Racing Club de Strasbourg Alsace, commonly known as RC Strasbourg (, ; RCS) or simply just Racing, is a French professional association football club founded in 1906 and based in the city of

Strasbourg Strasbourg ( , ; ; ) is the Prefectures in France, prefecture and largest city of the Grand Est Regions of France, region of Geography of France, eastern France, in the historic region of Alsace. It is the prefecture of the Bas-Rhin Departmen ...

Alsace Alsace (, ; ) is a cultural region and a territorial collectivity in the Grand Est administrative region of northeastern France, on the west bank of the upper Rhine, next to Germany and Switzerland. In January 2021, it had a population of 1,9 ...

. It became a professional club in 1933, and is currently playing in

Ligue 1 Ligue 1 (; ), officially known as Ligue 1 McDonald's France, McDonald's for sponsorship reasons, is a professional association football league in France and the highest level of the French football league system. Administered by the Ligue de ...

, the top tier of

French football Association football is the most popular sport in France. In 2024, 53% of people in France declared an interest in football, with 26% being very interested. The French Football Federation (FFF, Fédération Française de Football) is the natio ...

, having won the

2016–17 Ligue 2 The 2016–17 Ligue 2 (referred to as the Domino's Ligue 2 for sponsorship reasons) season is the 78th season since its establishment. The fixtures were announced on 6 June 2016. Teams There are 20 teams in the league, with three promoted team ...

championship. This comes after the club was demoted to the fifth tier of French football at the conclusion of the

2010–11 Championnat National The 2010–11 Championnat National season was the 13th since its establishment. Évian were the defending champions. The fixtures were announced on 5 July 2010 and the season began on 6 August and ended on 27 May 2011. The winter break was in ...

season after going into financial liquidation. Renamed RC Strasbourg Alsace, they won the CFA championship in 2012–13, and became Championnat National champions in 2015–16.

Stade de la Meinau The Stade de la Meinau (), commonly known as "la Meinau", is a football (soccer), football stadium in Strasbourg, France. It is the home ground of Racing Club de Strasbourg Alsace, RC Strasbourg and has also hosted international matches, includi ...

has been the club's stadium since 1914. RC Strasbourg is one of six clubs to have won all three major French trophies: the Championship in 1979; the

Coupe de France The Coupe de France (), also known in English language, English as the French Cup or less commonly as the France Cup, is the premier Single-elimination tournament, knockout cup competition in French football organised by the French Football Fed ...

1951 Events January * January 4 – Korean War: Third Battle of Seoul – Chinese and North Korean forces capture Seoul for the second time (having lost the Second Battle of Seoul in September 1950). * January 9 – The Government of the Uni ...

1966 Events January * January 1 – In a coup, Colonel Jean-Bédel Bokassa takes over as military ruler of the Central African Republic, ousting President David Dacko. * January 3 – 1966 Upper Voltan coup d'état: President Maurice Yaméogo i ...

and

2001 The year's most prominent event was the September 11 attacks against the United States by al-Qaeda, which Casualties of the September 11 attacks, killed 2,977 people and instigated the global war on terror. The United States led a Participan ...

; and the

Coupe de la Ligue The Coupe de la Ligue (), known outside France as the French League Cup, was a knockout cup competition in French football organized by the Ligue de Football Professionnel. The tournament was established in 1993 and, unlike the Coupe de France ...

in 1964,

1997 Events January * January 1 – The Emergency Alert System is introduced in the United States. * January 11 – Turkey threatens Cyprus on account of a deal to buy Russian S-300 missiles, prompting the Cypriot Missile Crisis. * January 1 ...

2005 2005 was designated as the International Year for Sport and Physical Education and the International Year of Microcredit. The beginning of 2005 also marked the end of the International Decade of the World's Indigenous Peoples, Internationa ...

and

2019 This was the year in which the first known human case of COVID-19 was documented, preceding COVID-19 pandemic, the pandemic which was declared by the World Health Organization the following year. Up to that point, 2019 had been described as ...

. It is also among the six teams to have played more than 2,000 games in France's top flight (spanning 56 seasons) and has taken part in 52 European games since 1961. By contrast, it has also experienced relegation at least once a decade since the early 1950s. It has changed its manager 52 times in 75 years of professional play. The destiny of the RC Strasbourg has always been wedded to the

history of Alsace The history of Alsace has been influenced by the Rhine and its tributaries, a favorable climate, fertile loess soils, and the region's relative accessibility through and around the Vosges. It was first inhabited by early modern humans during the P ...

. Like the region, the club has changed nationality three times and has a troubled history. Founded in what was then a part of the

German Empire The German Empire (),; ; World Book, Inc. ''The World Book dictionary, Volume 1''. World Book, Inc., 2003. p. 572. States that Deutsches Reich translates as "German Realm" and was a former official name of Germany. also referred to as Imperia ...

, the club from the beginning insisted on its Alsatian and popular roots, in opposition to the first Strasbourg-based clubs which came from the German-born bourgeoisie. When Alsace was returned to France in 1919, the club changed its name from 1. FC Neudorf to the current Racing Club de Strasbourg, in imitation of

Pierre de Coubertin Charles Pierre de Frédy, Baron de Coubertin (; born Pierre de Frédy; 1 January 1863 – 2 September 1937), also known as Pierre de Coubertin and Baron de Coubertin, was a French educator and historian, co-founder of the International Olympic ...

Racing Club de France Racing Club de France, also known as RCF, is a French multi-sport club that was founded on 20 April 1882 under the name Racing Club. Racing Club changed its name to Racing Club de France (RCF) on 21 November 1885. The club is located at the Bois ...

, a clear gesture of

francophilia A Francophile is a person who has a strong affinity towards any or all of the French language, French history, French culture and/or French people. That affinity may include France itself or its history, language, cuisine, literature, etc. The te ...

. RC Strasbourg players lived through

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

as most Alsatians did: evacuated in 1939, annexed in 1940 and striving to avoid Nazification and incorporation in the

Wehrmacht The ''Wehrmacht'' (, ) were the unified armed forces of Nazi Germany from 1935 to 1945. It consisted of the German Army (1935–1945), ''Heer'' (army), the ''Kriegsmarine'' (navy) and the ''Luftwaffe'' (air force). The designation "''Wehrmac ...

between 1942 and 1944. When Alsace was definitively returned to France, Strasbourg's identity switched towards

Jacobinism A Jacobin (; ) was a member of the Jacobin Club, a revolutionary political movement that was the most famous political club during the French Revolution (1789–1799). The club got its name from meeting at the Dominican rue Saint-Honoré ...

with, for example, emotional wins in the cup in 1951 and 1966 amidst Franco-Alsatian controversies.

History

Founded in 1906 as ''Fußballclub Neudorf'', Racing Club de Strasbourg Alsace's history has been marked by constant periods of instability, firstly due to political issues (for the first forty years of its existence, the club played alternately in the French and German championships because of the dispute between the two countries over

), and secondly due to corporate issues. In spite of this, the team was able to carve out a place for itself in the golden roll of the

French league The French League (: "French League for Purge, purging, mutual aid (politics), mutual aid and European integration, European collaboration") was a Collaboration with Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy, collaborationist French movement founded by Pier ...

by winning a number of trophies, the most important of which was the championship in the 1978-79 season.

''Fußballclub Neudorf''

In the early 1900s, the English export of soccer to foreign countries also reached the deepest parts of the

(which had already established a national league called the ''Verbandsliga'' in 1902), including the ''Reichsland'' Alsace-Lorraine. One of the cities most involved in this process was the capital city of

(which already had a football club called ''Straßburger Fußball Club'' since 1890), where several football clubs saw the light of day, including ''Fußballclub Neudorf'', founded by a group of students from the Neudorf district,Automne 1906, rue d'Erstein
a
racingstub.com
/ref> located south of the city. The team, which was financially supported by the students' teacher, made its debut in a match against ''FC Germania'' from the Schluthfeld district, in which it withdrew after conceding seven goals in the first forty-five minutes of play. Over the next three years, the team, renamed ''Fußballclub Cäsar Neudorf'' and given a corporate organizational chart to cope with the inexperience of the players, continued to produce unconvincing results, attracting criticism and threatening to split several times. Thanks to the arrival of Louis Becker as president, in 1909 Neudorf was able to gain membership in the '' Verband Süddeutscher Fußball-Vereine'', the football association in the southern part of the German Empire, which was part of the third tier of German football.History
of Offenburger Fußballverein Neudorf began a gradual improvement in results: thanks to a highly offensive style of play, the team achieved large victories (including a 28-0 victory over Erstein, the second largest margin of victory in the history of German football), which led to a double promotion within two years. In 1914, a few weeks before promotion to the first division, Neudorf acquired its first playing field, the ''Hämmerlé's Garten'', on which the Meinau Stadium was built.Claire-Marie Denis, Cédric Douzant ''Le Jardin ou tout a commencé'', a
News d'Ill
pp. 14-15. In the same year, all sports activities were interrupted due to the outbreak of the

First World War World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

The debut in French football

With the annexation of

and

Lorraine Lorraine, also , ; ; Lorrain: ''Louréne''; Lorraine Franconian: ''Lottringe''; ; ; is a cultural and historical region in Eastern France, now located in the administrative region of Grand Est. Its name stems from the medieval kingdom of ...

to France at the end of the war, it was decided to change the name of the club, which, in homage to

, became ''Racing Club de Strasbourg''. In the decade following the end of hostilities, Strasbourg played in the Alsace regional championship (winning it in 1923, 1924 and 1927) and, from the 1920-21 season, in the

French Cup The Coupe de France (), also known in English as the French Cup or less commonly as the France Cup, is the premier knockout cup competition in French football organised by the French Football Federation (FFF). It was first held in 1917 and is ...

