The
Coupe de la Ligue, known outside of France as the
French League Cup, is a
knockoutA single-elimination tournament, also called a knockout, cup or sudden death tournament, is a type of elimination tournament where the loser of each match is immediately eliminated from winning the championship or first prize in the event...
cup competition in
French footballFootball in France is governed by the French Football Federation . The FFF organises both the men's and women's national football teams. Notably AS Monaco, a club from the independent sovereign state of Monaco, play in French competition...
organised by the
Ligue de Football ProfessionnelThe Ligue de Football Professionnel is the French League of professional Football .The LFP manages the 2 professional divisions of French football, the Championnat de France de football Ligue 1 and Ligue 2, and the Coupe de la Ligue .-External links:* *...
. The tournament was established in 1994, although similar competitions had been previously held in France. The
Coupe Charles DragoThe Coupe Charles Drago was an elimination cup competition organised by the Ligue de Football Professionnel, between clubs that are knocked out before the quarter-finals of the Coupe de France. The tournament was founded in 1953 and was discontinued after the 1965 tournament.-Finals:Key-Results by...
was held from 1953 to 1965; it involved teams eliminated from the
Coupe de FranceCoupe de France, or Coupe Charles Simon, is a competition for French football clubs, open to all professional and non-professional teams. The cup is one of many inter-French club competitions that have been organised by the French Football Federation...
. The winner of the first Coupe Charles Drago final was decided by a
coin-tossCoin flipping or coin tossing is the practice of throwing a coin in the air to resolve a dispute between two parties or otherwise choose between two alternatives...
when
SochauxFootball Club Sochaux-Montbéliard is a French football team which plays in the town of Montbéliard.The club was founded in 1928 as a works team for the Peugeot motor car factory in the village of Sochaux...
and
ToulouseThis article is about the defunct club.For the current Toulouse FC, see Toulouse FC.Toulouse Football Club was a French football team playing in the city of Toulouse, Haute-Garonne.The team was founded in 1937 and disappeared in 1967, in a merge with Red Star Olympique.Even though this team held...
tied 3–3 after
extra timeExtra time is an additional period played in some sports codes if the score is tied at the end of normal time. In score notation, it is often denoted by the letters ET or AET, the latter of which stands for "after extra time"....
.
The
Coupe de la Ligue, known outside of France as the
French League Cup, is a
knockoutA single-elimination tournament, also called a knockout, cup or sudden death tournament, is a type of elimination tournament where the loser of each match is immediately eliminated from winning the championship or first prize in the event...
cup competition in
French footballFootball in France is governed by the French Football Federation . The FFF organises both the men's and women's national football teams. Notably AS Monaco, a club from the independent sovereign state of Monaco, play in French competition...
organised by the
Ligue de Football ProfessionnelThe Ligue de Football Professionnel is the French League of professional Football .The LFP manages the 2 professional divisions of French football, the Championnat de France de football Ligue 1 and Ligue 2, and the Coupe de la Ligue .-External links:* *...
. The tournament was established in 1994, although similar competitions had been previously held in France. The
Coupe Charles DragoThe Coupe Charles Drago was an elimination cup competition organised by the Ligue de Football Professionnel, between clubs that are knocked out before the quarter-finals of the Coupe de France. The tournament was founded in 1953 and was discontinued after the 1965 tournament.-Finals:Key-Results by...
was held from 1953 to 1965; it involved teams eliminated from the
Coupe de FranceCoupe de France, or Coupe Charles Simon, is a competition for French football clubs, open to all professional and non-professional teams. The cup is one of many inter-French club competitions that have been organised by the French Football Federation...
. The winner of the first Coupe Charles Drago final was decided by a
coin-tossCoin flipping or coin tossing is the practice of throwing a coin in the air to resolve a dispute between two parties or otherwise choose between two alternatives...
when
SochauxFootball Club Sochaux-Montbéliard is a French football team which plays in the town of Montbéliard.The club was founded in 1928 as a works team for the Peugeot motor car factory in the village of Sochaux...
and
ToulouseThis article is about the defunct club.For the current Toulouse FC, see Toulouse FC.Toulouse Football Club was a French football team playing in the city of Toulouse, Haute-Garonne.The team was founded in 1937 and disappeared in 1967, in a merge with Red Star Olympique.Even though this team held...
tied 3–3 after
extra timeExtra time is an additional period played in some sports codes if the score is tied at the end of normal time. In score notation, it is often denoted by the letters ET or AET, the latter of which stands for "after extra time"....
. Another competition named Coupe de la Ligue existed from 1963 to 1965; this was run alongside the Coupe Charles Drago for two years until they both ceased. In 1982, a Coupe d'Eté (Summer cup) was held before the start of the French league season; the cup was won by Stade Laval. This tournament continued under the name of Coupe de la Ligue, until 1994, before the beginning of the French season.
History
The tournament in its current format started in 1994. Entrance to the
UEFA CupThe UEFA Europa League is a competition for eligible European football clubs; the second most prestigious European football contest after the UEFA Champions League. It is an annual football cup competition for European club teams organised by the Union of European Football Associations...
