Championnat de France de football féminin
Encyclopedia
The Championnat de France de Football Féminin, primarily referred to as the Division 1 Féminine, is the French semi-professional football league for association women's football clubs in France. It is the country's primary female football competition and serves as the top division of the women's French football league system. The league is the female equivalent to the men's Ligue 1
and is contested by 12 clubs. Seasons run from September to June, with teams playing 22 games each totaling 132 games in the season. Most games are played on Saturdays and Sundays, with a few games played during weekday evenings. Play is regularly suspended after the second week in December before returning in the third week of January. The Division 1 Féminine is one of the top women's domestic leagues in Europe currently ranked third behind Germany's Fußball-Bundesliga
and Sweden's Damallsvenskan
.
. The league lasted for twelve seasons before disbanding following the prohibition of women's football. In 1975, women's football was officially re-instated and the Division 1 Féminine returned with funding from the French Football Federation
. Beginning with the 2009–10 season, female football players in France began signing professional contracts with their clubs, most notably Olympique Lyonnais
. Contracts were previously semi-professional
. The defending champions are Olympique Lyonnais
who won the league this season by one point.
at the Parc des Princes
during the 2009–10 season. The female leagues are ran similarly to the men's amateur leagues in France with teams receiving four points for a win and two points for a draw. One point is awarded for a loss. Teams are ranked by total points, then goal difference
, and then goals scored. At the end of each season, the club with the most points is crowned champion. If points are equal, the goal difference and then goals scored determine the winner. If still equal, teams are deemed to occupy the same position. If there is a tie for the championship, for relegation, or for qualification to other competitions, a play-off match at a neutral venue decides rank. The two lowest placed teams are relegated to the Division 2 Féminine and the winners of the two groups in D2 Féminine are promoted in their place.
Between the years 2001–2004, the league adopted a playoff system. The top four clubs in the league table were inserted into a playoff table following the completion of the season with the winner being crowned champions. From 1974–1992, the league consisted of several groups with the winners of each group entering a playoff phase to determine the champion.
, the female equivalent of the Coupe de France
, does not qualify for European competition.
season.
and Stade Briochin
midfielder
Eugénie Le Sommer
. Following the 2009–10 season, the French Football Federation, who oversee the league, also began awarding a Player of the Year trophy. The jury panel who decided the winner consists of the twelve managers in the D1 Féminine.
Ligue 1
Ligue 1 , is the French professional league for association football clubs. It is the country's primary football competition and serves as the top division of the French football league system. Ligue 1 is one of two divisions making up the Ligue de Football Professionnel, the other being Ligue 2....
and is contested by 12 clubs. Seasons run from September to June, with teams playing 22 games each totaling 132 games in the season. Most games are played on Saturdays and Sundays, with a few games played during weekday evenings. Play is regularly suspended after the second week in December before returning in the third week of January. The Division 1 Féminine is one of the top women's domestic leagues in Europe currently ranked third behind Germany's Fußball-Bundesliga
Fußball-Bundesliga (women)
The Women's Football Bundesliga is the main league competition for women's football in Germany. In 1990 the German Football Association created the German Women's Bundesliga, based on the model of the men's Bundesliga. It was first played with north and south divisions, but in 1997 the groups...
and Sweden's Damallsvenskan
Damallsvenskan
The Damallsvenskan, Swedish for ladies' all-Swedish, is the highest division of women's football in Sweden. It is also referred as to the women's Allsvenskan, this term being used alone to refer to the men's division....
.
History
The Division 1 Féminine was originally created in 1918 and was managed by the Fédération des Sociétés Féminines Sportives de France (FSFSF), a women's football organization in France that was led by women's football pioneer Alice MilliatAlice Milliat
Alice Milliat was a pioneer of women's sport in France and around the world. Her lobbying on behalf of female athletes forced the inclusion of women's events in the Olympic Games....
. The league lasted for twelve seasons before disbanding following the prohibition of women's football. In 1975, women's football was officially re-instated and the Division 1 Féminine returned with funding from the French Football Federation
French Football Federation
The French Football Federation is the governing body of association football in France, as well as the overseas departments and territories . It was formed in 1919 and is based in the capital Paris...
