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Stade Malherbe Caen
SM Caen 2016 logo.svg
Full name Stade Malherbe Caen
Nickname(s) Malherbe
Les Vikings (The Vikings)
Short name SMC
Founded 17 November 1913; 110 years ago (17 November 1913)
Ground Stade Michel d'Ornano
Ground Capacity 20,300
President Olivier Pickeu
Manager Jean-Marc Furlan
League Ligue 2
2021–22 Ligue 2, 7th of 20

Stade Malherbe Caen (French pronunciation: [stad malɛʁb kɑ̃]; commonly known as SM Caen, SMC, or simply Caen) is a French professional football team, based in the city of Caen in Normandy, that competes in the Ligue 2. The club was founded on 17 November 1913 by the merger of Club Malherbe Caennais and Club Sportif Caennais. The team takes its name from François de Malherbe, a 17th-century poet from Caen.

For most of its history, SM Caen has been one of the main amateur clubs in France. The late 1980s and early 1990s saw the rise of Stade Malherbe in the French football hierarchy. In 1985, Stade Malherbe adopted professional status. Three seasons later, it was promoted for the first time to first division. In 1992, a few months after being narrowly saved from bankruptcy, the club finished fifth in Division 1 and qualified for UEFA Cup. But it was relegated three years later. Despite a second division title won in 1996, SM Caen fell back into the anonymity of the second division.

Under the chairmanship of Jean-François Fortin, from 2002, and under the sporting direction of Patrick Rémy, Franck Dumas and then Patrice Garande, the Stade Malherbe has regained sporting success. The club was promoted in Ligue 1 several times, reached the Coupe de la Ligue final in 2005 and finished 7th in Ligue 1 in 2016. In 2018, while the club makes its 5th consecutive season in Ligue 1, a conflict erupted within the management team, causing the departure of chairman Jean-François Fortin and coach Patrice Garande. Caen was relegated to Ligue 2 in 2019. Facing financial troubles, it was bought by the American fund Oaktree Capital Management in 2020, which appointed Olivier Pickeu as new president.

SM Caen has been playing since 1993 at the Stade Michel d'Ornano. Before and since its foundation, the club played at Stade de Venoix, which is now used by the reserve team. It has geographical rivalries with Le Havre AC (sometimes called "Le derby normand") and Stade Rennais, its closest neighbour when the club was in Ligue 1.

History

Genesis (Before 1913)

Many football clubs were constituted in Caen at the end of the 19th century : the Union sportive des étudiants de Caen, founded in 1892, the Union Athlétique du Lycée Malherbe (UALM), founded in 1892 or 1895 and the Club Sportif Caennais, founded in November 1899. These clubs participated in the early editions of the football championship organised by the Union des Sociétés Françaises de Sports Athlétiques.

In 1907, former members of UALM created the Club Malherbe Caennais, soon the best club in Lower Normandy. In 1909 and 1911, several friendlies matches were organised between a selection of players from Caen and the English club of St Albans City F.C.

First years and first professional adventure (1913–1947)

SM Caen 1918-19
Stade Malherbe team in 1919
Smcaen 1934
First professional team of Stade Malherbe, 1934–35 season

The Stade Malherbe Caennais was officially founded on 17 November 1913 from the merger of Club Sportif Caennais and Club Malherbe Caennais. It was a multi-sport athletic club, which adopted the "Malherbe" and the striped jersey of the CMC, and the red and blue colours of CSC. The club had its own facilities – the Stade de Venoix – inherited from the CMC.

The football team of CMC, engaged in the league in Lower Normandy, changed its name just after the start of the season. By winning this competition, Stade Malherbe recorded their first title in its first year of existence. Having qualified for the finals of the 1914 USFSA Football Championship, Caen was eliminated in the 1/8 final by the Union sportive Servannaise : after a draw in the first game (3–3) it had to forfeit the second. World War I stopped the competitions. Thirty-nine members of the club were killed in the fighting, including former captain Eugène Lesomptier.

In 1919, the USFSA championship was replaced by regional championships organised by the French Football Federation, called Division d'Honneur. Stade Malherbe, reinforced by the move to Caen of the former French international Eugène Maës, won six times the championship of Lower Normandy between 1920 and 1928, but were unable to compete with the major Upper Normandy clubs, Le Havre AC and FC Rouen. Since 1919–20, Caen also participated in the Coupe de France but fell in round of 32 in 1921 and 1922. In 1929, the two Division d'Honneur leagues of Normandy were merged and Stade Malherbe was promoted the year after. Its best final standing was 5th in 1933.

