AS Saint-Étienne
| Saint-Étienne | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Full name | Association Sportive Saint-Étienne Loire |
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| Nickname(s) | Les Verts | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Founded | 1920 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Ground | Stade Geoffroy-Guichard, Saint Étienne |
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| Capacity | 35,616[1] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Chairman | Bernard Caiazzo | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Manager |  Laurent Roussey |
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| League | Ligue 1 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2006-2007 | Ligue 1, 11th | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Association Sportive de Saint-Étienne Loire, (ASSE or A.S. Saint-Étienne) are a French football team founded in 1920. They play their home games at the Stade Geoffroy-Guichard in the city of Saint Étienne. They are also one of the most successful teams in French Football history, with honours including 10 French First Division championship wins. Their primary rivals are Olympique Lyonnais, from nearby Lyon.
History
Early days
A.S. Saint-Étienne was created in
In 1928, Pierre Guichard (the son of the head of Casino Geoffroy Guichard) took over the club and renamed it Association Sportive Stéphanoise. In 1933, the team turned professional and the name was changed again to the form it presently holds: Association Sportive de Saint-Étienne. The club was first promoted to the French First Division for the 1937-1938 season. Since the 1970's the club has had a close relationship with Glasgow Celtic.
The Apogee
In 1955 ASSE won their first trophy, the Charles Drago Cup. In 1958, three seasons later, the club claimed the French First Division title for the first time. As French Champions, Saint-Étienne subsequently participated in their first European Cup campaign against Rangers.
Roger Rocher became president of the club in 1961. The following year, the team won the French Cup, but also were relegated to the Second Division. ASSE won the Second Division the following year, and were promoted back to the First Division. The team then continued a surprising ascent, winning the French First Division trophy the following year (1964). Between 1967 and 1970, Saint-Étienne won four championships consecutively, and added two additional French Cups to their trophy cabinet (1967, 1970).
Robert Herbin was named manager in 1972, and lead the team to the double in 1974 and 1976. The team won a ninth championship in 1976. That same year, the club lost in the finals of the European Cup against Bayern Munich. People are used to say that it was because of the scared posts. ASSE followed that season by winning the French Cup again in 1977. Their last championship (and major silverware) win came in 1981, with their tenth First Division Championship.
The Decline
In 1982, a financial scandal lead to the decline in the club's performance. The president, Roger Rocher, was forced to leave the club , and spent several months in jail. Since then, the club has spent much of its time in the bottom half of the First Division and the Second Division. Although its sporting performances have been inconsistent, the club has still benefited from the unconditional support of its fans.
The club came back in first division in 1999, finishing 6th.Supporters hoped a return to success with Brazilian strikers Aloisio and Alex celebrating his goals by imitating a panther (Emblem of the club), but in 2001, Alex and the Ukrainian goalkeeper Maksym Levytsky, were suspended for four months for the use of fake Portuguese and Greek passports, respectively. At the end of a judicial inquiry, which linked some of the management staff to the passport forgeries, seven championship points were subtracted from Saint-Étienne's tally, causing them to be relegated to the Second Division.
After relegation Saint-Étienne struggled, with mixed results in the Second Division/Ligue 2. They finally won the Ligue 2 championship in 2004, achieving promotion to Ligue 1. The club finished 6th in Ligue 1 the following year, which enabled them to participate to a European tournament, the Intertoto Cup, for the first time in many years.
Honors
- Ligue 1:
- Ligue 2:
- French Cup:
- European Cup:
- Runners-up (1): 1976
Club Officials
Board of Directors
- President: Bernard Caiazzo
- Vice-President: Roland Romeyer
- General Director: Vincent Tong-Cuong
Management
- Manager: Laurent Roussey
- Assistant Manager: David Guion
- Coaches: Frederic Emile, Thierry Cotte, Gerard Fernandez & Alain Blachon
- Goalkeeping Coach: Jean Dees
Academy Coaching Staff
- Director of Youth Academy: Luc Bruder
- Reserves Coach: Jean-Philippe Primard
- Under 18's Coach: Vacant
- Under 16's Coach: Vacant
- Under 15's Coach: Patrick Revelles
- Goalkeeping Coach: Gilbert Ceccarelli
Managerial History
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Notable players
For a complete list of AS Saint-Étienne players, see Category:AS Saint-Étienne players
Current Squad
First team squad
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Out on loan
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Transfers 2007-2008
In:
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Out:
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Reserves
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References
External links
- (French) Official website
- (French) Photo-ASSE
- (French) Asse-Live, Lettre des Verts
- (French) Asse-World, l'actualité des verts en temps réel
- (French) ASSE Spéciales Stats
- (French) Archives de l'ASSE
- (French) Poteaux Carrés
- (French) Panthère Verte
- (French) Asse-Live, Lettre des Verts (forum)
- (French) Poteaux Carrés (forum)
- (English) AS Saint-Étienne 'Cult' club profile on midfield dynamo cult website
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| Division 1/Ligue 1 Seasons | ||||||||||||||
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1932-33 • 1933-34 • 1934-35 •
1935-36 • 1936-37 • 1937-38 •
1938-39 • 1945-46 | ||||||||||||||