' is a French

bi-weekly newspaper A fortnight is a unit of time equal to 14 days (two weeks). The word derives from the Old English term , meaning "" (or "fourteen days", since the Anglo-Saxons counted by nights). Astronomy and tides In astronomy, a ''lunar fortnight'' is hal ...

specializing in rugby and belonging to La Dépêche du Midi group. Its

headquarters Headquarters (often referred to as HQ) notes the location where most or all of the important functions of an organization are coordinated. The term is used in a wide variety of situations, including private sector corporations, non-profits, mil ...

are based in

Toulouse Toulouse (, ; ; ) is a city in southern France, the Prefectures in France, prefecture of the Haute-Garonne department and of the Occitania (administrative region), Occitania region. The city is on the banks of the Garonne, River Garonne, from ...

while some offices are located in

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

. The first edition was published on 2 September 1929, meaning it is one of the oldest French weekly still in existence (after '). Nicknamed ''Midol'' or ' (The Yellow) in reference to the color of the paper is made of, it mainly covers news from

rugby union Rugby union football, commonly known simply as rugby union in English-speaking countries and rugby 15/XV in non-English-speaking world, Anglophone Europe, or often just rugby, is a Contact sport#Terminology, close-contact team sport that orig ...

, from the professional

Top 14 The Top 14 () is a professional rugby union club competition that is played in France. Created in 1892, the Top 14 is at the top of the national league system operated by the National Rugby League (France), France National Rugby League, also ...

league to the amateur teams of the most modest levels (Fourth Series), and it also devotes a few pages to

rugby league Rugby league football, commonly known as rugby league in English-speaking countries and rugby 13/XIII in non-Anglophone Europe, is a contact sport, full-contact sport played by two teams of thirteen players on a rectangular Rugby league playin ...

. It was published weekly on a Monday until Spring 2006 when a second edition began to be released each week on Friday. The Monday edition is nicknamed the (The Red) and the Friday the (The Green) in reference to the different color used for the

nameplate A nameplate identifies and displays a person or product's name. Nameplates are usually shaped as rectangles but are also seen in other shapes, sometimes taking on the shape of someone's written name. Nameplates primarily serve an informat ...

of the two editions. In 1998, ' launched its website, which was renamed Rugbyrama.fr in 2000 in partnership with Eurosport, and changed the formula of the newspaper under the leadership of its managing editor Jacques Verdier. In 2005, the newspaper grew to printing 140,000 copies on Monday and 120,000 of the Friday edition for a circulation of around 89,000 copies each issue, steadily increasing around 2% per year since 1999. Special issues are published at the beginning and end of the season to introduce or summarize past or future events. Every first Monday of the month, the newspaper comes with a magazine supplement, '.

The Oscars du Midi

Since 1954, the newspaper awards the ''Midi Olympique'' Oscars annually, rewarding the best players of the month and the year. Since 2003, the awards also reward the three best coaches in the season, and the best player in the world and the best European player. Finally, ''Midi Olympique'' awards each month the Oscar for best player of the month from the Top 14 and ProD2 combined. Argentinian Juan Martín Hernández is the only non-French winner of the overall player award, winning in both 2007 and 2008. New Zealander Byron Kelleher finished second in 2008 and Fijian Napolioni Nalaga tied for third place in 2009 before a rule change was introduced for the 2010 awards which saw foreign players excluded from the main award. Instead, a new category was formed for the best foreign player in the French league.

References

{{Reflist

External links

Official website
1929 establishments in France Biweekly newspapers Mass media in Toulouse Newspapers established in 1929 Sports newspapers published in France