. In the latter competition, the team never made it past the round of 16, but in the 1925-26 season, it pulled off an upset by eliminating

Red Star A red star, five-pointed and filled, is a symbol that has often historically been associated with communist ideology, particularly in combination with the hammer and sickle, but is also used as a purely socialist symbol in the 21st century. ...

, a team that at the time held the record for most national cups won. It was also during this period that the first wooden stands were built on the field, which later became the Meinau Stadium. In 1932, Strasbourg's management rejected a proposal to turn the team professional that had just been approved by the Football Federation. Attempts to change management's decision (including a proposal to merge with Strasbourg Red Star) yielded a positive result a year later when, after a vote of 126 for, 2 against and 2 abstentions, the team was finally allowed to become professional and debut in the

second division In sport, the Second Division, also called Division 2 or Division II is usually the second highest division of a league, and will often have promotion and relegation with divisions above and below. Following the rise of Premier League style compet ...

. After winning the playoffs against rivals

Mulhouse Mulhouse (; ; Alsatian language, Alsatian: ''Mìlhüsa'' ; , meaning "Mill (grinding), mill house") is a France, French city of the European Collectivity of Alsace (Haut-Rhin department, in the Grand Est region of France). It is near the Fran ...

and

Saint-Étienne Saint-Étienne (; Franco-Provençal: ''Sant-Etiève''), also written St. Etienne, is a city and the prefecture of the Loire département, in eastern-central France, in the Massif Central, southwest of Lyon, in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes regi ...

, the Alsatians battled with

Sochaux Sochaux () is a commune in the Doubs department in the Bourgogne-Franche-Comté region in eastern France. Geography Sochaux lies east of Montbéliard, and southeast of Paris. Population Inhabitants are known as ''Sochaliens''. Economy ...

for the title in their debut in the top flight. Initially, Strasbourg had the upper hand, finishing first in the first half of the season, but lost the head-to-head match on the road to Sochaux, who went on to win the title despite losing the final match. In the following championships, the team, boosted by German striker

Oskar Rohr Oskar Rohr (24 April 1912 – 8 November 1988) was a German footballer and one of the first footballers to play abroad in a foreign league. He was born in Mannheim, German Empire, Germany. Early career Rohr, known primarily by his nickname "Oss ...

, confirmed its status as a mid-table team, while in the 1936-37 French Cup, Strasbourg reached the final: again, Sochaux prevailed, winning 2-1 in a comeback.

Re-annexation to the German Reich

At the beginning of World War II, with the occupation of France by the

Third Reich Nazi Germany, officially known as the German Reich and later the Greater German Reich, was the German state between 1933 and 1945, when Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party controlled the country, transforming it into a totalitarian dictat ...

army, the team was reconstituted as an amateur club by some players who had fled to the south of the country. After winning the regional championship, the team was introduced into the German football system, taking the name ''Rasensportclub Straßburg'' and playing in the ''

Gauliga Elsaß The Gauliga Elsaß was the highest football league in the region of Alsace (German: Elsaß, the old orthography of Elsass) from 1940 to 1945. The Nazis reorganised the administrative region and the Alsace became part of the Gau Baden-Elsaß. Ove ...

''.Gauliga Elsaß 1940-41
/ref> From then until the liberation of

, Strasbourg would play in four editions of the ''Gauliga'', finishing second three times in a row (losing the title to

in a playoff in the first year) and participating in the 1941-42 edition of the German Cup, where they were eliminated by Mulhouse in the first round. Notable during this period was the heated rivalry with ''Red Star Strasbourg'', renamed ''SS Strasbourg'' after their affiliation with the regime's

political police 300px, East_German.html" ;"title="Vladimir Putin's secret police identity card, issued by the East German">Vladimir Putin's secret police identity card, issued by the East German Stasi while he was working as a Soviet KGB liaison officer from 19 ...

The postwar period

At the end of hostilities, with the return of

to the political control of France, Strasbourg was reintegrated into the same football system in which it had participated before the outbreak of the war. After finishing twelfth in the league at the end of the war, Strasbourg came close to a

double Double, The Double or Dubble may refer to: Mathematics and computing * Multiplication by 2 * Double precision, a floating-point representation of numbers that is typically 64 bits in length * A double number of the form x+yj, where j^2=+1 * A ...

in the 1946-47 season, finishing among the contenders for the championship and competing for the

until the final, where they were defeated by

Lille Lille (, ; ; ; ; ) is a city in the northern part of France, within French Flanders. Positioned along the Deûle river, near France's border with Belgium, it is the capital of the Hauts-de-France Regions of France, region, the Prefectures in F ...

. In the following seasons, Strasbourg went through a period of mixed results: in the 1948-49 championship, the team, relegated on the field, avoided relegation thanks to

Colmar Colmar (; ; or ) is a city and commune in the Haut-Rhin department and Alsace region of north-eastern France. The third-largest commune in Alsace (after Strasbourg and Mulhouse), it is the seat of the prefecture of the Haut-Rhin department ...

's abandonment of its professional status. Two seasons later, the team won its first official trophy by winning the 1950-51 edition of the French Cup: this was possible thanks to a victory in the final against

Valenciennes Valenciennes (, also , , ; ; or ; ) is a communes of France, commune in the Nord (French department), Nord Departments of France, department, Hauts-de-France, France. It lies on the Scheldt () river. Although the city and region experienced ...

, which sparked celebrations throughout Alsace, culminating in the team being welcomed by 50,000 fans. Winning this trophy did not bring stability to the team's results, as they dropped to the second division three times during the 1950s (

1952 Events January–February * January 26 – Cairo Fire, Black Saturday in Kingdom of Egypt, Egypt: Rioters burn Cairo's central business district, targeting British and upper-class Egyptian businesses. * February 6 ** Princess Elizabeth, ...

1957 Events January * January 1 – The Saarland joins West Germany. * January 3 – Hamilton Watch Company introduces the first electric watch. * January 5 – South African player Russell Endean becomes the first batsman to be Dismissal (cricke ...

, and

1960 It is also known as the "Year of Africa" because of major events—particularly the independence of seventeen African nations—that focused global attention on the continent and intensified feelings of Pan-Africanism. Events January * Janu ...

), only to return to the top flight immediately afterwards. The only notable result of the decade came in the 1954-55 season, when Strasbourg, led by Ernst Stojaspal, contended for the top spots in the standings, finishing fourth overall, and were eliminated by

in the French Cup semifinals.

The debut in Europe

In the early 1960s, Strasbourg had the chance to make their debut on the European stage, playing in the 1961-62 edition of the

Fairs Cup The Inter-Cities Fairs Cup, most commonly referred to as the Fairs Cup and sometimes as the European Fairs Cup or Fairs Cities' Cup, was a European football competition played between 1955 and 1971. The Fairs Cup was the idea of FIFA vice-presid ...

, where they were eliminated in the first round by

MTK Hungária Magyar Testgyakorlók Köre Budapest Futball Club or shortly MTK is a professional football club based in Józsefváros, Budapest, Hungary. The club currently plays in the Nemzeti Bajnokság I. The club's colours are blue and white. As one of t ...

. Thanks to subsidies from the municipality, Strasbourg experienced a period of improved results, culminating in the 1964-65 season, during which the team fought for the title: in second place, one point behind

Nantes Nantes (, ; ; or ; ) is a city in the Loire-Atlantique department of France on the Loire, from the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic coast. The city is the List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, sixth largest in France, with a pop ...

with four games to play, the Alsatians drew the head-to-head match and then succumbed in the final, finishing fifth. In the same season, the team had an excellent performance in the Fairs Cup, reaching the quarterfinals (after eliminating the likes of

AC Milan (), commonly referred to as Milan or AC Milan () mainly outside of Italy, is an Italian professional Football club (association football), football club based in Milan, Lombardy. Founded in 1899, the club competes in the Serie A, the top tie ...

and

Barcelona Barcelona ( ; ; ) is a city on the northeastern coast of Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second-most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within c ...