In 1934, one year after FC Rouen and Le Havre AC, Stade Malherbe acquired professional status and reached the French Division 2. The club finished 11th out of 16 for the first season, then 6th in 1936 and 8th in 1937. But its financial situation deteriorated and Stade Malherbe left D2 in 1938, after four professional seasons.

The club then returned to Division d'Honneur of Normandy. It won the last edition before World War II in 1938–39, and the first two after WW2 in 1946 and 1947.

An important amateur club (1948–1985)

In 1948, Stade Malherbe joined the newly founded Championnat de France amateur [fr], the third level of French football. Soon considered as a "lord" in CFA, Caen was unable to win the championship, unlike their regional rival US Quevilly, despite successive calls to former French international players as coaches: Jules Vandooren, Jean Prouff, Andre Grillon, Jean Vincent and Oliver Celestin.

Stade Malherbe made itself known essentially by repeated feats in Coupe de France in the 1950s : French champion Stade de Reims (2–1) and top teams Racing Club de France (3–2) and RC Lens were defeated in January 1953, 1956 and 1961. In 1958, Caen pushed FC Nantes to play five games to decide: the first three games resulting in 0–0 draws, the fourth was stopped, the fifth saw Nantes win 1–0. Through its success Caen won the "Challenge France-Football" rewarding the best amateur team in Coupe de France in 1956 and 1961. Undermined by the instability of its coaches and presidents and a precarious financial health, Stade Malherbe weakened gradually and was relegated twice (in 1962 and 1965) into Division d'Honneur, but regained its place in CFA.

In 1970, the CFA was removed and the Division 2 was enlarged to 48 teams. During the 1970s, Caen evolved between D3 and D2, where it failed to stabilise. Jacques Mouilleron became coach in 1973. In 1975, the club won its first national title: the West group of Division 3. Stade Malherbe was named best amateur club by France-Football and Jean-Paul Bouffandeau and Jean-Paul Pottier were named French amateur players of the year in 1975 and 1976. 3 years later, Caen fell back to D3.

Pierre Mankowski was hired as player-coach in 1983. He led Stade Malherbe from D3 to the top of D2 in a few seasons, and pushed it to adopt professional status in 1985.

From D2 to the European Cup (1985–1993)

SM Caen has been a professional football club since 1985. The stated objective of Mankowski was to bring Caen into the first division. He helped the team improve, first in defence then in attack. Caen finished sixth in D2 in 1986 and second in 1987, with notable scorers Philippe Prieur and Éric Pécout. Caen made the stade de Venoix an unbeatable place but bowed out in front of AS Cannes in the playoffs. Caen succeeded in the playoffs following season, defeating Olympique Lyonnais and Chamois Niortais F.C., relegated from D1.

In 1988 Stade Malherbe made Division 1. Despite many departures, including coach Mankowski (replaced by Robert Nouzaret) and six first losses, Caen stayed up, one point ahead of RC Strasbourg, with the advent of a promising striker Fabrice Divert. Stade Malherbe confirmed, not without difficulties, its performance the following season.

With a new coach, Daniel Jeandupeux, the team was largely restructured. In 1990–91, Caen took its place in the first half of Division 1, thanks to the excellent results obtained in Venoix. However, the press revealed in late 1991 that the club was close to bankruptcy. Regional businesses and local government bailed out the club, which led to a brilliant 1991–92 season. Stade Malherbe finished fifth and qualified for the first (and so far only) time for the UEFA Cup. Stéphane Paille scored 15 goals during the season. For the first round of the 1992–93 UEFA Cup, Caen had to face up to Real Zaragoza. Caen won 3–2 in the 1st leg but lost 2–0 in Spain. Despite the goals of Xavier Gravelaine, SM Caen finished the season in a relatively disappointing eleventh rank.

Between First and Second Division (since 1993)

Caen-lehavre9495
Tifo at Stade Michel d'Ornano for Normandy derby in 1995.
Finale Coupe de la Ligue 2005
Coupe de la Ligue Final in 2005.

