Nîmes Olympique

The Sporting Club Nîmois (SCN) was founded in 1901 by Henri Monnier, who, at the age of 21, had just returned from a two-year trip to England. He decided to start a new team in Nîmes, his home town. Originally, the team was for young Protestants only.

In 1908, the SCN played FC Sète for the title of 'Champions of Languedoc'. Nîmes won, qualifying for the final phase of the French championship, which they lost to Marseille in the first round.

The club suspended activities due to World War I. After the war ended, it resumed its activities on 15 April 1919. In 1922, SCN united with another club from Nîmes, F.A. Nîmois, becoming a single club.

The new team, still under the name of Sporting Club Nîmois, was runner-up in the South-East championship in 1925. In 1927, les Nîmois won a place in the highest championship, then known as the Division d'Honneur.

In October 1931, the then-president of the Republic of France, Gaston Doumergue, inaugurated the Jean Bouin stadium.

Due to financial problems, SCN abandoned their professional activities in 1937. Following efforts from local businessmen, the club moved to the district of Lozère-Gard in Nîmes, and was reformed as Nîmes Olympique.

The team moved to the Stade des Costières on 15 February 1989. The first league match at the stadium was on 4 March 1989, against Montceau in a Ligue 2 game, with 3,647 spectators in attendance. The record attendance to date was 25,051, which was recorded in the 1991–92 season, in a Ligue 1 game against Marseille.

In December 1991, during a match for Nîmes, Eric Cantona threw the ball at the referee, having been angered by one of his decisions. He was summoned to a disciplinary hearing by the French Football Federation and was banned for one month. In turn, Cantona responded by walking up to each member of the hearing committee and calling them idiots. His ban was increased to two months, and Cantona subsequently announced his retirement from international football on 16 December 1991.

In 1995–96, Nîmes reached the final of the French Cup, allowing them to compete the following year in the UEFA Cup Winners' Cup. In September 1996, in the Round of 32, Nîmes beat Budapest Honvéd (4–1 on aggregate), before losing to AIK Stockholm in the next round (2-3 on aggregate).

On 5 May 2018, Nimes secured promotion back to Ligue 1 for the first time since the 1992–93 season after finishing second in Ligue 2.[2] In the 2018–19 season, Nimes enjoyed a happy return to Ligue 1 finishing 9th on the table.[3] In the shortened 2019–20 season, the team finished 18th and narrowly avoided relegation.

• Ligue 1
  • Runners-up: 1958, 1959, 1960, 1972
• Ligue 2
  • Champions: 1950
  • Runners-up: 2018
• Championnat National
  • Champions: 1997, 2012
• Coupe de France
  • Runners-up: 1958, 1961, 1996
• Trophée des Champions
  • Runners-up: 1958
• Coppa delle Alpi
  • Champions: 1972
• Coupe Drago
  • Runners-up: 1956
• Coupe Gambardella
  • Champions: 1961, 1966, 1969, 1977

The largest group of Ultras are the Gladiators Nîmes founded in 1991. The name refers to Nîmes' rich history, dating back to the Roman Empire.

Before the start of each home game, an extract of Georges Bizet's opera "Carmen" is heard.

There is a long rivalry with the nearby city of Montpellier which extends to both local football teams.

• Official website (in French)