Sagesse SC (football)
Lebanese association football club
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Sagesse Sports Club (French: Club Sportif La Sagesse, lit. 'The Wisdom Sports Club'), known as Hekmeh (Arabic: الحكمة) in Arabic, is a football club based in Achrafieh, a district in Beirut, Lebanon, that competes in the Lebanese Premier League,[2] and is primarily supported by the Maronite Christian community.[3]
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| Full name | Sagesse Sports Club | ||
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| Nickname | القَلعَة الخَضراء (The Green Castle)[1] | ||
| Founded | 14 October 1943, as Cercle de la Sagesse | ||
| Ground | Fouad Chehab Stadium | ||
| Capacity | 5000 | ||
| Chairman | Ragheb Haddad | ||
| Manager | Paul Rustom | ||
| League | Lebanese Premier League | ||
| 2024–25 | Lebanese Premier League, 5th of 12 | ||
| Website | sagesseclub | ||
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The club was founded in 1943 as Cercle de la Sagesse. Although they haven't won any major title, Sagesse came second twice in the Lebanese Premier League 2002, and were finalists in both the Lebanese FA Cup, in 2006, and the Lebanese Federation Cup, in 2004.
History
Early history
The Collège de la Sagesse school had a football club with their own students; at the end of each season, graduated players would go on to play for other senior teams, mainly Salam Achrafieh.[4]
Sagesse's senior team were formed in 1942 under the patronage of Father Boulos Kik, the general director of the Sagesse Institute, supported by Monseigneur Jean Maroun.[5] The club received their official license on 14 October 1943,[5] and were formed as Cercle de la Sagesse by a group of former students, namely Edward Tyan, Camille Cordahi, Elie Khalife, and Negib Hobeika.[4] Toutoungi was the club's first president.[4]
The team first played in the 1943–44 Lebanese Second Division; initially formed of former students, the club later also accepted other players.[4] They won the Second Division in their first season, and were due to be promoted to the Lebanese Premier League after beating Shabiba Mazraa 4–0 in the promotion play-offs.[4] However, due to a technicality, Sagesse were allocated in the Second Division for the 1944–45 season.[4] From the 1945–46 season, the club were known as Club de la Sagesse.[4]
Recent history
In 2006 Sagesse reached the final of the Lebanese FA Cup, but lost against the cup holder Ansar 3–1.[6] Sagesse finished second in the 2020–21 Lebanese Second Division, and were promoted back to the Lebanese Premier League after five years.[7]
Club rivalries
Sagesse plays the Achrafieh derby with Racing Beirut.[8]
Players
Current squad
- As of 26 March, 2026[9]
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
| Competition | Player | National team |
|---|---|---|
| 2000 AFC Asian Cup | Ali Fakih |  Lebanon |
| Vardan Ghazaryan | Lebanon | |
| Fouad Hijazi | Lebanon |
Honours
- Lebanese Second Division
- Winners (4): 1943–44, 1947–48, 1955–56, 1998–99
- Lebanese Premier League
- Runners-up (1): 2001–02
- Lebanese FA Cup
- Runners-up (1): 2005–06
- Lebanese Federation Cup
- Runners-up (1): 2004
Managerial history
Eugen Moldovan (2000–2001)
Theo Bücker (2001–2002)
Emile Rustom (2005)- Riad Murad
- Fouad Hijazi
- Fouad Leila
- Sohad Zahran (–2021)
- Vardan Ghazaryan (2021–2022)
- Emile Rustom (2022–2023)
- Paul Rustom (2023–present)