In the 2003–04 season, Caen finished 2nd in Ligue 2, gaining promotion to Ligue 1. They were relegated on the last day of the 2004–05 Ligue 1 season, finishing in 18th place despite some positive results, including a surprise 3–2 away win at Marseille. But the main highlight of their season was making it into the final of the Coupe de la Ligue for the first time in their history. Their chance at a major trophy eluded them however, as they lost 2–1 to Strasbourg in the final.

On 25 May 2007, SM Caen obtained promotion to Ligue 1 after a victory in last game at Libourne (1–2). In the 2008–09 season, the team was once again relegated to Ligue 2 after losing 1–0 at home to Bordeaux, but won championship next season and thus came back to Ligue 1.

In the 2010–11 season, Caen got off to a highly impressive start by defeating defending champions Marseille 2–1 away on the first day of the season, then following it up with a 3–2 home win over the previous season's Champions League semi-finalists Lyon.

In the 2013–14 season, Caen were in Ligue 2, but won promotion to Ligue 1 for the 2014–15 season. As part of their promotion battle, they drew a crucial match with Nîmes in May 2014. This 1–1 result was also very favourable to Nîmes who were battling to avoid relegation. This result raised suspicions, and in November 2014, Caen chairman Fortin was arrested, amongst several others, on suspicion of match fixing. Finally, he was cleared in March 2015. For the 2016–17 and 2017–18 seasons, Caen avoided relegation to Ligue 2 on both occasions by securing a draw on the final day of the season against Paris Saint-Germain.

In the 2018–19 season, Caen were relegated on the final day of the campaign after losing to Bordeaux 1–0. Caen needed to win the match and hope that results elsewhere would go in their favour. The relegation ended Caen's five-year stay in the top division.

Honours

National Regional, Youth and International
Best performance: 5th (1991–92)
Champion: 1995–96, 2009–10
Runners-up: 1986–87* (group A), 1987–88* (group B), 2003–04*, 2006–07*
Best performance: Semi-finals (2017–18)
Final: 2004–05
  • Division 3 (2):
Champion : 1975, 1980 (groupe Ouest)
Champion: 1939, 1947, 1948, 1963, 1966
Champion: 1914, 1920, 1921, 1922, 1923, 1925, 1928
  • Coupe Gambardella:
Final: 1959, 1994, 2001
  • Coupe des Cadets:
Winner: 1973
  • UEFA Intertoto Cup:
Final: 1992 (group 6)

* denotes promotion without winning the championship.

Domestic Record
Year Division Place Played Won Drawn Lost G.F. G.A. G.D. Points
1934–35 Second League 11th 26 9 3 14 61 57 +4 21
1935–36 Second League 6th 34 17 5 12 68 57 +11 39
1936–37 Second League 8th 32 12 7 13 44 53 −9 31
1937–38 Second League 14th 30 N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A 23
1970–71 Division 2 – B 15th 30 8 6 16 29 46 −17 22
1971–72 Division 2 – A 6th 30 12 9 9 32 36 −4 33
1972–73 Division 2 – A 17th 34 8 7 19 37 65 −28 23
1975–76 Division 2 – A 6th 34 16 8 10 54 48 +6 43
1976–77 Division 2 – B 15th 34 11 8 15 43 51 −8 30
1977–78 Division 2 – B 18th 34 6 8 20 29 66 −37 20
1980–81 Division 2 – B 18th 34 6 10 18 25 58 −33 22
1984–85 Division 2 – A 11th 34 11 11 12 33 40 −7 33
1985–86 Division 2 – B 6th 34 14 9 11 33 31 +2 37
1986–87 Division 2 – A 2nd 34 21 6 7 62 30 +32 48
1987–88 Division 2 – B 2nd 34 20 9 5 54 22 +32 49
1988–89 First League 16th 38 10 10 18 39 60 −21 40
1989–90 First League 16th 38 12 10 16 34 48 −14 34
1990–91 First League 8th 38 13 12 13 38 36 +2 38
1991–92 First League 5th 38 17 10 11 46 45 +1 44
1992–93 First League 11th 38 13 9 16 55 54 +1 35
1993–94 First League 16th 38 12 7 19 29 54 −25 31
1994–95 First League 19th 38 10 6 22 38 58 −20 36
1995–96 Second League 1st 42 24 9 9 59 34 +25 81
1996–97 First League 17th 38 7 16 15 35 46 −11 37
1997–98 Second League 9th 42 15 11 16 61 55 +6 56
1998–99 Second League 5th 38 16 11 11 47 39 +8 59
1999–00 Second League 6th 38 12 17 9 50 37 +13 53
2000–01 Second League 17th 38 11 10 17 38 53 −15 43
2001–02 Second League 6th 38 16 10 12 59 55 +4 58
2002–03 Second League 7th 38 12 16 10 45 40 +5 52
2003–04 Second League 2nd 38 20 11 7 56 31 +25 71
2004–05 First League 18th 38 10 12 16 36 60 −24 42
2005–06 Second League 4th 38 18 12 8 56 35 +21 66
2006–07 Second League 2nd 38 19 14 5 65 40 +25 71
2007–08 First League 11th 38 13 12 13 48 53 −5 51
2008–09 First League 18th 38 8 13 17 42 49 −7 37
2009–10 Second League 1st 38 18 15 5 52 30 +22 69
2010–11 First League 15th 38 11 13 14 46 51 −5 46
2011–12 First League 18th 38 9 11 18 39 59 −20 38
2012–13 Second League 4th 38 17 12 9 48 28 +20 63
2013–14 Second League 3rd 38 18 10 10 65 44 +21 64
2014–15 First League 13th 38 12 10 16 54 55 −1 46
2015–16 First League 7th 38 16 6 16 39 52 −13 54
2016–17 First League 17th 38 10 7 21 36 65 −29 37
2017–18 First League 16th 38 10 8 20 27 52 −25 38