, the latter equalizing in the dying seconds of the second leg and being eliminated after a 0-0 draw in the replay), where they were eliminated by

Manchester United Manchester United Football Club, commonly referred to as Man United (often stylised as Man Utd) or simply United, is a professional association football, football club based in Old Trafford (area), Old Trafford, Greater Manchester, Engl ...

, who had already guaranteed qualification to the semifinals from the first leg (thanks to a 5-0 away win). The following season, Strasbourg reached the final of the French Cup for the fourth time in the club's history, defeating

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 ...

after equalizing with a minute remaining and then winning in extra time. In the final, the Alsatians faced newly crowned French champions Nantes, whom they defeated 1-0. In the same season, Strasbourg also participated in the Fairs Cup, where they met AC Milan in the first round. After losing 1-0 at the

San Siro San Siro is a football stadium in the San Siro district of Milan, Italy. It has a seating capacity of 75,817, making it the largest stadium in Italy and one of the largest stadiums in Europe. It is the home stadium of the city's principal ...

, the Alsatians won the return leg 2-1, forcing a play-off, which Milan won on a draw after the match ended 1-1. In the following seasons, Strasbourg's results in competitions were unremarkable (except for a fifth-place finish in the 1969-70 season), so much so that the club's management decided to merge the club with the amateur team '' Pierrots Vauban'',History
of Strasbourg, from th
official website
renaming it ''Racing Pierrots Strasbourg Meinau''.
of the team's names, fro
rsssf.com
/ref> However, the results were unsatisfactory: in the first season under the new name ( 1970-71), the team was relegated to Division 2, only to return to the top flight the following year. A second relegation in the 1975-76 season led to a split in the club with the re-founding of ''Pierrots Vauban'' and the restoration of the ''Racing Club de Strasbourg'' name.

Championship title

After regaining promotion by winning the second division after a playoff with the top team in Group A (

Monaco Monaco, officially the Principality of Monaco, is a Sovereign state, sovereign city-state and European microstates, microstate on the French Riviera a few kilometres west of the Regions of Italy, Italian region of Liguria, in Western Europe, ...

), Strasbourg started the 1977-78 season with a virtually unchanged lineup from the previous year, with the addition of

Jacques Novi Jacques Novi (born 18 July 1946), most commonly called Jacky Novi, is a French former professional footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are ...

Francis Piasecki Francis Piasecki (28 July 1951 – 6 March 2018) was a French professional football midfielder In the sport of association football, a midfielder takes an Glossary of association football terms#O, outfield position primarily in the middle ...

(both from

Paris Saint-Germain Paris Saint-Germain Football Club, commonly referred to as Paris Saint-Germain () or simply PSG, is a French professional Association football, football club based in Paris. They compete in Ligue 1, the French football league system, top d ...

), and

Raymond Domenech Raymond Manuel Albert Domenech (born 24 January 1952) is a French football manager and former player. He managed the France national team from 2004 to 2010, reaching the 2006 FIFA World Cup final. He was dismissed after their elimination from ...

. Gilbert Gress, a former Strasbourg center forward in the 1960s who would become the most representative coach in the club's history,Perrine Bonnet, ''Gilbert Gress, toujours indomptable'', CUEJ 2006, pp. 10-11Biography of Gilbert Gress
a
racingstub.com
/ref> was also brought in to lead the team. Under Gress, the team adopted a tactic based on collective play,Divorce à l'Alsacienne
, article published in ''France Foot'', reproduced from
racingstub.com
/ref>1er juin 1979: Lyon-RCS 0-3
, fro
racingstub.com
/ref> based on the

4-3-3 formation In association football, the formation of a team refers to the position players take in relation to each other on a pitch. As association football is a fluid and fast-moving game, a player's position (with the exception of the goalkeeper) in a ...

, which included the use of Gemmrich, Tanter and Vergnes as attackers.Une saison inoubliable, épisode 1
fro
racingstub.com
/ref> After a slow start, Strasbourg gradually regained positions and placed themselves among the contenders for a place in the UEFA zone, which then consisted of only two teams.Performance of Strasbourg in the 1977-1978 season
fro
racingstub.com
/ref> A late collapse by

Olympique Marseille Olympique de Marseille (, ; , ), also known simply as Marseille, or by the abbreviation OM (, ), is a French professional football club based in Marseille which competes in Ligue 1, the top flight of French football. Founded in 1899, OM has ...

allowed the Alsatians to move into third place with three days to go: a 3-2 win at Laval on the final day secured them the final spot to qualify for their third European competition. Riding the wave of this success, Strasbourg prepared for the next season without making too many changes to the squad, only buying

Roger Jouve Roger Jouve (born 11 March 1949) is a French former professional footballer who played as a midfielder In the sport of association football, a midfielder takes an Glossary of association football terms#O, outfield position primarily in th ...

from

Nice Nice ( ; ) is a city in and the prefecture of the Alpes-Maritimes department in France. The Nice agglomeration extends far beyond the administrative city limits, with a population of nearly one millionUne saison inoubliable, épisode 2
fro
racingstub.com
/ref> with the younger

Wagner Wilhelm Richard Wagner ( ; ; 22 May 181313 February 1883) was a German composer, theatre director, essayist, and conductor who is chiefly known for his operas (or, as some of his mature works were later known, "music dramas"). Unlike most o ...

. The team started the championship in better form than the previous year, taking the lead on the fifth day and maintaining it throughout the season, although a defeat against

in the return leg had favored the ''Verts''' approach. A brace by Wagner and a goal by Ehrlacher in the final match against

Lyon Lyon (Franco-Provençal: ''Liyon'') is a city in France. It is located at the confluence of the rivers Rhône and Saône, to the northwest of the French Alps, southeast of Paris, north of Marseille, southwest of Geneva, Switzerland, north ...

(on June 1, 1979) sparked celebrations throughout

, which culminated the following day when the team was welcomed by 200,000 fans at Strasbourg station.

The decline

Immediately after winning the national title, the team's leadership was taken over by the politician

André Bord André Bord (30 November 1922 – 13 May 2013) was a French politician.

, repeatedly elected Secretary of State for the Ministry of the Interior and the Ministry for Veterans in the governments installed between 1966 and 1978 and former president of the team's multisport section.André Bord
a
racingstub.com
/ref> The new president almost immediately came into conflict with Gress by organizing a transfer window that brought to Strasbourg outstanding players such as the national player

François Bracci François Bracci (31 October 1951 – 28 December 2023) was a French association football, football manager and player. Club career Bracci was born in Beinheim, French Fourth Republic, France on 31 October 1951. He totalled 34 games for RC Stra ...

and the top scorer

Carlos Bianchi Carlos Bianchi (born 26 April 1949), nicknamed ''El Virrey'' (''The Viceroy''), is an Argentine former football player and manager. A prolific goalscorer, although he had a bright career as a forward in Argentina and France, Bianchi is best kno ...

, who, however, did not meet the tactical requirements of the coach. This climate of conflict at the top of the club, known as the ''Affaire Gress-Bord'',Les années 80 : une décennie pleine de difficultés
a
racingstub.com
/ref> also affected the performance of the team, which, with a center forward incompatible with Gress's tactics based on the collective, failed to defend the title and, as compensation, reached the quarterfinals of the

European Cup The UEFA Champions League (UCL) is an annual club association football competition organised by the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) that is contested by top-division European clubs. The competition begins with a round robi ...

, where they were eliminated by

Ajax Ajax may refer to: Greek mythology and tragedy * Ajax the Great, a Greek mythological hero, son of King Telamon and Periboea * Ajax the Lesser, a Greek mythological hero, son of Oileus, the king of Locris * Ajax (play), ''Ajax'' (play), by the an ...

. The tensions between Gress and Bord reached a climax at the beginning of the 1980-81 season: after a very bad start in the championship, the fans, siding with Gress, began to harshly challenge the club, demanding the resignation of Bord, who, supported also by prominent politicians such as

Jacques Chirac Jacques René Chirac (, ; ; 29 November 193226 September 2019) was a French politician who served as President of France from 1995 to 2007. He was previously Prime Minister of France from 1974 to 1976 and 1986 to 1988, as well as Mayor of Pari ...

, remained at the helm of the club and fired the coach. This event marked the end of Strasbourg's golden era, which saw the loss of almost all the players who had contributed to the 1979 championship within a few years, replaced by important names (

Didier Six Didier Six (born 21 August 1954) is a French football manager and former player, who most recently worked as manager of the Guinea national football team until October 2021. A gifted but inconsistent winger, Six had a rather nomadic career, pl ...

