "L'OM... et le Championnat" (in French). Olympique de Marseille. Retrieved 5 June 2010.
10. Baring, Louise (2 August 1992). "Un homme d'affaires: Bernard Tapie". The Independent (Independent News and Media). Retrieved 5 June 2010.
11. Bidwell, Nick (13 July 1993). "Scandal leaves a stain on the white shirt of Marseille". The Independent (Independent News and Media). Retrieved 5 June 2010.
12. Halpin, Padraic (8 January 2006). "Match fixing: a history". The Guardian (Guardian Media Group). Retrieved 2 July 2010.
13. "Marseille 3–1 Stade Rennes". ESPNsoccernet (ESPN). 5 May 2010. Retrieved 25 May 2010.
14. "L'OM champion de France !". Ligue 1 (in French) (Ligue de Football Professionnel). 5 May 2010. Retrieved 5 May 2010.
15. "L'histoire du FC Nantes" (in French). FC Nantes. Retrieved 5 June 2010.
16. "Palmares" (in French). AS Monaco FC. Retrieved 5 June 2010.
17. "Le palmarès par compétitions" (in French). Olympique Lyonnais. Retrieved 5 June 2010.
18. "Division d' Excellence: Saison 26-27". Pages Perso Orange. Retrieved 9 July 2010.
19. "Division d' Excellence: Saison 27-28". Pages Perso Orange. Retrieved 9 July 2010.
20. "Division d' Excellence: Saison 28-29". Pages Perso Orange. Retrieved 9 July 2010.
21. "Ligue 1 (ex-D1 jusqu'en 2001–2002)" (in French). French Football Federation. Retrieved 7 June 2010.
22. "Historique Classments". Ligue 1 (in French) (Ligue de Football Professionnel). Retrieved 16 June 2010.

External links

• History of Football in France (French)