Paris FC facts for kids
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| Full name | Paris Football Club | ||
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| Nickname(s) | The Blues The Parisians |
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| Founded | 1 August 1969 | ||
| Ground | Stade Sébastien Charléty | ||
| Capacity | 20,000 | ||
| President | Pierre Ferracci | ||
| Head coach | Stéphane Gilli | ||
| League | Ligue 2 | ||
| 2021–22 | Ligue 2, 4th of 20 | ||
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Paris Football Club, often called Paris FC or PFC, is a professional football club from Paris, France. They play in Ligue 2, which is the second-highest football league in France. Their home games are held at the Stade Sébastien Charléty stadium in Paris.
The club started in 1969. In 1970, it joined with another team, Stade Saint-Germain, to create Paris Saint-Germain. But in 1972, Paris FC separated from Paris Saint-Germain. Since then, Paris FC has mostly played in amateur leagues, unlike Paris Saint-Germain, which became very famous. Paris FC's biggest win was a group title in the Championnat de France amateur in 2006. They last played in the top league, Ligue 1, in the 1978–79 season.
Even though Paris FC hasn't won many big titles, it has helped many young players become successful professionals. Some famous players who started here include Mamadou Sakho, Ibrahima Konaté, and Gabriel Obertan. Also, manager Roger Lemerre began his coaching career at Paris FC before leading the French national team to win major tournaments.
Contents
Club History
Starting the Club
Paris Football Club was created on August 1, 1969. The goal was to have a professional football team in Paris playing in the top league by 1970. They tried to join with another club, but it didn't work. So, Paris FC merged with Stade Saint-Germain to form Paris Saint-Germain.
However, in 1972, the clubs split up. This happened because the mayor of Paris wanted to support a club that was truly from Paris. When they split, Paris FC kept its professional status and its players. Paris Saint-Germain was moved down to the third division and got the amateur players.
At the start of the 1972–73 season, Paris FC was playing in the first division at the Parc des Princes stadium. Two seasons later, they were moved down to the second division. This was when Paris Saint-Germain started to become a top team and moved into the Parc des Princes. Paris FC returned to the first division for the 1978–79 season, but it was a tough year, and they went back down to Division 2. Paris FC has not been back to the top league since then.
Moving Through Leagues
In 1983, Paris FC, led by Jean-Luc Lagardère, joined with Racing Club de France. Racing stayed in the first division, but Paris FC was moved down to the fourth division. Because they didn't have many resources, Paris FC dropped to the fifth division. They stayed there for four seasons before moving back up to Division 4 in 1988. The next season, they were promoted again to Division 3.
Paris FC stayed in Division 3 for 12 years. In 2000, they finished 17th and were moved down to the Championnat de France amateur. They spent six years in this league before returning to the National league for the 2006–07 season.
Back to Professional Football
After a good season in 2014–15, Paris FC was promoted to Ligue 2, the second French division. They were promoted alongside their local rival Red Star F.C.. However, they only stayed in Ligue 2 for one year and were moved back to the Championnat National for the 2016–17 season.
In the 2016–17 season, Paris FC played in a special playoff game against US Orleans to try and get promoted, but they lost. Later, Paris FC was moved up to Ligue 2 anyway because another team, SC Bastia, was moved down due to money problems. In the 2017–18 Ligue 2 season, Paris FC finished 8th.
In the 2018–19 season, Paris FC finished 4th and played in the promotion playoffs against RC Lens. They drew 1–1 but lost in a penalty shootout. In April 2021, Paris FC and another club, Angers, were temporarily banned from buying new players by FIFA.
Recent Ownership Changes
In July 2020, a new partner joined Paris FC to help the club grow: the Kingdom of Bahrain. They invested money into the club, giving them 20 percent ownership. Pierre Ferracci, who started the Alpha Group, remained the main owner with 77 percent. Bahrain also became the main sponsor of the club.
The City of Paris gives money to Paris FC each year. Some groups asked the City of Paris to discuss human rights issues in Bahrain, as Bahrain was a part-owner of the club. These groups suggested that Bahrain was using football to improve its image, a practice sometimes called 'sportswashing'. They also asked for the release of people held in Bahrain.
The groups pointed out that the club's jerseys said "Victorious Bahrain" and the stadium had "Explore Bahrain" ads. They felt this was not right because of concerns about Bahrain's human rights situation. After these discussions, the City of Paris voted to give the club its yearly money, but with a condition. The club had to organize activities to teach people about human rights and fight against unfair treatment. This also led to the removal of the "Explore Bahrain" ads at the stadium.
In October 2024, it was reported that the Arnault family would buy a major share of the club, and Red Bull GmbH would also buy a smaller share.
