OGC Nice

History

Gymnaste Club 'Azur was founded in the residential district of Les Baumettes on 9 July 1904 under the name Gymnaste Club. The club was founded by Marquis de Massingy d'Auzac, who served as president of the Fédération Sportive des Alpes-Maritimes (). Akin to its name, the club primarily focused on the sports of gymnastics and athletics. On 6 July 1908, in an effort to remain affiliated with the FSAM and also join the amateur federation USFSA, the head of French football at the time, Gymnaste Club de Nice split into two sections with the new section of the club being named Gymnastes Amateurs Club de Nice. The new section spawned a football club and, after two seasons, the two clubs merged. On 20 September 1919, Nice merged with the local club Gallia Football Athlétic Club and, subsequently, adopted the club's red and black combination. In 1920, the club was playing in the Ligue du Sud-Est, a regional league under the watch of the French Football Federation. While playing in the league, Nice developed rivalries with Cannes and Marseille. On 22 December 1924, the club changed its name to Olympique Gymnaste Club de Nice.

In July 1930, the National Council of the French Football Federation voted 128–20 in support of professionalism in French football. Nice, along with most clubs from southern France, were among the first clubs to adopt the new statute and subsequently became professional and were founding members of the new league. In the league's inaugural season, Nice finished seventh in its group. In the following season, Nice finished 13th and were relegated from the league. The club did not play league football in the ensuing season and returned to French football in 1936, playing in Division 2. Nice spent the next three years playing in the second division. In 1939, professional football in France was abolished due to World War II. Nonetheless, Nice continued to play league football under amateur status with the club participating in the Ligue du Sud-Est in 1939 and the Ligue du Sud in the following seasons.

After World War II, Nice returned to professional status and was inserted back into the second division. The club achieved promotion back to the first division for the 1948–49 season under the leadership of the Austrian manager Anton Marek. After two seasons of finishing in the top ten, Nice, now led by manager Jean Lardi, achieved its first-ever honour by winning the league title in the 1950–51 season. Bolstered by French internationals Marcel Domingo, Antoine Bonifaci, Abdelaziz Ben Tifour, and Jean Courteaux, as well as the Argentine duo of Pancho Gonzales and Luis Carniglia and the Swede Pär Bengtsson, Nice won the league despite finishing equal on points with Lille. Nice was declared champions due to having more wins (18) than Lille (17). In the following season, under new manager Numa Andoire, Nice won the double after winning both the league and the Coupe de France. In the league, the club defended its title by holding off both Bordeaux and Lille. In the Coupe de France final, Nice faced Bordeaux and defeated the Aquitaine club 5–3 courtesy of goals from five different players.

Nice continued its solid run in the decade by winning the Coupe de France for the second time in 1954. The club, now being led by a young and unknown Just Fontaine, faced southern rivals Marseille and earned a 2–1 victory with Victor Nuremberg and Carniglia scoring the goals. Carniglia retired from football after the season and began managing Nice. In his first season in charge, Nice won the league for a third time after being chased for the entire season by rivals Marseille and Monaco, as well as Lens and Saint-Étienne. After the campaign, Fontaine departed the club for Stade de Reims. Three seasons later, Nice won the last title of the decade in 1959. The club finished the decade (1950–1959) with four league titles and two Coupe de France trophies. Nice also appeared in European competition for the first time in the 1956–57 season, losing to Real Madrid in the quarter-finals.

In subsequent decades, Nice struggled to equal the success of the 1950s with Reims and, later Saint-Étienne eclipsing the club in the 1960s and '70s. During this time, Nice regularly competed in Division 1 with the exception of two seasons in Division 2 in 1965 and 1970. In 1973 and 1976, Nice achieved a second-place finish in the league, its best finish since winning the league in 1959. However, following the latter finish, the club finished in lower positions in the next six seasons and was relegated in the 1981–82 season after finishing 19th. Nice played three seasons in the second division before returning to the top flight in 1985. After six seasons of mid-table finishes, Nice was back in Division 2.

In 1997, Nice, now back in the first division, stunned many after winning the Coupe de France. However, the victory did not shock most French football enthusiasts mainly due to the club's competition in the run-up to the final in which Nice faced only Division 2 clubs, save for first division club Bastia. In the final, Nice defeated Guingamp 5–4 on penalties to earn cup success. On a more sour note, Nice were relegated from the first division only days after winning the Coupe de France last in the league. The club spent five seasons in Ligue 2 and returned to Ligue 1 for the 2001–02 season. In the lead-up to the season, Nice failed to meet the financial requirements set by the DNCG and was subsequently relegated to the Championnat National, the third level of French football. However, after achieving stability, mainly due to selling a few players, Nice was allowed into Ligue 1 after successfully appealing. In the 2005–06 season, Nice made it to the final of the Coupe de la Ligue in 2006, losing to Nancy 2–1.

