Toulouse FC

Toulouse Football Club is a French professional football club based in Toulouse. The club was founded in 1970 and currently plays in Ligue 1, the first division of French football. Toulouse plays its home matches at the Stadium de Toulouse located within the city.

This article is about the men's football club founded in 1970. For the women's football team, see Toulouse FC (women). For the original club, see Toulouse FC (1937).

Toulouse
Full nameToulouse Football Club
Nickname(s)Le Téfécé
Les Violets
Le Tef
Les Pitchouns[1]
Short nameTFC
Founded25 May 1970 (25 May 1970)
GroundStadium de Toulouse
Capacity33,151
Coordinates43°34′59″N 1°26′3″E
OwnerRedBird Capital Partners (85%)
PresidentDamien Comolli
Head coachPhilippe Montanier
LeagueLigue 1
2021–22Ligue 2, 1st of 20 (promoted)
WebsiteClub website

Les Pitchouns are the current holders of the Coupe de France, and have won the second tier Ligue 2 on three occasions.[2] Toulouse have participated in European competition five times, including in 2007 when they qualified for the UEFA Champions League for the first time.[3] They are set to participate in the 2023–24 UEFA Europa League, following their victory in the preceding year's Coupe de France.

The president of Toulouse FC is Damien Comolli, who succeeded the French businessman Olivier Sadran who took over the club following its bankruptcy in 2001 which resulted in it being relegated to the Championnat National. The club has served as a springboard for several players, most notably the World Cup-winning goalkeeper Fabien Barthez, international strikers André-Pierre Gignac[4] and Martin Braithwaite.

History

The city was left without a big side in 1967 when Toulouse FC sold its players and place in the French top flight to Paris outfit Red Star, but three years later a new club, Union Sportive Toulouse, rose from the ashes. Adopting red and yellow jerseys, the club started out in Ligue 2 and in 1979 reclaimed the name Toulouse FC. Now wearing purple and white, Les Pitchouns gained top-flight promotion in 1982. A side containing Jacques Santini and Swiss forward Daniel Jeandupeux earned a penalty shoot-out victory against Diego Maradona's Napoli in the 1986–87 UEFA Cup, Toulouse's maiden European campaign.

Toulouse fans celebrate qualifying for the 2007–08 UEFA Champions League

After goalkeeper Fabien Barthez made his breakthrough and moved on, Toulouse were relegated in 1994. They subsequently bounced back and forth between Ligues 1 and 2 before slipping to the third flight in 2001 after financial problems. Toulouse were back in the top flight two seasons later, and in 2007 they finished third to earn a place in the 2007–08 UEFA Champions League third qualifying round. There, Liverpool overpowered them 5–0 on aggregate.[3]

In 2008–09, Toulouse finished fourth in the Ligue 1 table with 64 points, and secured a spot in the new Europa League, while André-Pierre Gignac led all scorers in Ligue 1 with 24 goals and was awarded a call-up to the French national team.[4]

In the 2015–16 Ligue 1 season, Toulouse avoided relegation to Ligue 2 in the last game of the season. With 12 minutes to go, Toulouse were behind to Angers 2–1 and needed a win to survive, and scored two late goals and won the match 3–2.[5] Two years later, they finished 18th and won the promotion/relegation playoff 4–0 on aggregate against Ligue 2's AC Ajaccio.[6]

On 6 January 2020, Toulouse dismissed manager Antoine Kombouaré following the club's 1–0 loss to Championnat National 2 side Saint-Pryvé Saint-Hilaire in the Coupe de France. Under Kombouaré the club had lost ten matches in a row, leading him to be dismissed and replaced by Denis Zanko.[7] On 30 April that year, Toulouse were relegated to Ligue 2 after the LFP elected to end the season early due to the coronavirus pandemic.[8]

On 21 July 2020, RedBird Capital Partners acquired an 85% stake in Toulouse FC.[9] The club achieved promotion back to Ligue 1 by winning the second tier, Ligue 2, in 2022.[10] On 29 April 2023, Toulouse won its first-ever Coupe de France title, defeating Kombouaré's Nantes in the final by a score of 5–1.[11] It was the city's second title, however, as the former Toulouse FC had won it back in 1957.[12][13]

Name changes
  • Union Sportive Toulouse (1970–79)
  • Toulouse Football Club (1979–current)

Stadium
Stadium de Toulouse
Main article: Stadium de Toulouse

Toulouse play their home matches at the Stadium de Toulouse. Built in 1937, the stadium presently has a capacity of 33,150. The stadium was used as a venue for the 1998 FIFA World Cup, 2007 Rugby Union World Cup and UEFA Euro 2016.