, now called the UEFA Europa League, is offered to the winning team. Its first winner was Paris Saint-Germain, after their 2–0 victory over
BastiaSporting Club de Bastia is a French football team, playing in the town of Bastia, Corsica. In the 2004/05 season, Bastia were relegated to Ligue 2 after finishing 19th in Ligue 1. During the 2005/06 season they finished 6th in Ligue 2, the following season they finished at the 9th spot...
. The first final decided by a penalty shoutout was the
1996 cupThe Coupe de la Ligue Final 1996 was a football match held at Parc des Princes, Paris on April 6, 1996, that saw FC Metz defeat Olympique Lyonnais in a penalty shootout-Match Details:
...
when
MetzFootball Club de Metz is a French football team, playing in the town of Metz, in the Lorraine region, which has played in the French Ligue 1 for most of its history.- History of the club :...
beat
Olympique LyonnaisOlympique Lyonnais is a French football club based in Lyon. They play in France's highest football division, Ligue 1....
. The first three finals were held at
Parc des PrincesThe Parc des Princes is a stadium located in the 16th arrondissement of Paris, France, currently the home of football team Paris Saint-Germain , with a seating capacity of 48,712. Originally a velodrome, it was the finish of the Tour de France from the first event in 1903 until the track's...
; since the
1998 cupThe Coupe de la Ligue Final 1998 was a football match held at Stade de France, Saint-Denis on April 4, 1998, that saw Paris Saint-Germain FC defeat FC Girondins de Bordeaux in a penalty shootout-Match Details:
...
, all finals have been held at the
Stade de FranceThe Stade de France is the national stadium of France, situated in the Paris suburb of Saint-Denis. It has an all-seater capacity of 81,338 and is used for the French rugby union team during the Six Nations and other major internationals...
.
StrasbourgRacing Club de Strasbourg is a French football club founded in 1906 and professional since 1933, based in the city of Strasbourg, in Alsace. They currently play in Ligue 2, the second tier of French football, having been relegated from Ligue 1 at the conclusion of the 2007–08 season...
and Paris Saint-Germain have won the competition at both stadiums.
GueugnonFC Gueugnon are a French football club from Gueugnon, Saône-et-Loire, currently playing in Championnat National.- History :Football Club de Gueugnon was founded in 1940, and won the French amateur title in 1947...
became the first team below the
top division of FranceLigue 1 is the top division of French football, one of two divisions making up the LFP, the other being Ligue 2. One member club, AS Monaco, is based in the independent Principality of Monaco, rather than in France proper...
to win the cup after beating Paris Saint-Germain in the
2000 finalThe Coupe de la Ligue Final 2000 was a football match held at Stade de France, Saint-Denis on April 22, 2000, that saw FC Gueugnon of Division 2 defeat Paris Saint-Germain FC 2-0 thanks to goals by Marcelo Trapasso and Sylvain Flauto.-Match Details:
...
. Overall, there have been 14 winners of the competition since
1995The Coupe de la Ligue Final 1995 was a football match held at Parc des Princes, Paris on May 3, 1995, that saw Paris Saint-Germain FC defeat SC Bastia 2-0 thanks to goals by Alain Roche and Raí.-Match Details:-External links:*...
. The most successful teams, in terms of competitions won, are Bordeaux and Paris Saint-Germain, who have won the cup thrice. The current holders of the cup are
BordeauxFC Girondins de Bordeaux is a French football team based in the city of Bordeaux.The club was founded in 1881 as an omnisport club. The Girondins won the French league in 1950, 1984, 1985, 1987, 1999 and are the current champions with a first place finish in 2009...
, who beat
VannesVannes Olympique Club is a French football club based in Vannes, currently set to play in France's second division Ligue 2.The club is managed by Stéphane Le Mignan and they play at the Stade de la Rabine, which seats around 8000 spectators. In 2009, the team reached the final of the Coupe de la...
in the
2009 finalThe 2009 Coupe de la Ligue Final was the 15th final in this young cup's history. The final was played at the Stade de France in Paris on 25 April 2009 was contested between FC Girondins de Bordeaux of Ligue 1 and Vannes OC of Ligue 2. This was the first meeting between the two clubs...
.
Records
- Most tournament wins (team): three, Paris Saint-Germain and Bordeaux
FC Girondins de Bordeaux is a French football team based in the city of Bordeaux.The club was founded in 1881 as an omnisport club. The Girondins won the French league in 1950, 1984, 1985, 1987, 1999 and are the current champions with a first place finish in 2009...
.
- Most final appearances (team): five, Bordeaux
FC Girondins de Bordeaux is a French football team based in the city of Bordeaux.The club was founded in 1881 as an omnisport club. The Girondins won the French league in 1950, 1984, 1985, 1987, 1999 and are the current champions with a first place finish in 2009...
.
- Highest goalscorer (career): Pauleta
Pedro Miguel Carreiro Resendes,
OIH , commonly known as Pauleta , is a former Portuguese professional footballer, who played as a striker....
, 15 goals.
- Most goals scored in a season (player): Stéphane Guivarc'h
Stéphane Guivarc'h is a French former football striker remembered principally for fleeting forays into international and top flight football....
, seven goals in 1997–98.
External links