Jean-François Larios Jean-François Larios (born 27 August 1956) is a French former professional football midfielder. He earned seventeen international caps (five goals) for the France national team during the late 1970s and early 1980s. A player of Saint-Étienne, ...

Éric Pécout Éric Pécout (born 17 February 1956) is a French former professional footballer who played as a forward. He obtained 5 caps (one goal) for the France national team. Titles Nantes * Division 1: 1976–77, 1979–80 *Coupe de France The ...

and

Olivier Rouyer Olivier Rouyer (born 1 December 1955) is a retired football striker from France. He earned seventeen international caps (two goals) for the France national team during the late 1970s and early 1980s. A player of AS Nancy, he was a member of the ...

) who were never able to live up to expectations. This was also reflected in the team's results, which stagnated in the lower mid-table positions during the first half of the 1980s until the 1985-86 season, which ended with Strasbourg's relegation to Division 2 and the resignation of Bord, who left

Daniel Hechter Daniel Hechter (born 30 July 1938) is a French-Belgian fashion designer who is sometimes referred to as the inventor of ready-to-wear (prêt-à-porter). He is also known for being the president of Paris Saint-Germain F.C. from 1974 to 1978, hav ...

a team in the midst of corporate chaos, which remained entangled in the lower parts of the second division and then finished in ninth place. The team's new president, formerly the leading man of

in the 1970s, had plans to rebuild a winning team, but his ambitions clashed with a disastrous economic situation that reached such a level in 1990 (a debt of 90 million

francs The franc is any of various units of currency. One franc is typically divided into 100 centimes. The name is said to derive from the Latin inscription ''francorum rex'' ( King of the Franks) used on early French coins and until the 18th centur ...

was discovered)Daniel Hechter
a
racingstub.com
/ref> that he was forced to resign under pressure from the city's mayor.

The return to Europe

The team, which had reached the top flight the previous two years only to drop back to the second division,
fro
pari-et-gagne.com
/ref> was entrusted to industrialist Jacky Kientz.De 1990 à 1997 : le Racing a retrouvé un certain rang
a
racingstub.com
/ref> Failure to win promotion in the 1990-91 season prompted the management to recall Gress to the bench: relying on young prospects such as

Frank Leboeuf Franck Alain James Leboeuf (born 22 January 1968), commonly known as Frank Leboeuf, is a French actor, sports commentator and former footballer who played as a centre-back. With the France national team, Leboeuf won the 1998 FIFA World Cup and U ...

and Martin Djetou, the coach led the team back to Division 1 after a close battle with

Bordeaux Bordeaux ( ; ; Gascon language, Gascon ; ) is a city on the river Garonne in the Gironde Departments of France, department, southwestern France. A port city, it is the capital of the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region, as well as the Prefectures in F ...

and a 4-0 victory over

Stade Rennais Stade Rennais Football Club (SRFC, ), commonly referred to as Stade Rennais () or simply Rennes,''Rennais'' and ''Stade Rennes'', used by some English-speaking media outlets and journalists, are not grammatically correct names for the club. is ...

in the promotion/relegation playoff.History of Strasbourg
, from th
team's official website
Back in the top flight, Strasbourg made their debut by finishing close to the UEFA qualification spots. At the end of the following season, in which the team avoided relegation, there was a change at the top of the club, with Roland Weller taking over as president. Despite offers to extend his contract, Gress, who had come into conflict with some players during the championship over his training methods, decided to leave the team, causing discontent among the fans. A-Mostovoi

Such events did not initially destabilize the team's performance, which, entrusted to former player

Daniel Jeandupeux Daniel Jeandupeux (born 7 February 1949) is a Swiss football manager and retired football forward. Career Born in Saint-Imier, Jeandupeux began playing football for FC La Chaux-de-Fonds. In 1972, he joined FC Zürich, where he would win two Sw ...

, was in third place at the beginning of the 1994-95 season. A decline over the winter favored the replacement of Jeandupeux with former player

Jacky Duguépéroux Jacky Duguépéroux (born 2 January 1948) is a French football manager and former player. He has been manager of RC Strasbourg, for whom he also played, on three occasions. Between his final two terms, he managed Tunisian side Espérance. On 9 A ...

, who led the team to the French Cup final (lost 1-0 to

) and tenth place in the league, which qualified the team for the newly created

Intertoto Cup The UEFA Intertoto Cup (from , "between" and , " betting pool"),Most precisely, from (football pool); cf. originally called the International Football Cup, was a summer football competition between European clubs. The competition was discon ...

. By winning the competition, Strasbourg gained access to the UEFA Cup, returning to the European stage after a sixteen-year absence: their progress in the competition was interrupted by

in the round of 16. In the following two seasons, despite the departures of key players compensated by the introduction of youth players into the first team (including

Olivier Dacourt Olivier Yohan Dacourt (born 25 September 1974) is a French former professional footballer who played as a midfielder . He is also a former French international and is best known for his spells at English side Leeds United and Italian clubs Roma ...

, who made his debut as a striker), the team continued to achieve results that helped them qualify for European competitions, This culminated in the 1996-97 season, when the team finished ninth in the league after spending much of the season in mid-table positions, but qualified directly for the UEFA Cup thanks to winning the League Cup, which they did after narrowly defeating

in the final. That season also saw another change at the top of the club, which was taken over on March 21, 1997 by the IMG group, headed by former tennis player

Patrick Proisy Patrick Proisy (; born 10 September 1949) is a French former professional tennis player best remembered for reaching the final of the French Open in 1972 (where he beat top seed and defending champion Jan Kodeš in the quarter-finals and fourth ...

: the new ownership sparked a wave of optimism among the team's supporters, but they played a championship far below expectations and struggled to avoid relegation until the last day.De 1997 à 2003 : les années Proisy
a
racingstub.com
/ref> The same season will also be remembered for the team's journey in the

UEFA Cup The asterisk ( ), from Late Latin , from Ancient Greek , , "little star", is a Typography, typographical symbol. It is so called because it resembles a conventional image of a star (heraldry), heraldic star. Computer scientists and Mathematici ...

: after eliminating

Rangers A ranger is typically someone in a law enforcement or military/paramilitary role specializing in patrolling a given territory, called "ranging" or "scouting". The term most often refers to: * Park ranger or forest ranger, a person charged with prot ...

, Strasbourg faced

Liverpool Liverpool is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. It is situated on the eastern side of the River Mersey, Mersey Estuary, near the Irish Sea, north-west of London. With a population ...

in the second round, winning 3-0 at home to effectively secure qualification, as the 2-0 defeat at

Anfield Anfield is a Association football, football stadium in the area of Anfield (suburb), Anfield, Liverpool, England, which has been the home of Liverpool F.C. since its formation in 1892. The stadium has a seating capacity of 61,276, making it the ...

did not affect the aggregate score. The Alsatians' adventure came to an end in the third round against

Inter Inter may refer to: Association football clubs * Inter Milan, an Italian club * SC Internacional, a Brazilian club * Inter Miami CF, an American club * Inter Playa del Carmen, a Mexican club * FC Inter Sibiu, a Romanian club * FC Inter Turku, ...

Milan, who bounced back from a first-leg defeat. The departure of Duguépéroux, who was in conflict with the management, opened a new dark period for the team, which had some bad seasons with unimpressive results both in the league and in the national cups. The worst moment seemed to materialize in the 2000-01 season, at the end of which the team was relegated to Division 2, having finished last without ever being able to fight to avoid relegation. However, the negative result was compensated by winning the third French Cup, which came after defeating

Amiens Amiens (English: or ; ; , or ) is a city and Communes of France, commune in northern France, located north of Paris and south-west of Lille. It is the capital of the Somme (department), Somme Departments of France, department in the region ...

in the final: the match, which ended 0-0 after extra time, was decided by penalty kicks, with the Alsatians winning 5-4.Report
of the 2000-2001 French Cup Final, from th
official website
of the French soccer federation Thanks to this result, Strasbourg, who had been coached by

Ivan Hašek Ivan Hašek (born 6 September 1963) is a Czech professional football coach and former player who currently manages the Czech national football team. Hašek played as a central midfielder and spent a 11-year career with Sparta Prague, appearing ...

during the summer, qualified for the

, from which they were eliminated in the first round by

Standard Liège Royal Standard de Liège, commonly referred to as Standard Liège ( ; ; ) or simply Standard in Belgium, is a Belgian professional football club based in the city of Liège. They are one of the most successful clubs in Belgium, having won t ...

. This allowed the team to focus on the league, where they made a comeback to finish second and return to the newly formed Ligue 1.