Colours

The violet is a reference to one of two Toulouse nicknames: la Cité des violettes (the City of Violets), the second one being la Ville rose (the Pink City), which explains the colour of former alternate jerseys.[3] The team's logo displays the gold and blood-red Occitan cross, the symbol of Occitania, of which Toulouse is a historical capital.[4]

Club rivalries

Derby de la Garonne
Main article: Derby de la Garonne

The Derby de la Garonne is a derby match between Girondins de Bordeaux and Toulouse. The derby derives from the fact that Bordeaux and Toulouse are the two major cities in south-western France, both of which are situated on the Garonne River. The consistency and competitiveness of the rivalry developed following Toulouse's return to Ligue 1 after being administratively relegated to the Championnat National in 2001.[14]

Players

Current squad
As of 31 January 2023.[15]

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player
1 GK France FRA Thomas Himeur
2 DF Denmark DEN Rasmus Nicolaisen
3 DF Denmark DEN Mikkel Desler
4 DF France FRA Anthony Rouault
5 MF Australia AUS Denis Genreau
6 MF Morocco MAR Zakaria Aboukhlal
7 FW Japan JPN Ado Onaiwu
8 MF Netherlands NED Branco van den Boomen
9 FW England ENG Rhys Healey
10 MF Belgium BEL Brecht Dejaegere (captain)
13 MF Switzerland SUI Vincent Sierro
14 DF Cape Verde CPV Logan Costa
15 DF Chile CHI Gabriel Suazo
16 GK Norway NOR Kjetil Haug
No. Pos. Nation Player
17 MF Netherlands NED Stijn Spierings
18 DF Sweden SWE Oliver Zandén
19 MF Serbia SRB Veljko Birmančević
21 FW Brazil BRA Rafael Ratão
23 DF Mali MLI Moussa Diarra
24 MF Greece GRE Theocharis Tsingaras (on loan from PAOK)
26 DF Norway NOR Warren Kamanzi
27 FW Netherlands NED Thijs Dallinga
28 MF Algeria ALG Farès Chaïbi
29 FW Bosnia and Herzegovina BIH Said Hamulić
30 GK France FRA Maxime Dupé
31 DF Cameroon CMR Kévin Keben
32 DF France FRA Christian Mawissa
50 GK France FRA Guillaume Restes

Out on loan

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player
— MF Burkina Faso BFA Mamady Bangré (at Quevilly-Rouen until 30 June 2023)
— MF France FRA Sam Sanna (at Laval until 30 June 2023)
— MF France FRA Kléri Serber (at Botev Vratsa until 30 June 2023)
— MF France FRA Tom Rapnouil (at Botev Vratsa until 30 June 2023)
No. Pos. Nation Player
— MF Finland FIN Naatan Skyttä (at Odense until 30 June 2023)
— FW Morocco MAR Yanis Begraoui (at Pau until 30 June 2023)
— FW Jamaica JAM Junior Flemmings (at Niort until 30 June 2023)

Honours
As of 11 May 2023.[2]

Domestic

Club officials
President Damien Comolli
Association President José Da Silva
Manager Philippe Montanier
Academy Director Rémy Loret

Source: LFP.fr

Managers

See also

References
  1. "#434 – Toulouse FC : les Pitchouns" (in French). Footnickname. 21 February 2021. Retrieved 22 December 2021.
  2. "Toulouse football club". LFP. Retrieved 21 August 2013.
  3. "Toulouse FC". UEFA. 18 February 2011. Retrieved 21 August 2013.
  4. "Wiki". TFC.info. Retrieved 21 August 2013.
  5. Bairner, Robin (14 May 2016). "Extra-Time: Toulouse troll Domino's Pizza after relegation escape". Goal.com. Retrieved 22 June 2018.
  6. "Toulouse confirm Ligue 1 survival". Ligue1.com. 27 May 2018. Retrieved 22 June 2018.
  7. "TOULOUSE SACK KOMBOUARÉ". www.ligue1.com.
  8. "Amiens and Toulouse relegation confirmed after clubs vote for 20-team Ligue 1". BBC Sport. 27 June 2020. Retrieved 28 June 2020.
  9. "RedBird Capital Partners acquires 85 per cent stake in Toulouse FC". Retrieved 21 July 2020.
  10. "Ligue 2 : vainqueur de Niort, Toulouse rejouera en Ligue 1 la saison prochaine" [Ligue 2: victor of Niort, Toulouse will replay in Ligue 1 next season]. L'Équipe (in French). 25 April 2022. Retrieved 25 April 2022.
  11. "Toulouse win their first major trophy – and show a way to succeed in Ligue 1". Guardian. 2 May 2023. Retrieved 11 May 2023.
  12. "Toulouse surclasse Nantes et remporte la Coupe de France à l'issue d'un match sans incident". Le Monde.fr (in French). Retrieved 29 April 2023.
  13. "Nantes 1 Toulouse 5". BBC Sport. 29 April 2023. Retrieved 11 May 2023.
  14. "Didot-Gourcuff, le duel breton du derby de la Garonne" (in French). Fédération Internationale de Football Association. 5 March 2009. Archived from the original on 16 July 2011. Retrieved 6 August 2010.
  15. "Effectif pro". tfc.info. Retrieved 23 June 2019.

Further reading
  • Toulouse Football Club, de 1937 à nos jours, de Jean-Louis Berho et Didier Pitorre, avec la collaboration de Jean-Paul Cazeneuve et Jérôme Leclerc (Éditions Universelles)
  • La Grande Histoire du TFC, de Nicolas Bernard (Éditions Universelles)
  • TouFoulCan, la Bande-dessinée qui supporte le Toulouse Football Club.
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