Club crest and colours

Maillots SM Caen
SM Caen Shirts (1992, 2002 and 2005).

Club Malherbe Caennais wore a black and white vertical stripes jersey, while Club Sportif Caennais used blue and red horizontal stripes. Following the merger of two clubs in 1913, the officials decided to mix colours and symbols by adopting the CMC vertical stripes and CSC colours.

Stade Malherbe used for almost fifty years the same diamond shaped logo, designed for the first professional period in 1934.

In 1989, a new logo was designed, with a longship floating on the waves, a nod to the Viking origin of Normandy, and three arrows of the city of Caen. It was used in various versions for eighteen seasons, including within a shield in the 2006–07 season. In 2007, officials present a new logo. The new logo reflects the identity of the club, closely linked to the Norman period of William the Conqueror: the flag of Normandy, which is actually the historical Norman flag of the Two Lions, can be often seen in the Kop Normandy. In 2013, the official anthem of SM Caen "Normands, fiers et conquérants!" was made with a marked reference to the Norman identity:

"Représenter la Normandie est un honneur
Derrière nos léopards nous chanterons en cœur!
Décrire cette belle région
Doit se faire à l'unisson
Nous sommes Normands, fiers et conquérant!
Portons les couleurs du Stade Malherbe de Caen,
et c'est à d'Ornano que nous allons chantant
Nous sommes de la même famille,
Tous unis à domicile,
Nous sommes Normands fiers et conquérants!"
English:
"Represent Normandy is an honour,
We are gonna support our leopards with our chants,
Describe this beautiful region
must unite us together
We are Normans, proud and conquerors!
We wear the colours of SM Caen
And we go singing to d'Ornano
We are from the same family,
All united in a home,
We are Normans, proud and conquerors!"

Stadiums

Stade Venoix
Venoix
Stade Michel d'Ornano
d'Ornano
Caen stadium pictures

Stade de Venoix was the club's home from 1913, although the first stand was built only in 1925, until 1993. Venoix could hold over 15,000 spectators at its peak, and now has a capacity of 5,000.

In 1993 a new 21,500-capacity stadium was built, named Stade Michel d'Ornano. The new stadium is around 500 meters away from the Stade de Venoix.

Players

Current squad

As of 3 August 2023.

