Most Popular Club in France

This website has a poll that was done but it is now a couple years old. I am curious if this would be similar if they did a poll over there these days of if somethings would have changed since then and if so, why did they change?


http://ligue1talk.com/2009/11/13/so-who-is-frances-most-popular-team/

 

I obviously know that Marseille is everything down in their part of France from everything I have read.

I am curious. So many clubs are building new stadiums or totally renovating their stadiums such as which Marseille is doing as the country prepares for Euro 2016.

I am always hearing that Lille doesn't have huge following. Would I be correct to assume they grab supporters from the France and Belgium side of the border that they are close to location wise? Their new stadium is much bigger than their current one, will they be filling that up each weekend?


I would be curious if there was a picture of the map of France and breaking it off into various parts(north, south, southwest, etc) and seeing in each section what % of that particular population supports which clubs in France.

 

Thanks for all the valuable information, I am hoping to attend a match all Lille, Lyon, and Marseille. By the time, I can plan a trip there I think they will all be in their new stadiums or totally renovated in Marseille's case.

They are the 3 clubs I am finding most interesting and wondering which club pulls me in the most. In that aspect, it doesn't have to be the best team of the three or most popular. I do like the idea of a club having a big supporter culture plus as I can travel being that I am single, I like to actually like the city of the club that chooses me as one of it's supporters.

I just like to find out from those in the inside either living in the country or having grown up there or lived there for a period of time as you can only learn so much from the internet or what you see on tv.

 

that is just one aspect of things that I take into consideration. It isn't the be all end all. Those two clubs do have cool looking fan cultures, I will give them that much.

There are parts of the 3 clubs I previously mentioned that I like and various parts of their current states or history that I am not fond off but if you mixed in the good with fan cultures of the videos you showed, it would make one super powered club.

I don't like to say I choose a club as it is the club that chooses you but either way, it isn't like an overnight decision.


Thanks for all the information so far!

 

Winning every season isn't the be all end all to me but I would like to think that whomever chooses me has some sort of chance of making it to the Europa league and even the Champions league occasionally.

I know it isn't the most offensive league amongst all european leagues but clubs that like to at least occasionally attack even if it is based on a solid counter attack is attractive in my eye.

As I mentioned, I dig good supporters culture. I love the type of clubs that come out in numbers and singing and what not for home and away matches but don't have some sort of huge violent history of enjoying beating up other club's supporters or being racist like Lazio in Italy for example.


It isn't a big deal to some who can't travel that much but I am able to take a trip overseas once a year or two so I like to realistically think I can make it to some matches of clubs I enjoy so being from a city that I enjoy traveling to does play a part. For example, I just am not too keen on Paris as a city. there are parts of it I enjoy seeing but a lot of it that is similar to why I don't like cities like Amsterdam and New York. I am just glad that I am also not keen on the money club that PSG will forever be under their current owners.

 

I am not saying I am automatically looking past the top 4, if there is a so called big 4 which I don't see like one would say about the UK. If all the stars align with things that I find interesting about a club and it just happens to be Lyon or Marseille or whomever, it will be for much more than success on the pitch.

I will say that Rennes having a nice youth academy or Lyon having a nice academy is also cool to me as I like it when a club can at least provide part of their success on the pitch rather than always relying on incoming transfers.


Wait, did you say Salma Hayek?! I got distracted for a moment.

 

I will say that I appreciate all the videos or links no matter the clubs as even if it is a club that might not end up choosing me, it is very fascinating as I do admit to still be learning alot about the league as a whole.

 

Question, I know that Lille and Lyon are building new stadiums. I know Marseille is totally renovating theirs.

Which other clubs are either getting new stadiums or renovating their current ones in preparation for Euro 2016?

 

I am still researching a lot about Lille, Lyon, and Marseille.

That said thanks to this thread,

I am starting to learn more about Stade Rennais and especially AS Saint Etienne as they are very curious to me.


Is this true?

Saint-Etienne has a great atmosphere while Rennes is much more quiet and can be really severe and expecting too much from the team.

 

I am not sure but it sure is nice for promotion.

 

I thank everyone for the videos, stories, and links so far.

I will definitely not make any decisions anytime soon although in the end it will be the club that chooses me as it has in other countries that I support football.

I will say right now of the clubs mentioned so far that AS Saint Etienne seems to have that "thing" about them that seems very interesting to me in various ways.


As I don't have any family/relatives from any of these cities, there isn't any of that that makes me feel somewhat obligated to support the family club.

I have the luxury of having the ability to travel overseas once a year or so. I try to combine hitting cities I have seen before and loved especially the cities of the clubs that I support mixed with cities in which I am hitting for the first time. My Mom loved France especially growing up having taken French classes and what not so she is especially curious about all the cities I hope to see during future visits that include the country.