Supporters and Rivalries
When Paris FC first started, it was very popular and had over 20,000 members. In 1970, the club merged to form Paris Saint-Germain F.C., but then left the merger. In 1973, after leaving, the club still had an average of 13,202 fans at its games.
However, over time, Paris Saint-Germain became much more popular, and Paris FC became less known, playing in lower leagues. Its popularity only started to grow again when it reached the third division. Today, the club usually attracts a few hundred to a few thousand fans for each match.
In the 2000s, Paris FC had a fan group called Blue Wolves, started in 2008. This group was officially not political, but they often had right-wing views. They were stopped in 2010 after some hooligan incidents, especially during a game against FC Gueugnon.
New groups replaced them: Old Clan, started in 2010, and Ultras Lutetia, an ultras group started in 2014. After PSG fans were not allowed at their stadium in 2010, some of them started supporting Paris FC. This included some from the left-wing group Virage Auteuil and a few from the right-wing group Boulogne Boys.
Paris FC fans are friendly with fans of SR Colmar and Hereford FC. In the past, they were also friends with fans of Stade Reims.
The club has rivalries with nearby teams US Créteil and Red Star F.C.. These games are called Parisian derbies. Even though both Paris FC and Red Star are officially not political, the rivalry is strong because Red Star fans often have left-wing views, and Paris FC's past fan groups had right-wing views. The rivalry with US Créteil is mainly because both clubs are in the southern suburbs of Paris.
Current Team Players
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Players on Loan
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Famous Former Players
Below are some well-known players who have played for Paris FC since it started in 1969. To be on this list, a player must have played in at least 80 official matches for the club.
For a full list of Paris FC players, see Category:Paris FC players
Jean-François Beltramini- Georges Eo
- Bernard Guignedoux
- Fabrice Moreau
- Jimmy Modeste
- Philippe Prieur
Lamri Laachi
Omar da Fonseca
Armand Ossey
Dragoslav Šekularac
Club Management
Club Leaders
- As of August 1, 2020
| Position | Name |
|---|---|
| President of the club | Pierre Ferracci |
| General Manager | Fabrice Herrault |
| Sportive Director | Frederic Hebert |
| Head coach | Stéphane Gilli |
| Assistant coach | Fabien Lefèvre Armand Séné |
| Goalkeeper coach | Mickael Boull |
| Performance manager | Christophe Manouvrier |
| Doctor | Nicolas Jubin |
| Physio | Erwann Le Corre Stephen Hall Brice Chevalier |
| Osteopath | Geoffroy Kevorkoff |
| Masseur | Hervé Gallorini |
| Intendant | Pierre Garbin Souleymane Samassa |
| Team Manager | Olivier Perez |
| Director of academy | Jean-Marc Nobilo |
Board Members
- Pierre Ferracci
- FINARAMA
- ALTER PARIS
- Association Paris Football Club
- Patrick Gobert
- H.H. Sheikh Khalifa Ali Isa Salman Al-Khalifa
- Abdulla Jehad Abdulla Alzain
Coaches Through the Years
- Louis Hon (1972–73)
- Antoine Dalla Cieca (1973–76)
- Robert Vicot (1976–79)
- Roger Lemerre (1979–81)
- Alberto Muro (1981–83)
- Luc Rabat (1983–86)
- Pierre Lechantre (1987–92)
- Hubert Velud (1992)
- Delio Onnis (1992–95)
- Hubert Velud (1995–99)
- Jean-François Charbonnier (1999)
- Jean-Pierre Carayon (1999 – November 99)
- Robert Buigues (November 1999–02)
- Philippe Lemaître (2002–04)
- Patrick Parizon (2002–05)
- Jean-Marc Pilorget (2005–07)
- Jean-Guy Wallemme (2007–08)
- Jean-Marc Pilorget (2008–09)
- Jean-Luc Vannuchi (2009–11)
- Alain Mboma (2011–12)
- Olivier Guillou (2012)
- Alexandre Monier (2012–13)
- Gaston Diamé (2013)
- Christophe Taine (2013–15)
- Denis Renaud (2015)
- Jean-Luc Vasseur (2015–16)
- Réginald Ray (2016–17)
- Fabien Mercadal (2017–18)
- Mehmed Baždarević (2018–19)
- René Girard (2019–21)
- Thierry Laurey (2021–23)
- Stéphane Gilli (2023–)
Club Achievements
League Titles
- Ligue 2 (second highest league)
- Second place: 1977–78 (Group B)
- Championnat National (third highest league)
- Second place: 2014–15
- Championnat National 2/French Division 4
- Winners (1): 2005–06 (Group D)
- Second place: 1988–89
See also
In Spanish: Paris Football Club para niños
