Coupe de la Ligue

The Coupe de la Ligue (English: League Cup) is a French football cup competition in which teams may participate only men who have professional status in each season; which are currently (2012 /13) the 40 clubs in Ligue 1 and Ligue 2, and four clubs from the third-tier National ( D3). He is also in French football only the third most important title in a national championship and national cup ( " Coupe de France "). After completion of the 2008/09 season was even thinking about the abolition of the competition. Background was the desire of numerous clubs, the future no longer grant the League Cup winners, but the fifth- Ligue 1 a place in the UEFA Europa League. This, however, the basis for the 10 - million - euro contract with France Télévisions would be eliminated, which has acquired the broadcasting rights. In June 2009, the station has prevailed and it remains in the automatic qualification of the competition winner. The Director-General of the 2009 League Cup winner Girondins Bordeaux, Alain Deveseleer, judged in this context the importance of the Coupe de la Ligue with the words:

" For this trophy we are interested earliest from the semi-finals and only if no other more important games more pending. "

Also, almost two-thirds of the French football fans loudly voice a non-representative survey of the opinion of the League Cup is nothing more than " a consolation round for reprobates in the league clubs ."

Formation and discharge mode

The national federation FFF led the competition in 1991 - now it is organized by the Ligue de Football Professionnel (LFP ) - after it began in the early 1980s only a biennial transmitted precursor, the Coupe de l' été (German: Summer Cup ), had given. However, the League Cup perpetual initially only a shadowy existence during the summer break, just because the bigger clubs participated in it does not participate or merely sent their reserve team. Was upgraded only when the victory in this competition with the qualification for the UEFA Cup (1994 /95), the Coupe de la Ligue won at sporting value. At least the playoffs (now regularly held at the Stade de France) also attract large crowds of spectators: 2007 was 79 702 paying visitors the previous record ( 78 721 in 2005) outbid.

In the first rounds of the clubs in the third and second division are first among themselves, while the first division intervene only in the round of 32 teams in the 12 unterklassige teams are then left. Up to and including the quarter- finals of the League Cup is performed before the winter break. Otherwise the League Cup will be played according to the "classical" Cup mode; ie, in particular that from Sechtzehntelfinale the respective Fixtures without seedings or pre-sorting of clubs from all still in the competition clubs will be drawn and only one match is played at the end of a winner it must be established ( and whether by extra time and penalties ) which then qualifies for the next round, while the loser is eliminated. Also, the venue is determined for each encounter by lot.

However, the President of LFP, Frédéric Thiriez, 2006 brought some changes in the mode this week: after that shall in future four clubs will be set as " group headers ", which can be dispensed with entirely draws as early as the second round, because - similar to World Cup finals - All matches are fixed to the semi-finals. Thieriez ' proposal, the two directly qualified for the Champions League clubs give the bonus of having to engage in the competition until the second round is practiced since 2007, although he also encountered in France, not only in the "small" clubs fierce criticism had.

Successful participants since 1995

Paris Saint- Germain ( 1995, 1998, 2008), Bordeaux (2002, 2007, 2009 ) and Olympique Marseille ( 2010, 2011, 2012) have won the Coupe de la Ligue three times each; Olympique Marseille is also the first club to defend the League Cup; Racing Strasbourg won the League Cup twice (1997, 2005). The only second division side, who won the competition, is the FC Gueugnon.

Bordeaux ( six times ), PSG and Olympique Lyon ( four times each ) were most common in a League Cup final.

The previous finals

In most statistics only the winners will be included from 1995.

The finals of the previous competition for the "Summer Cup "

Comments

Women: England | Scotland

Football Competition in France

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