. Beginning with the 2009–10 season, female football players in France began signing professional contracts with their clubs, most notably Olympique Lyonnais
Olympique Lyonnais (ladies)
Olympique Lyonnais Féminin is a French women's football club based in Lyon. The club has been the female section of Olympique Lyonnais since 2004. Lyon currently play in the Division 1 Féminine and are the defending champions having won the league for five straight seasons.The club was formed as...
. Contracts were previously semi-professional
Semi-professional
A semi-professional athlete is one who is paid to play and thus is not an amateur, but for whom sport is not a full-time occupation, generally because the level of pay is too low to make a reasonable living based solely upon that source, thus making the athlete not a full professional...
. The defending champions are Olympique Lyonnais
Olympique Lyonnais (ladies)
Olympique Lyonnais Féminin is a French women's football club based in Lyon. The club has been the female section of Olympique Lyonnais since 2004. Lyon currently play in the Division 1 Féminine and are the defending champions having won the league for five straight seasons.The club was formed as...
who won the league this season by one point.
Competition format
There are 12 clubs in the Division 1 Féminine. During the course of a season, usually from September to June, each club plays the others twice, once at their home stadium and once at that of their opponents, for a total of 22 games, though clubs are allowed to host "big" matches at the home venues of their male counterparts, such as when Paris Saint-Germain hosted JuvisyFCF Juvisy
Football Club Féminin Juvisy-sur-Orge Essonne is a French football club based in Viry-Châtillon, a suburb of Paris. The club was founded in 1971 and currently play in the Division 1 Féminine, the first division of women's football in France...
at the Parc des Princes
Parc des Princes
The Parc des Princes is an all-seater football stadium located in the southwest of Paris, France. The venue, with a seating capacity of 48,712 spectators, has been the home of French football club Paris Saint-Germain since 1974. The current Parc des Princes was inaugurated on 4 June 1972, endowed...
during the 2009–10 season. The female leagues are ran similarly to the men's amateur leagues in France with teams receiving four points for a win and two points for a draw. One point is awarded for a loss. Teams are ranked by total points, then goal difference
Goal difference
In sports such as ice hockey and association football, goal difference is often the first tiebreaker used to rank teams which finish a league competition with an equal number of points....
, and then goals scored. At the end of each season, the club with the most points is crowned champion. If points are equal, the goal difference and then goals scored determine the winner. If still equal, teams are deemed to occupy the same position. If there is a tie for the championship, for relegation, or for qualification to other competitions, a play-off match at a neutral venue decides rank. The two lowest placed teams are relegated to the Division 2 Féminine and the winners of the two groups in D2 Féminine are promoted in their place.
Between the years 2001–2004, the league adopted a playoff system. The top four clubs in the league table were inserted into a playoff table following the completion of the season with the winner being crowned champions. From 1974–1992, the league consisted of several groups with the winners of each group entering a playoff phase to determine the champion.
European qualification
Currently, as determined by the UEFA women's coefficient, the top two teams in the Division 1 Féminine qualify for the UEFA Women's Champions League, with the champions of the league proceeding directly to the main round. The second-placed team enters in the qualifying round. As of today, the winner of the Challenge de FranceChallenge de France
The Coupe de France Féminine is a cup competition, exclusively for French women football clubs. The competition is open to all professional and non-professional women's teams in France. The inaugural edition of the competition was held in 2001. The final match of the competition is normally held...
, the female equivalent of the Coupe de France
Coupe de France
The Coupe Charles Simon, commonly known as the Coupe de France , is the premier knockout cup competition in French football organized by the French Football Federation...
, does not qualify for European competition.
