EPCR Challenge Cup · 2026-27
Lyon OU
Lyon OU in every competition →
Next match
No upcoming Challenge Cup match listed yet.
Results
About Lyon OU
- Founded
- 1896
- Home town
- Lyon
- Ground
- Matmut Stadium de Gerland
- Colours
- Website
- lourugby.fr (opens in a new tab)
Honours
French champions · 2
1932, 1933
Pro D2 champions · 3
2011, 2014, 2016
European Challenge Cup · 1
2022
Notable players and coaches
- Vincent Graule — Captain of the 1932 and 1933 title sides, both finals won against Narbonne; 6 caps for France
- Chris Laidlaw — All Black scrum-half and captain; in 1971-72 the first New Zealander to play in the French championship
- Tim Lane & Olivier Azam — Coaching duo of the 2014 Pro D2 title, won with a record 117 points
- Pierre Mignoni — Coach from 2015: the 2016 Pro D2 title, then the club's first Top 14 semi-finals in 2018 and 2019
- Julien Bonnaire — Back-rower signed for the 2015-16 Pro D2 campaign; 75 caps for France
- Sébastien Chabal — Number eight, at LOU from 2012 to 2014 at the end of his career; 62 caps for France
- Lionel Nallet — Lock, at LOU from 2012 to 2015; 74 caps for France
- Frédéric Michalak — Fly-half, at LOU from 2016 to 2018; France's record points scorer, 77 caps
History
LOU traces its origins to 1896, when pupils of the Lycée Ampère founded two teams, Racing Club de Vaise and the Rugby Club de Lyon; they merged in 1898 as Racing Club de Lyon, which on 30 December 1900 opened the ground on the route d'Heyrieux, today's Stade Vuillermet. In 1902 the club became Lyon Olympique and took its red and black colours, then Lyon Olympique Universitaire in 1910. After losing the 1931 final to Toulon, it won the French title in 1932 and 1933, both times against Narbonne (9–3 and 10–3), under its captain Vincent Graule, and the Challenge Yves du Manoir in 1933. In 1971-72 the All Black Chris Laidlaw became the first New Zealander in the French championship. Second-division champion in 1989 and 1992 and Fédérale 1 champion in 2002, it won Pro D2 in 2011, in 2014, with a record 117 points, and in 2016. It moved to the new Matmut Stadium in Vénissieux in November 2011, reached its first Top 14 semi-finals in 2018 and 2019, won the Challenge Cup in 2022 and now plays at the Matmut Stadium de Gerland.
Sources: lourugby.fr · lourugby.fr (2) · top14.lnr.fr · fr.wikipedia.org · en.wikipedia.org · en.wikipedia.org (2) · en.wikipedia.org (3) · en.wikipedia.org (4) (opens in a new tab)