In June 2016, a Chinese and American consortium led by Chien Lee of NewCity Capital and Alex Zheng purchased 80% of the club. Chien Lee and Alex Zheng held a 78% stake, while Paul Conway’s Pacific Media Group (PMG) owned the remaining 2%, Jean-Pierre Rivere retained a 20% stake in the club. Chien Lee subsequently became the Chairman of the board In the 2016–17 Ligue 1 season, Nice finished third in the final standings and qualified for the third round of the UEFA Champions League.

On June 11, 2018, Patrick Vieira was announced as Nice manager, replacing Lucien Favre. In the 2018–19 season, Nice finished in 7th place on the table.

In July 2019, it was announced that Jim Ratcliffe acquired the French club for a reported €100 million.

After a run of poor form saw Nice sitting in 11th place in Ligue 1 and eliminated from the Europa League, manager Patrick Vieira was sacked. Vieira's assistant, Adrian Ursea, took over as caretaker. Nice would finish the 2020–21 Ligue 1 season in ninth place on the table.

On 28 June 2021, Christophe Galtier was appointed as the new head coach. On 27 June 2022, Lucien Favre returned to Nice as manager.

After a complicated first part of the season, Lucien Favre was fired. He was replaced by the coach of the reserve team Didier Digard. For the following season, Francesco Farioli was appointed as the next head coach. In the 2023–24 Ligue 1 season, Nice qualified for the UEFA Europa League finishing in 5th place on the table.

2025-2026 : potential sale

In 2025, OGC Nice was placed on the market by its owner Jim Ratcliffe, who acquired the club in 2019. The sale process has been overseen by the advisory firm Lazard. In January 2026, Ratcliffe reportedly reduced the club’s asking price, initially set at over €200 million, after failing to attract a buyer at the original valuation. The revised valuation was reported to be below €200 million, reflecting broader market conditions and the challenges of selling a top-tier French football club.

Home stadium

Main article: Allianz Riviera

From 1927 until 2013, Nice played its home matches at the Stade du Ray. The stadium is, however, officially known as the Stade Léo-Lagrange, named after a French politician who had a stint in politics as the assistant secretary of state for sport. The Stade du Ray went through many renovations, most recently in 1997 and had a capacity of 17,415. The stadium was popular with supporters for being located in the centre of the city, but suffered from its old structure and small capacity, as the Nice metropolitan area has over one million residents.

Nice began to attempt to build a new stadium in 2002. In its first attempt, the club was heavily criticised by local politicians who questioned the usefulness and format of the stadium. Despite the critics, however, the club's proposition passed and excavation of the site in the plain of Var, at Nice-Lingostière, began in July 2006. The Tribunal administration of Nice cancelled the project for irregularities committed concerning the fixation of the price of tickets. In October 2008, the new deputy mayor of Nice, Christian Estrosi, declared that Nice would have a new stadium "no later than 2013". The new stadium was to be built at the same place as before, at Nice-Lingostière.

On 22 September 2009, French newspaper L'Équipe reported the Grand Stade Nice had been selected by the French Football Federation (FFF) as 1 of the 12 stadiums to be used in the country's bid to host UEFA Euro 2016. The FFF officially made its selections on 11 November 2009, and the city of Nice was selected as a site to host matches during the tournament. The construction of the Allianz Riviera started in 2011 and was completed in September 2013.

Players

Current squad

Out on loan

Retired numbers

Notable former players

Below are notable former players who have represented Nice in league and international competition since the club's foundation in 1904.

For a complete list of OGC Nice players, see :Category:OGC Nice players ;France

• France Marcel Aubour
• France Dominique Baratelli
• France Éric Bauthéac
• France Hatem Ben Arfa
• France Daniel Bravo
• France André Chorda
• France José Cobos
• France Carlos Curbelo
• France Wylan Cyprien
• France Héctor De Bourgoing
• France Didier Digard
• France Olivier Echouafni
• France Patrice Evra
• France Valentin Eysseric
• France Koczur Ferry
• France Jacques Foix
• France Just Fontaine
• France Jean-Marc Guillou
• France Jean-Noël Huck
• France Roger Jouve
• France Charles Marchetti
• France Pierre Lees-Melou
• France Hugo Lloris
• France Charly Loubet
• France Jean Luciano
• France Marc Molitor
• France Alassane Pléa
• France Loïc Rémy
• France Malang Sarr
• France Joseph Ujlaki

;Argentina

• Argentina Walter Benítez
• Argentina Renato Civelli
• Argentina Darío Cvitanich