Management changes, crisis and decline

The 2002-2003 season, which ended with the team avoiding relegation, saw a change in the club's top management, which had already been shaken by legal vicissitudes regarding the use of the club's name: the IMG group was replaced by a group of entrepreneurs led by German businessman Egon Gindorf. With the legal problems resolved,De 2003 à 2006 : l'espoir encore déçu
a
racingstub.com
/ref> Strasbourg (with

Antoine Kombouaré Antoine Krilone Kombouaré (; born 16 November 1963) is a French professional football manager and former player who was most recently the head coach of club Nantes. Playing career Born in the French overseas territory of New Caledonia, Komboua ...

and

on the bench) battled through two mid-table seasons, culminating in the 2004-05 season with victory in the second League Cup against

Caen Caen (; ; ) is a Communes of France, commune inland from the northwestern coast of France. It is the Prefectures in France, prefecture of the Departments of France, department of Calvados (department), Calvados. The city proper has 105,512 inha ...

(2-1). After qualifying for the

again, Strasbourg seemed to be on their way to a second golden period, but

Philippe Ginestet Philippe Ginestet (born 15 April 1954) is a French billionaire businessman, and the founder, chairman and owner of GiFi, a French discount chain. Early life and career Philippe Ginestet was born on 15 April 1954 in Sainte-Livrade-sur-Lot, Lo ...

's ascension to the club's presidency caused dissension in the management, which also affected the team's performance in the 2005-06 season, which ended in early relegation, with the first win not coming until the third-last day of the first half of the season. This negative result was offset by Strasbourg's performance in the UEFA Cup, where they were eliminated by

Roma Roma or ROMA may refer to: People, characters, figures, names * Roma or Romani people, an ethnic group living mostly in Europe and the Americas. * Roma called Roy, ancient Egyptian High Priest of Amun * Roma (footballer, born 1979), born ''Paul ...

in the round of 16. After winning promotion to

at the end of the 2006-07 season thanks to

Jean-Pierre Papin Jean-Pierre Roger Guillaume Papin (; born 5 November 1963) is a French football manager and former professional player who played as a forward. He is the head coach of Championnat National 3 club Marseille B. He won the Ballon d'Or in 1991. Pa ...

(who knew how to get the most out of a team made up of players from lower leagues), Strasbourg started the 2007-08 season with Jean-Marc Furlan on the bench. The team seemed to be struggling on a par with the other relegation contenders, navigating mid-table positions until midway through the season, but from March onward, they suffered a steep decline that saw them drop positions until they finished second-last. In this context, a 2-1 defeat against

, thanks to a goal scored by

Fabio Grosso Fabio Grosso (; born 28 November 1977) is an Italian professional football manager and former player. He is currently the head coach of Serie B club Sassuolo. After playing for several smaller Italian clubs, such as Renato Curi, Chieti and Per ...

, who was heavily insulted by Furlan at the end of the game, is noteworthy; despite the controversy and the result, the club confirmed Furlan at the helm of the team that failed to gain promotion to Ligue 1 in the 2008-09 season, losing to

Boulogne Boulogne-sur-Mer (; ; ; or ''Bononia''), often called just Boulogne (, ), is a coastal city in Hauts-de-France, Northern France. It is a Subprefectures in France, sub-prefecture of the Departments of France, department of Pas-de-Calais. Boul ...

on the final day of the season. At the end of the season, there was a reshuffle at the top of the club, bringing in former player

Léonard Specht Léonard Specht (born 16 April 1954) is a French former professional footballer who played as a defender. He was also chairman of RC Strasbourg Racing Club de Strasbourg Alsace, commonly known as RC Strasbourg (, ; RCS) or simply just Racing ...

who, after trying to sign

Gernot Rohr Gernot Rohr (born 28 June 1953) is a German professional football coach and former player who is currently the manager of the Benin national team. Managerial career In 1996, he managed Girondins de Bordeaux to the UEFA Cup final, where they l ...

, hired Gress, who then returned to lead the team for the third time. However, the beginning of the 2009-10 season was marked by a confusing situation at the top of the club, with Gress (opposed by Ginestet who remained in the company as majority shareholder)Ligue 2 : Ginestet reprend les commandes à Strasbourg

Le Monde (; ) is a mass media in France, French daily afternoon list of newspapers in France, newspaper. It is the main publication of Le Monde Group and reported an average print circulation, circulation of 480,000 copies per issue in 2022, including ...

, August 24, 2009 being replaced after two defeats in the first two matches.Football ligue 2 : Gilbert Gress quitte Strasbourg

, August 12, 2009 Due to this result, Spécht also resigned, which favored the return of Ginestet as president, who called

Pascal Janin Pascal Janin (born 4 April 1956) is a French football coach and former player who played as a goalkeeper. He is the current head coach of Stade Malien in the Malien Première Division. Career He played as a goalkeeper for Ligue 1 and Ligue 2 sid ...

, formerly Gress's assistant, to the bench. In November 2009, negotiations began for the transfer of Strasbourg's ownership to the English company FC Football Capital Limited, which took control of the club on December 5 with Julien Fournier as president. The vicissitudes at the corporate level were reflected in the team's results: six points clear of the relegation zone with six days to go, Strasbourg collapsed with only two points, and were overtaken by the other relegation contenders on the final day, dropping to the third division. At the end of the 2010-2011 Third Division season, Strasbourg finished fourth and missed out on promotion to Ligue 2, but failed and restarted from the fifth division, the

Championnat de France Amateur 2 The Championnat National 3, commonly referred to as simply National 3 and formerly known as Championnat de France Amateur 2, is a football league competition. The league serves as the fifth division of the French football league system behind ...

Group C.

Promotion from the fifth division to Ligue 1

In 2011-2012, the team immediately returned to the

Championnat de France Amateur The Championnat National 2, commonly known as National 2 and formerly known as Championnat de France Amateur (CFA), is a football league competition. The league serves as the fourth tier of French football league system behind Ligue 1, Ligue 2 ...

, the fourth division, winning Group C of the Championnat de France Amateur 2 with 100 points. In 2012, the team changed its name to ''Racing Club de Strasbourg Alsace'' and also changed its logo. After winning the fourth division championship in 2012-2013, the club returned to the

Championnat National The Championnat National (), commonly referred to as simply National or Division 3, is the third division of the French football league system behind Ligue 1 and Ligue 2. Contested by 18 clubs, the Championnat National operates on a system of ...

, the third division, within two years. For the 2014-2015 season,

took over after

François Keller François Keller (born 27 October 1973) is a French former professional footballer who now works as head coach of Strasbourg B in his home country. Playing career Keller started his senior career with Colmar. During compulsory national servic ...

had managed the club for three years. In 2015-2016, Strasbourg won the National and returned to Ligue 2 after six years. In 2016-2017, they completed the climb, winning the second division as a newly promoted team and landing in the top flight. In Ligue 1 in 2017-18, the team finished in 15th place, saving themselves on the penultimate day thanks to a win at

Décines-Charpieu Décines-Charpieu (; ) is a commune in the Metropolis of Lyon in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region in central-eastern France. The name of the city is often shortened and simply called Décines. Geography The centre of Décines is located southwe ...

against

Olympique Lyonnais Olympique Lyonnais (), commonly referred to as simply Lyon () or OL, is a French professional association football, football club based in Lyon, Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes, France. With origins dating back to 1899, they were founded in 1950 and p ...

in a comeback with a free kick goal by

Dimitri Liénard Dimitri Liénard (born 13 February 1988) is a French professional footballer who plays as a midfielder or as a winger for club Sochaux. Club career Liénard's contract with Bastia was terminated by mutual consent on 15 November 2023. In Jan ...

in the final minutes. In 2018-2019, the team won the French League Cup for the third time, defeating

Guingamp Guingamp (; ) is a commune in the Côtes-d'Armor department in Brittany in northwestern France. With a population of 7,115 as of 2020, Guingamp is one of the smallest towns in Europe to have a top-tier professional football team: En Avant Guin ...

4-1 on penalties in the final.

Colours and crest

While the colours of the town are red and white, Racing has always played in a combination of blue and white. The exact origin of this choice of colours is unknown. Over the years, the most common uniform has been composed of a medium blue jersey, white shorts and medium blue socks. During the last ten years, however, the team has regularly switched between medium blue, dark blue, sky blue and white as the main colour of its home jersey. Since 2007, the Flag of Alsace is featured on the back of the club's shirt. Hummel is the current kit designer. Previously (1973–2000; 2004–2007), Racing was equipped by

Adidas Adidas AG (; stylized in all lowercase since 1949) is a German athletic apparel and footwear corporation headquartered in Herzogenaurach, Bavaria, Germany. It is the largest sportswear manufacturer in Europe, and the second largest in the ...

, which has its French seat in Landersheim, between

and

Saverne Saverne (, ; Alsatian language, Alsatian: ; ) is a communes of France, commune in the Bas-Rhin departments of France, department in Grand Est in north-eastern France. It is situated on the Rhine-Marne canal at the foot of a mountain pass, pass ...

