Nîmes Olympique
French football club
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Nîmes Olympique[3] (commonly referred to as simply Nîmes) is a French association football club based in Nîmes. The club was founded on 12 April 1937 and currently plays in the Championnat National 2, the fourth tier of French football. The Stade des Antonins is the club's home stadium.
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| Full name | Nîmes Olympique | |||
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| Nickname | Les Crocodiles (The Crocodiles)[1] | |||
| Founded | 12 April 1937 | |||
| Ground | Stade des Antonins | |||
| Capacity | 8,033[2] | |||
| President | Rani Assaf | |||
| Head coach | Mickaël Gas | |||
| League | Championnat National 2 | |||
| 2024–25 | Championnat National, 17th of 17 (relegated) | |||
| Website | www | |||
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History
Initially founded in 1901 by Henri Monnier as Sporting Club Nîmois, the club's competitive history can be traced back to the Championnat Union des Sociétés Françaises de Sports Athlétiques where they won the 1908 edition of the competition in the Languedoc zone before eventually being knocked out by Olympique de Marseille 2-5.[4] Sporting Club Nîmois was dissolved in 1935 before a continuation of the club in Nîmes Olympique was established on April 12, 1937.[4] An article for association status for the club was accepted on 4 June 1937.
In the years following World War 2, Nîmes were promoted to the French Division 1 during the 1949-1950 season and finishing fifth in Division 1 the following season. During the 1950s, the club would see some success at domestic level, winning the Coupe Drago in 1956 in a 3–1 win over Lille and finishing runners up in Division 1 on three occasions (1957-58, 1958-59 and 1959-60).[4] The club would fall into the French Division 2 in the 1983-84 season.[4]
In the 1995–96 season, then playing in the third division (non-professional level), Nîmes reached the final of the Coupe de France, allowing them to compete the following year in the UEFA Cup Winners' Cup. In September 1996, in the Round of 32, Nîmes beat Budapest Honvéd (5–2 on aggregate), before losing to AIK in the next round (2–3 on aggregate).[5][6]
On 5 May 2018, Nîmes secured promotion back to Ligue 1 for the first time since the 1992–93 season after finishing second in Ligue 2.[7] In the 2018–19 season, Nîmes finished comfortably above the relegation zone in Ligue 1, placing 9th among 20 teams. In the 2020–21 Ligue 1 season, Nîmes finished second from bottom and were relegated to Ligue 2.[8]
On 5 November 2022, Nîmes played its final match at the Stade des Costières, a 1–0 Ligue 2 victory over Bordeaux.[9] The club would move into the Stade des Antonins on a temporary basis, before the demolition of the Stade des Costières would pave the way for the construction of the Stade Nemausus, for a projected completion in 2026.[10] In the 2022–23 Ligue 2 season, Nîmes finished second from the bottom and were relegated to the Championnat National.[11] In the 2024-25 Championnat National season, they finished at the bottom and were relegated once again to Championnat National 2.[12]
Players
Current squad
- As of 31 January 2026[13]
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
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Notable players
Below are the notable former players who have represented Nîmes in league and international competition since the club's foundation in 1937. To appear in the section below, a player must have played in at least 80 official matches for the club or represented the national team for which the player is eligible during his stint with Nîmes or following his departure.
For a complete list of Nîmes Olympique players, see Category:Nîmes Olympique players
France
- Jean-Pierre Adams
- William Ayache
- Ivan Bek
- Pierre Bernard
- Laurent Blanc
- Bernard Boissier
- Eric Cantona
- André Chardar
- Johann Charpenet
- Paul Chillan
- Patrick Cubaynes
- Johnny Ecker
- Jean-Marc Ferratge
- Jordan Ferri
- Kader Firoud
- René Girard
- Edmond Haan
- Mahi Khennane
- Maurice Lafont
- Michel Mézy
- Jacky Novi
- Christian Perez
- Frédéric Piquionne
- Benoît Poulain
- Bernard Rahis
- Téji Savanier
- Henri Skiba
- Joseph Ujlaki
- Philippe Vercruysse
- Jacky Vergnes
- Alexandre Villaplane
- Anthony Vosahlo
Coaches
- Vilmos Kohut (1939–40)
- Marcel Gebelin (1940–42)[14]
- Louis Gabrillargues (1942–46)
- René Dedieu (1946–48)
- Pierre Pibarot (1948–55)
- Kader Firoud (1955–64)
- Pierre Pibarot (1964–67)
- Marcel Rouvière (1967)
- Marcel Tomazover (1967–69)
- Kader Firoud (1969–78)
- Henri Noël (1978–82)
- Pierre Barlaguet (1982–84)
- Marcel Domingo (1984–86)
- Kristen Nygaard (1986–87)
- Jean Sérafin (1987–88)
- Bernard Boissier (1988–90)
- Daniel Romeo (1990–91)
- René Girard (1991–92)
- Michel Mézy (1992)
- Léonce Lavagne (1992–93)
- Michel Mézy (1993)
- René Exbrayat (1993–94)
- Josip Skoblar (1994)
- René Girard (1994)
- Pierre Barlaguet (1994–96)
- Pierre Mosca (1996–99)
- Serge Delmas (1999–00)
- Dominique Bathenay (2000)
- Bernard Boissier (2001–02)
- François Brisson and Armand Sene (2002–03)
- Patrick Champ (2003)
- Didier Ollé-Nicole (2003–05)
- Régis Brouard (2005–07)
- Laurent Fournier (2007)
- Jean-Luc Vannuchi (2007–08)
- Jean-Michel Cavalli (2008–10)
- Noël Tosi (2010–11)
- Thierry Froger (2011–12)
- Victor Zvunka (2012–13)
- René Marsiglia (2013–14)
- José Pasqualetti (2014–15)
- Bernard Blaquart (2015–20)
- Jérôme Arpinon (2020–21)
- Pascal Plancque (2021–22)
- Nicolas Usaï (2022)
- Frédéric Bompard (2022–2024)
- Adil Hermach (2024–present)
Honours
League
- Ligue 1
- Runners-up: 1958, 1959, 1960, 1972
- Ligue 2
- Champions: 1950
- Runners-up: 2018
- Championnat National
- Champions: 1997, 2012
Cup
- Coupe de France
- Trophée des Champions
- Runners-up: 1958
- Coppa delle Alpi
- Champions: 1972
- Coupe Charles Drago
- Champions: 1956
- Coupe Gambardella
- Champions: 1961, 1966, 1969, 1977