;Brazil

• Brazil Ederson

;Colombia

• Colombia David Ospina

;Denmark

• Denmark Kasper Dolberg
• Denmark Kasper Schmeichel

;Dominican Republic

• Dominican Republic Pablo Rosario

;Haiti

• Haiti Romain Genevois

;Italy

• Italy Mario Balotelli

;Ivory Coast

• Ivory Coast Bakari Koné
• Ivory Coast Jean Michaël Seri

;Luxembourg

• Luxembourg Victor Nurenberg

;Mali

• Mali Cédric Kanté
• Mali Mahamane Traoré

;Netherlands

• Netherlands Wesley Sneijder

;Poland

• Poland Marcin Bułka

;Portugal

• Portugal Ricardo Pereira

;Senegal

• Senegal Nampalys Mendy

;Serbia

• Serbia Nemanja Pejčinović

;Spain

• Spain Josep Samitier
• Spain Joaquín Valle

;Sweden

• Sweden Leif Eriksson

;Yugoslavia

• Yugoslavia Nenad Bjeković
• Yugoslavia Marko Elsner
• Yugoslavia Josip Katalinski

Management and staff

Club officials

;Senior club staff

• Owner(s): Ineos
• President: Jean-Pierre Rivère
• Director of football: Florian Maurice
• Head coach: Claude Puel
• Assistant coach: Julien Sablé, Cédric Varrault
• Goalkeeping coach: Stéphane Cassard
• Fitness coach: Christopher Juras, Sébastien Sangnier, Maxime Verdier, Ghislain Dubois
• Video Analyst: Sebastien Besombes
• Chief Analyst: Alexandre Pasquini
• Match Analyst: Kevin Jeffries

Coaching history

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Honours

Domestic

• Ligue 1
  • Champions (4): 1950–51, 1951–52, 1955–56, 1958–59
  • Runners-up (3): 1967–68, 1972–73, 1975–76
• Ligue 2
  • Champions (4): 1947–48, 1964–65, 1969–70, 1993–94
  • Runners-up (1): 1984–85
• Division 3 (Reserves)
  • Champions (2): 1984–85, 1988–89
• Coupe de France
  • Champions (3): 1951–52, 1953–54, 1996–97
  • Runners-up (2): 1977–78, 2021–22
• Coupe de la Ligue
  • Runners-up (1): 2005-06
• Trophee des Champions
  • Champions (1): 1970
  • Runners-up (3): 1956, 1959, 1997

Other

• Latin Cup
  • Runners-up (1): 1952

Sponsors

Main sponsor

• USA Robinhood Markets

Kit sponsor

• ITA Kappa

References

References

1. (27 June 2020). "#137 – OGC Nice : les Aiglons". Footnickname.
2. "OGC Nice Stadium - Allianz Riviera".
3. "Joaquin Valle Benitez: 339 buts en 407 matchs avec le Gym". OGC Nice.
4. "Champion de France 1951". OGC Nice.
5. "American investors acquire French football club Nice".
6. Frater, Patrick. (June 11, 2016). "Chinese Investors Buy French Soccer Club OGC Nice". [[Variety (magazine).
7. Matias Grez and Stef Blendis. "OGC Nice: From Ligue 1 strugglers to Champions League challengers".
8. (11 June 2018). "Patrick Vieira named new Nice manager after leaving New York City FC". The Guardian.
9. (27 May 2019). "Arsenal news: Patrick Vieira flattered by Arsene Wenger's future Gunners manager comment".
10. (31 July 2019). "OGC Nice debuts Ineos sponsorship as Ratcliffe closes in on €100m buy".
11. "OGC Nice part ways with Patrick Vieira".
12. (28 June 2021). "Galtier named as OGC Nice Head Coach". OGC Nice.
13. (27 June 2022). "Nice officialise l'arrivée de Lucien Favre et le départ de Christophe Galtier". L'Équipe.
14. "Lucien Favre n'est plus l'entraineur de l'OGC Nice".
15. (30 June 2023). "Francesco Farioli nouvel entraîneur de l'OGC Nice". OGC Nice.
16. "Francesco Farioli leaves OGC Nice".
17. https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2026-01-15/jim-ratcliffe-cuts-price-tag-for-french-football-club-nice
18. Thrower, Luke. (2026-01-15). "Man Utd co-owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe cuts asking price of owned club for sale".
19. "Ineos aurait baissé son prix de vente pour l'OGC Nice, selon Bloomberg".
20. "Les 12 villes retenues". [[French Football Federation]].
21. "Effectif pros". OGC Nice.
22. "France – Trainers of First and Second Division Clubs".