. ASICS also supplied the club (2000–03). The current team crest has been in use – with interruptions – since 1976 and is generally considered as the most legitimate one. It includes a stylised

stork Storks are large, long-legged, long-necked wading birds with long, stout bills. They belong to the family Ciconiidae, and make up the order Ciconiiformes . Ciconiiformes previously included a number of other families, such as herons and ibise ...

(symbol of

), a red diagonal stripe from the city's coat of arms and a depiction of the

Cathedral A cathedral is a church (building), church that contains the of a bishop, thus serving as the central church of a diocese, Annual conferences within Methodism, conference, or episcopate. Churches with the function of "cathedral" are usually s ...

along with the club's initials: RCS. Between 1997 and 2006, the club used another logo, introduced by

. This crest was then considered to be more "modern" and was supposed to depict at the same time the cathedral and a stork. The resemblance, however, was far from being obvious to everyone and the design was quickly derogatively nicknamed "

Pac-Man ''Pac-Man,'' originally called in Japan, is a 1980 maze video game developed and published by Namco for arcades. In North America, the game was released by Midway Manufacturing as part of its licensing agreement with Namco America. The pla ...

" due to some common traits with the famous video game. In 2006, the new management of the club, acceding to a supporter demand, re-installed the 1976 crest.

Stadium

Racing have been playing at the

in southern Strasbourg since 1914. The stadium hosted the

1938 World Cup The 1938 FIFA World Cup was the 3rd edition of the World Cup, the quadrennial international football championship for senior men's national teams. It was held in France from 4 to 19 June 1938. Italy defended its title in the final, beating Hungar ...

and Euro 1984. Its maximum capacity was downsized from 45,000 to 29,000 during the 1990s to meet new safety standards.

Supporters and rivalries

Historically, Racing has its roots in southern Strasbourg in the working-class Neudorf, Meinau and Polygone neighbourhoods. In the 1930s, the team was the only one in the area to jump to professional play and, with the help of good results during that decade, it built support all around the town. In Strasbourg like in the rest of France, there is only one pro football club in every city and hence no in-town rivalry, a fact that heavily contrasts with the situation in Great Britain, Italy or Spain. Nowadays, as the only professional football club in

, Racing attracts a large fan base that covers both the

Bas-Rhin Bas-Rhin () is a department in Alsace which is a part of the Grand Est region of France. The name means 'Lower Rhine', referring to its lower altitude among the two French Rhine departments: it is downstream of the Haut-Rhin (Upper Rhine) de ...

and

Haut-Rhin Haut-Rhin (); Alsatian: ''Owerelsàss'' or '; , . is a department in the Grand Est region, France, bordering both Germany and Switzerland. It is named after the river Rhine; its name means Upper Rhine. Haut-Rhin is the smaller and less pop ...

département In the administrative divisions of France, the department (, ) is one of the three levels of government under the national level (" territorial collectivities"), between the administrative regions and the communes. There are a total of 101 ...

s as well as the eastern part of the

Moselle The Moselle ( , ; ; ) is a river that rises in the Vosges mountains and flows through north-eastern France and Luxembourg to western Germany. It is a bank (geography), left bank tributary of the Rhine, which it joins at Koblenz. A sm ...

. The fan-base outside of this area is essentially limited to people that, for a reason or another, have a personal link with Alsace. The club also has ties to the other side of the

Rhine The Rhine ( ) is one of the List of rivers of Europe, major rivers in Europe. The river begins in the Swiss canton of Graubünden in the southeastern Swiss Alps. It forms part of the Swiss-Liechtenstein border, then part of the Austria–Swit ...

, especially through a supporter friendship with

Karlsruher SC Karlsruher Sport-Club Mühlburg-Phönix e. V., better known as Karlsruher SC, is a Football in Germany, German association football club, based in Karlsruhe, Baden-Württemberg that currently plays in the 2. Bundesliga, the second tier of Germa ...

and regular friendly matches during the summer. On average, the attendance in

has been around 20,000 for a stadium capacity of 29,000. Supporters groups include the "Ultra Boys 90", the "Kop Ciel et Blanc" and the "Club central des supporters". Most of the supporter groups and the most vocal fans in general have elected location in the Kop at the "Quart de Virage Nord-Ouest" (North-West quarter corner). Strasbourg supporters have the reputation to be faithful yet critical. Former captain

Corentin Martins Corentin da Silva Martins (born 11 July 1969) is a French former professional footballer who played as an attacking midfielder, currently the manager of the Madagascar national team. Playing career Club Martins was born in Brest, Brittany, of ...

has once asserted that the Strasbourg public is "demanding, but fair". Racing is always an emotional topic in

. It is often said that some may love it or hate it, or even both at the same time, but that it leaves no one indifferent. Racing Strasbourg's main rival is

Metz Metz ( , , , then ) is a city in northeast France located at the confluence of the Moselle (river), Moselle and the Seille (Moselle), Seille rivers. Metz is the Prefectures in France, prefecture of the Moselle (department), Moselle Departments ...

. The clubs compete is what is generally referred as the "Derby de l'Est" ("the Eastern

derby Derby ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority area on the River Derwent, Derbyshire, River Derwent in Derbyshire, England. Derbyshire is named after Derby, which was its original co ...

") in France, a rather inappropriate term since the two cities are 150 kilometres apart. There is however a significant degree of inter-regional rivalry between Alsace and Lorraine, leading to some acrimony between the fans on both sides. The two clubs met each other in the quarter-finals of the

1995 UEFA Intertoto Cup The 1995 UEFA Intertoto Cup was the first edition of the tournament administered by the UEFA. It saw Strasbourg and Bordeaux win their semi-finals to advance to the first round of the UEFA Cup, the latter eventually finishing runners-up. It also ...

in what was the first ever match between two French teams in a European competition. Strasbourg won the game 2–0. When

was professional, the two sides also nourished a rivalry that persists as far as youth teams are concerned.

Ownership and chairmanship

Overview

Racing's history has always been closely intertwined with local business and politics. In the 1930s, the club's jump to professionalism was sustained by car manufacturer Emile Mathis who had his factory just in front of the

stade de la Meinau The Stade de la Meinau (), commonly known as "la Meinau", is a football (soccer), football stadium in Strasbourg, France. It is the home ground of Racing Club de Strasbourg Alsace, RC Strasbourg and has also hosted international matches, includi ...

. RCS quickly entered a rivalry with

, a team that was backed by Mathis' competitor

Peugeot Peugeot (, , ) is a French automobile brand owned by Stellantis. The family business that preceded the current Peugeot companies was established in 1810, making it the oldest car company in the world. On 20 November 1858, Émile Peugeot applie ...

. After WW2, Mathis ceased activity and the club had to find other sponsors including the

Crédit Mutuel Crédit Mutuel () is a French cooperative banking group, one of the country's top five banks with over 30 million customers. It traces its origins back to the German cooperative movement inspired by Friedrich Wilhelm Raiffeisen in Alsace–Lorr ...

– a large banking institution that has its roots in Alsace and appeared on the club's shirt throughout most of the 1960s and 1970s – as well as the town's municipality. In 1980,

André Bord André Bord (30 November 1922 – 13 May 2013) was a French politician.

, a prominent local

Gaullist Gaullism ( ) is a French political stance based on the thought and action of World War II French Resistance leader Charles de Gaulle, who would become the founding President of the Fifth French Republic. De Gaulle withdrew French forces from t ...

politician and former minister during the

Charles de Gaulle Charles André Joseph Marie de Gaulle (22 November 18909 November 1970) was a French general and statesman who led the Free France, Free French Forces against Nazi Germany in World War II and chaired the Provisional Government of the French Re ...

and

Georges Pompidou Georges Jean Raymond Pompidou ( ; ; 5 July 19112 April 1974) was a French politician who served as President of France from 1969 until his death in 1974. He previously served as Prime Minister of France under President Charles de Gaulle from 19 ...

presidencies, became chairman. Bord could boast his connections in business, political and artistic elites and vowed to make Racing a big name in French football. However, he quickly entered a confrontation with charismatic manager Gilbert Gress that culminated in September 1980 when the announcement of Gress' departure provoked crowd anger and riots scenes during a game against

. The inability for the influential president and the talented manager to get along with each other and the 1980 trauma may explain why Racing was unable to perform lastingly at the top level after the 1979 title. In 1986, Bord left the professional section and introduced fashion designer

as his successor. Hechter had previously been banned from pro football following his involvement in the

secret funds scandal but was nevertheless able to re-take a president job at Strasbourg thanks to a sentence reduction. It was the first attempt to bring an outsider to the local context at the club's head, but the experiment ended in failure in 1990 as the club neared bankruptcy. Racing was at that time salvaged by the

municipality which took a 49% share of the club but had to relinquish it a few years later as the Pasqua legislation restricted public support to professional sport. In 1997, two projects were competing to buy the municipal share and effectively take control of the club. The first was led by then-president Roland Weller, a local businessman. The second bid was made by American

IMG img or IMG is an abbreviation for image. img or IMG may also refer to: Science, technology, and mathematics *IMG (file format), file that stores a complete and uncompressed copy of the contents of a storage device * IMG, a prefix for camera ima ...