No. Position Player
1 Algeria GK Anthony Mandrea
2 Tunisia DF Ali Abdi
3 France DF Diabé Bolumbu
4 France DF Valentin Henry
5 Tunisia DF Syam Ben Youssef
6 France MF Quentin Daubin
7 France FW Tidian Gomis
8 France FW Yoann Court
10 Ivory Coast FW Caleb Zady Sery
11 France FW Moussa Sylla
16 Martinique GK Yannis Clementia
17 France FW Godson Kyeremeh
19 Guinea-Bissau FW Alexandre Mendy
20 France MF Noé Lebreton
21 France MF Bilal Brahimi
No. Position Player
22 France FW Mohamed Hafid
23 France MF Mathias Autret
24 France DF Hugo Vandermersch
27 France DF Daylam Meddah
28 France MF Djibril Diani
29 France DF Romain Thomas
30 France GK Destiné Jopanguy
61 France DF Brahim Traoré
77 Belgium FW Norman Bassette
91 Ghana DF Emmanuel Ntim
92 France DF Alexandre Coeff
97 Ivory Coast DF Dieudonné Gaucho Debohi
Russia DF Vladislav Molchan
Ivory Coast MF Daouda Koné

Out on loan

No. Position Player
France MF Lamine Sy (on loan to Rouen)
France FW Samuel Essende (on loan to Vizela)
No. Position Player
Benin FW Andréas Hountondji (on loan to Rodez)
France FW Ilyes Najim (on loan to Martigues)

Notable former players

Most capped players
Name Matches (D1/L1)
Nicolas Seube 477 232
Anthony Deroin 395 93
Yvan Lebourgeois 391 200
Jimmy Hebert 321 38
Christophe Point 301 172
Top scorers
Name Goals (D1/L1)
Cyrille Watier 61 9
Xavier Gravelaine 45 26
Fabrice Divert 44 40
Sébastien Mazure 43 13
Anthony Deroin 38 9
French internationals
Name Caps
Xavier Gravelaine 3 (1992–93)
Fabrice Divert 1 (1990)
Steve Savidan 1 (2008)

last update : summer 2010
(only D2, D1 and cups matches)

Coaching & Technical Staff

Position Name
Manager France Stéphane Moulin
Assistant Manager France Serge Le Dizet
France Patrice Sauvaget
Goalkeeping Coach France Arnaud Lucas
Fitness Coach France Benoît Pickeu
Guardians Coach France Eddy Costil

Coaching history

Years Coach
1934–35 François Konya
1935–36 Jean Gast
1936–38 Maurice Cottenet
1938–44 Jean Gast
1944–46 Karoly Mayer
1946–47 Armand Deruaz
1947–49 Charles Carville
1949–52 Jules Vandooren
1952–53 Jean Prouff
1953–55 Eugène Proust
1955–58 André Grillon
1958–59 Marcel Leperlier
1959–61 Louis Require
1961–62 Albert Eloy
1962–64 Marcel Mouchel
Years Coach
1964–67 Jean Vincent
1967–72 Célestin Oliver
1972 – Dec 72 Bernard Lelong
Dec 1972 Guy Lunel (interim)
Dec 1972 – Nov 73 Émile Rummelhardt
Nov 1973–79 Jacques Mouilleron
1979–83 Alain Laurier
1983–88 Pierre Mankowski
1988 – Dec 89 Robert Nouzaret
Dec 1989–94 Daniel Jeandupeux
1994–96 Pierre Mankowski
1996–97 Guy David
1997 – Nov 97 Gabriel Calderon
Nov 1997 Daniel Jeandupeux (interim)
Years Coach
Nov 1997 – Sept 00 Pascal Théault
Sept 2000 Christophe Desbouillons (interim)
Sept 2000–01 Jean-Louis Gasset
2001–02 Hervé Gauthier
2002 – 5 May 2005 Patrick Remy
May 2005 Franck Dumas (interim)
2005–09 Franck Dumas &
Patrick Parizon
2009–12 Franck Dumas &
Patrice Garande
2012–18 Patrice Garande
2018–19 Fabien Mercadal
2019 Rui Almeida
2019–21 Pascal Dupraz
2021 Fabrice Vandeputte
2021– Stéphane Moulin

European record

Season Competition Round Club Home Away Aggregate
1992 UEFA Intertoto Cup Group stage Denmark Lyngby BK 1–0 1–2 2nd
Netherlands RKC Waalwijk 2–0 0–1
Germany Schalke 04 1–1 1–1
1992–93 UEFA Cup First Round Spain Real Zaragoza 3–2 0–2 3–4 Symbol delete vote.svg

See also

Kids robot.svg In Spanish: Stade Malherbe Caen para niños

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