- McCormack Group through its French branch headed by

. At that time, IMG was trying to develop its activities in European football and had failed the previous year in its effort to buy

Marseille Marseille (; ; see #Name, below) is a city in southern France, the Prefectures in France, prefecture of the Departments of France, department of Bouches-du-Rhône and of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur Regions of France, region. Situated in the ...

. The American group presented an ambitious project with an entirely new youth academy as well as plans for a renovated stadium, eventually winning the competition for Racing's ownership for a price of 1.5 million euros. The club became a "Société Anonyme à Objet Sportif" and then a "Société Anonyme Sportive Professionnelle", a status very similar to the general corporate status, albeit with restrictions like the impossibility to enter the stock market and the obligation to keep ties with the original association. Proisy became the chairman of the board with full control over the professional section but not the omni-sport structure that still possessed the club's name and its affiliation to the

French Football Federation The French Football Federation ( FFF and 3F; or Triple F; , ) is the governing body of football in France. It was formed in 1919 and is based in the capital, Paris. The FFF is a founding member of FIFA and is responsible for overseeing all aspec ...

(FFF). This was evidenced in 2002 when Proisy and Bord, still a chairman of the omni-sport, entered a dispute that led to the inability for the pro players to wear the name "Racing club de Strasbourg" on their jerseys for some time. Proisy's reign at Strasbourg was fraught with misunderstandings, frustration and poor results on the pitch. The Alsatian public especially resented Proisy's unwillingness to settle in Strasbourg, instead controlling the club's destiny from IMG's offices in Paris. Racing's troubles as well as the town's refusal to finance an extension of the

to host the

1998 FIFA World Cup The 1998 FIFA World Cup was the 16th FIFA World Cup, the Association football, football world championship for List of men's national association football teams, men's national teams. The finals tournament was held in France from 10 June to 1 ...

provoked heated debate during the 2001 municipal election and eventually became part of the elements that drove to the defeat of

Catherine Trautmann Catherine Trautmann (born 15 January 1951) is a French politician for the Socialist Party (France), French Socialist Party. She served as Minister of Culture (France), Minister of Culture of France in the Lionel Jospin#Jospin's Ministry: 2 June ...

. In 2003, the club was bought back by a pool of local investors including Egon Gindorf, who became chairman, Patrick Adler, Pierre Schmidt and Philippe Ginestet, who all had been club sponsors during the IMG era. The new ownership bought the club for a symbolical euroJean-Marc Butterlin "Gindorf, par amour Le nouveau president du Racing est un passionne.", ''L'Equipe'', 6 juillet 2003 to an IMG group eager to cut its losses after the death of Mark McCormack but had to cover a 3 million euro deficit to close the 2002–03 budget. It is estimated that Racing lost 15 million euros during the IMG era, mainly due to a dubious recruitment policy. Thanks to a prudent transfer policy initiated by director

Marc Keller Marc Albert Joseph Keller (born 14 January 1968) is a French former professional footballer and current executive who has been president of RC Strasbourg Alsace since 2012. He played primarily as a midfielder, for clubs in France, Germany and En ...

and good attendance rates, the new management was able to redress finances but the club's economic situation has remained fragile up to now. In 2004, Gindorf experienced personal and financial difficulties and was willing to scale down his involvement at Racing. It was understood that Philippe Ginestet would become the new chairman at the end of the 2004–05 season. However, this move was opposed by Keller who, in June 2005, clearly announced that he would not work with Ginestet. Keller had in fact been acting as the club's head since 2002 but was only a minor shareholder. He nevertheless was able to mobilise his iconic status with supporters to, at first, block Ginestet's accession to chairmanship, provoking a deadlock that lasted throughout 2005 as the club was looking for an investor. In the fall of 2005, it was announced that Alain Afflelou, owner of the biggest optician in France and a former president of

, would be the new owner, but he was eventually out-bid by Ginestet, who took control of the club midway through the 2005–06 season, forcing Keller's departure a few months later. Ginestet held a majority share during four years, which he sold in the end of 2009 for a price of €1.6 million. After some speculation, the new owner was identified as Alain Fontenla, a French investment broker based in London. In 2010, Fontenla owned 85%, along with Carousel Finance (15%) a holding named "Racing investissements", which itself owned a majority share (70%) of EuroRacing, the main shareholder (78%) of the club. The other major shareholder of the club was Lohr SA, an industrial group centred on transportation activities. On 22 June 2023,

BlueCo BlueCo is a consortium led by Todd Boehly, Clearlake Capital, Mark Walter, and Hansjörg Wyss. The group was formed as the investment vehicle for the takeover of Premier League football club Chelsea F.C. in 2022. Its name is derived from the hom ...

, the consortium which purchased

Premier League The Premier League is a professional association football league in England and the highest level of the English football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the English Football Lea ...

club Chelsea in May 2022, acquired a majority stake in the club.

Presidential history

Below is a list of Strasbourg's 15 presidents since the start of the professional era in 1933. The president has not always been the real owner of the club. For example, between 1990 and 1997, the municipality was the major shareholder, but it chose to delegate the chairmanships to independent local entrepreneurs. The 2009–10 season saw a record of five successive presidents. Early into the season,

stepped down from his position, after the sacking of Glibert Gress, whom he had appointed as manager. Philippe Ginestet then re-took the presidency, but left the club when the takeover by the new owners was completed in December. The new owners chose to name Julien Fournier as the new Chief executive but, after some turmoil, Fournier quickly entered a dispute with the new major shareholder, Alain Fontenla. Fournier's contract was terminated in February and he was replaced by Luc Dayan on an interim basis. Only a month later, former

chairman Jean-Claude Plessis came to replace Dayan.

Players

Current squad

Out on loan

Former players

RCS does not have an official hall of fame or an all-time XI. Various selections have been made by press and supporters but none has achieved universal respect. 21 players have been capped for France while playing for Strasbourg. The most notable one is

Oscar Heisserer Oscar Heisserer (18 July 1914 – 7 October 2004) was a French association football, footballer. Born in Schirrhein, Alsace-Lorraine, he played for RC Strasbourg, and appeared for French national football team, France in the 1938 World Cup, wher ...

who played a record 18 times with the national team while at Strasbourg and was the first Alsatian and first and only RCS player to wear the armband for France. Dominique Dropsy,

and Gérard Hausser also earned more than 10 caps while Marc Molitor is one of the rare examples of a player being capped for the national team while playing in the Division 2. Unsurprisingly, it is during the 1978–1979 title season that Racing had the most players included in the national squad. On 7 October 1978 were a record four RCS players ( Dominique Dropsy,

Albert Gemmrich Albert Gemmrich (born 13 February 1955) is a French former professional footballer who played as a striker. He obtained five caps scoring twice for the France national team. Career statistics :''Scores and results list France's goal tally firs ...

) on the field for a

Euro 1980 The 1980 UEFA European Football Championship finals tournament was held in Italy. This was the sixth UEFA European Championship, which is held every four years and endorsed by UEFA. It was the first European Championship to feature eight teams ...

qualifying game against

Luxembourg Luxembourg, officially the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, is a landlocked country in Western Europe. It is bordered by Belgium to the west and north, Germany to the east, and France on the south. Its capital and most populous city, Luxembour ...

. This figure was repeated a month later for a friendly against

Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...

(Dropsy, Piasecki, Gemmrich and

and

were the last RCS players to earn a cap during the 1995–1996 season. Leboeuf is one of the two former RCS in the French team that won

World Cup A world cup is a global sporting competition in which the participant entities – usually international teams or individuals representing their countries – compete for the title of world champion. The event most associated with the name is ...

, the other one being

Youri Djorkaeff Youri Raffi Djorkaeff (born 9 March 1968) is a French former professional footballer who played as an attacking midfielder or forward. Throughout his club career, he played for teams in France, Italy, Germany, England, and the United States. At ...

Morgan Schneiderlin - France v Armenia 2014

Players to have once played for Strasbourg to have recently played for France include

and

Richard Dutruel Richard Philippe Dutruel (born 24 December 1972) is a French retired professional footballer who played as a goalkeeper. Early life and club career Dutruel was born in Thonon-les-Bains, Haute-Savoie. During his career he represented Paris Saint- ...

, (both in 2004). Furthermore, current France international midfielder

Morgan Schneiderlin Morgan Fernand Gérard Schneiderlin (; born 8 November 1989) is a French former professional footballer who played as a defensive midfielder. Schneiderlin began his career with Strasbourg, before moving to England to join Southampton in June 20 ...

is a product of RC Strasbourg's Youth set-up, spending 14 years with the club before moving to

Southampton Southampton is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city and unitary authority in Hampshire, England. It is located approximately southwest of London, west of Portsmouth, and southeast of Salisbury. Southampton had a population of 253, ...

after just five first-team appearances for Strasbourg. Schneiderlin then moved to

on 14 July 2015 before a move to Everton in January 2017. With regional feelings still strong in Alsace, the performances of local players logically attract special attention. Seven out of the ten players with the most appearances for Racing are from Alsace: René Hauss (who holds the record),

, René Deutschmann, Edmond Haan, Gérard Hausser, Jean Schuth and

Raymond Kaelbel Raymond Kaelbel (31 January 1932 – 17 April 2007) was a French footballer who played as a centre-back. He was part of France national team during the 1958 FIFA World Cup. He was the member of The Board of directors of RC Strasbourg and reside ...

. Since 1979, there is also a peculiar tradition that every Racing team to win a trophy or reach a final featured a

Breton Breton most often refers to: *anything associated with Brittany, and generally **Breton people **Breton language, a Southwestern Brittonic Celtic language of the Indo-European language family, spoken in Brittany ** Breton (horse), a breed **Gale ...

as captain, manager or both.

captained the 1979 team and won the

in 1997 and 2005 as a manager. The 2001

winning team for itself included

Yvon Pouliquen Yvon Pouliquen (born 17 October 1962) is a French association football, football manager and former player. He played as a defensive midfielder for 14 seasons (all but one in Ligue 1) and made 455 appearances in the French league. He then spent s ...

as manager and

as captain. Pouliquen also was the captain for the 1995 final. Chilavert 2014

Apart from French internationals and Alsatians, there is a strong tradition to have foreign players from

Central and Eastern Europe Central and Eastern Europe is a geopolitical term encompassing the countries in Baltic region, Northeast Europe (primarily the Baltic states, Baltics), Central Europe (primarily the Visegrád Group), Eastern Europe, and Southeast Europe (primaril ...

at Strasbourg. The successful Racing team of the 1930s regularly included

Austrians Austrians (, ) are the citizens and Nationality, nationals of Austria. The English term ''Austrians'' was applied to the population of Archduchy of Austria, Habsburg Austria from the 17th or 18th century. Subsequently, during the 19th century, ...

both as players and coaches, a tradition that was continued when Ernst Stojaspal played at la Meinau in the 1950s. Other ''Mitteleuropa'' players fondly remembered include

Elek Schwartz Alexandru "Elek" Schwartz (23 October 1908 – 2 October 2000) was a Romanian professional footballer and coach of the Netherlands national team. With S.L. Benfica he won the national Championship and Cup trophies of 1965 and led the club into ...

Ivica Osim Ivan Osim (6 May 1941 – 1 May 2022), best known as Ivica Osim, was a Bosnian professional Football player, footballer and Manager (association football), football manager. Widely regarded as one of the greatest Bosnian football managers of all ...

, Alexander Vencel or Danijel Ljuboja while Russian

Aleksandr Mostovoi Aleksandr Vladimirovich Mostovoi ( ; born 22 August 1968) is a Russian former professional footballer who played as an attacking midfielder. Known as ''O Zar de Balaídos'' ("The Tsar of Balaídos") from his lengthy spell at Celta de Vigo, he ...

is the last world-class star to play for Racing to this date. Also, one of the greatest goalkeepers of all times, the Paraguayan

José Luis Chilavert José Luis Félix Chilavert González (; born 27 July 1965) is a Paraguayan former professional footballer who played as a goalkeeper for Sportivo Luqueño, Guaraní, San Lorenzo de Almagro, Real Zaragoza, Vélez Sarsfield, RC Strasbourg, P ...

who, known for being three times selected

IFFHS World's Best Goalkeeper The IFFHS World's Best Goalkeeper is a association football, football award given annually since 1987 to the best Goalkeeper (association football), goalkeeper of the year as voted by the International Federation of Football History & Statistics ...

and his free-kick abilities, won the 2001 Coupe de France with the club.

Managers

Strasbourg has had 47 managers in the professional era, with the holder of the office changing 57 times. This is a record in French football only surpassed by

. Gilbert Gress holds the record for the longest-serving manager at the club, both for a single spell (39 months between. 1977–80, 152 matches) and overall (75 months in three spells, 275 matches). Paul Frantz holds the record for the most spells at Racing with four (73 months overall, 227 matches).

is the only manager to win two trophies with the club.

Current coaching staff

Honours

League

**Winners: 1978–79 *

Ligue 2 Ligue 2 (, League 2), also known as Ligue 2 BKT due to sponsorship reasons, is a French professional football league. The league serves as the second division of French football and is one of two divisions making up the Ligue de Football Prof ...

**Winners: 1976–77, 1987–88, 2016–17 *

**Winners: 2015–16 *

Championnat National 2 The Championnat National 2, commonly known as National 2 and formerly known as Championnat de France Amateur (CFA), is a Association football, football league competition. The league serves as the fourth tier of French football league system be ...

**Winners:

2012–13 1 (one, unit, unity) is a number, numeral, and glyph. It is the first and smallest positive integer of the infinite sequence of natural numbers. This fundamental property has led to its unique uses in other fields, ranging from science to sp ...

*Alsace Champions **Winners: 1923, 1924, 1926 *Dordogne Champions **Winners: 1940

Cups

**Winners: 1950–51, 1965–66, 2000–01 *

**Winners: 1963–64, 1996–97, 2004–05, 2018–19

Europe

UEFA Intertoto Cup The UEFA Intertoto Cup (from , "between" and , " betting pool"),Most precisely, from ( football pool); cf. originally called the International Football Cup, was a summer football competition between European clubs. The competition was dis ...

**Winners:

1995 1995 was designated as: * United Nations Year for Tolerance * World Year of Peoples' Commemoration of the Victims of the Second World War This was the first year that the Internet was entirely privatized, with the United States government ...

Records

*Biggest victory: 10–0 (vs.

, 1937–38) *Biggest defeat: 0–8 (vs.

Limoges Limoges ( , , ; , locally ) is a city and Communes of France, commune, and the prefecture of the Haute-Vienne Departments of France, department in west-central France. It was the administrative capital of the former Limousin region. Situated o ...

, 1959–60) *Biggest victory in European game: 5–0 (v.

Grazer AK Grazer Athletiksport Klub (; abbreviated as GAK), better known simply as Grazer AK, is an Austrian sports club based in the city of Graz in the federal state of Styria. The football section was once among Austria's most popular clubs, enjoying s ...

, 2005–06) *Biggest defeat in European game: 2–10 (v.

MTK Budapest Magyar Testgyakorlók Köre (Hungarian for "Hungarian Circle of Physical Practitioners") is a multi-sports club from Budapest, founded in 1888. It has sections for football, handball, basketball, volleyball, futsal, ice hockey, water polo, cycl ...

, 1961–62) *Record appearances: René Hauss (580; 421 in Ligue 1; between 1949 and 1969) *Most consecutive appearances for the club: Dominique Dropsy (336; between 1973 and 1982) *Most goals for the club:

(118; between 1934 and 1939) *Most goals for a single championship season at the club:

(30; 1936–37) * Oldest player: René Hauss (39 years, 351 days; vs.

; 11 December 1966) * Youngest player: Jacques Glassmann (16 years, 95 days vs.

, 25 November 1978) *Record attendance: 39,033, 20 November 1992, vs.

*Highest transfer fee paid: €22 million (to

Club Brugge (), known simply as Club Brugge (in English also: ''Club Bruges''), is a Belgian professional football club based in Bruges, Belgium. It was founded in 1891 and its home ground is the Jan Breydel Stadium, which has a capacity of 29,042. They pl ...

for Abakar Sylla in 2023) *Highest transfer fee received: €18 million (from Al-Shabab for

Habib Diallo Mouhamadou Habibou "Habib" Diallo (born 18 June 1995) is a Senegalese professional footballer who plays as a forward for Saudi Pro League side Damac, on loan from Al-Shabab and the Senegal national team. Club career Metz In the summer of 20 ...

in 2023)Renaud Lecadre, "Dérives au RC de Strasbourg", Libération, 21 February 2007

References

Bibliography

* Pierre Perny, ''Racing 100 ans'', 2006, 350 p. * Ronald Hirlé, ''Il était une fois le Racing, Toute l'histoire du club omnisport Strasbourgeois'', 1991, 176 p. * * * * * * *