Members for 2010–11
The following 12 clubs will compete in the Division 1 Féminine during the 2010–112010–11 Division 1 Féminine
The 2010–11 Division 1 Féminine season was the 36th since its establishment. Lyon were the defending champions. The fixtures were announced in August 2010 and the season began on 5 September 2010 and ended early on 31 May 2011 in order to increase the fitness of national team players ahead of the...
season.
| Club |
Position in 2009–10 |
Founded | Top division titles |
Last top division title |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hénin-Beaumont FCF Hénin-Beaumont Football Club Féminin Hénin-Beaumont is a French football club based in Hénin-Beaumont. The club was founded on 12 May 1972 and currently play in the Division 1 Féminine having finished 7th in the 2009–10 season. In 2010, Hénin-Beaumont moved to the Stade Octave Birembaut, 3,000 capacity stadium in... |
7 | 1972 | 0 | – |
| Juvisy FCF Juvisy Football Club Féminin Juvisy-sur-Orge Essonne is a French football club based in Viry-Châtillon, a suburb of Paris. The club was founded in 1971 and currently play in the Division 1 Féminine, the first division of women's football in France... |
2 | 1971 | 6 | 2005–06 |
| La Roche-sur-Yon La Roche ESOF La Roche ESOF is a French football club founded in 1978 and is based in La Roche-sur-Yon.... |
10 | 1968 | 1 | 1983–84 |
| Le Mans | D2 Féminine (A) 1st | 1983 | 0 | – |
| Lyon Olympique Lyonnais (ladies) Olympique Lyonnais Féminin is a French women's football club based in Lyon. The club has been the female section of Olympique Lyonnais since 2004. Lyon currently play in the Division 1 Féminine and are the defending champions having won the league for five straight seasons.The club was formed as... |
1 | 1970 | 9 | 2010–11 |
| Montpellier Montpellier HSC (Ladies) Montpellier Hérault Sport Club Féminines is a French women's football club based in Villeneuve-lès-Maguelone, a commune in the arrondissement of Montpellier. The club was founded in 1990. Montpellier currently play in the Division 1 Féminine having finished in 4th place in the 2009–10 season... |
4 | 1990 | 3 | 2004–05 |
| Nord Allier Yzeure FCF Nord Allier Yzeure FCF Nord Allier Yzeure is a French football club founded in 1999 and is based in Yzeure.The club was promoted to D1 Féminine for the first time in its history following the conclusion of the 2007-2008 season.... |
5 | 1999 | 0 | – |
| Paris Saint-Germain | 3 | 1971 | 0 | – |
| Rodez Rodez AF Rodez Aveyron Football is a French association football club based in Rodez. The club was founded in 1929 and currently play in the Championnat de France amateur Group C, the fourth level of French football. From 1988–1993, Rodez played in Ligue 2. The club plays its home matches at the Stade Paul... |
D2 Féminine (B) 1st | 1993 | 0 | – |
| Saint-Étienne AS Saint-Étienne (Ladies) Association Sportive de Saint-Étienne Loire Féminin is a French football club based in Saint-Étienne. The club is the women's section of French football club AS Saint-Étienne and was founded in 1977 under the name Racing Club de Saint-Étienne... |
6 | 1977 | 0 | – |
| Stade Briochin Stade Briochin (Ladies) En Avant de Guingamp Féminines are a French football club based in Saint-Brieuc, a commune in the Brittany region. The club was previously the women's section of men's football club Stade Briochin and was founded in 1973 under the name Chaffoteaux Sports Saint-Brieuc. From 1999–2003, the club... |
9 | 1973 | 1 | 1988–89 |
| Toulouse Toulouse FC Toulouse Football Club is a French association football club based in the city of Toulouse. The club was founded in 1970 and currently play in Ligue 1, the top level of French football. Toulouse plays its home matches at the Stadium Municipal located within the city. The first team is managed by... |
6 | 1980 | 4 | 2001–02 |
Awards
In addition to the winner's trophy and the individual winner's medal players receive, the National Union of Professional Footballers (UNFP) awards the UNFP Female Player of the Year award to the top female player of the league. The current winner of the award is French internationalFrance women's national football team
The French women's national football team represents France in international women's football. The team is directed by the French Football Federation and competes as a member of UEFA in various international football tournaments such as the FIFA Women's World Cup, UEFA Women's Euro, the Summer...
and Stade Briochin
Stade Briochin (Ladies)
En Avant de Guingamp Féminines are a French football club based in Saint-Brieuc, a commune in the Brittany region. The club was previously the women's section of men's football club Stade Briochin and was founded in 1973 under the name Chaffoteaux Sports Saint-Brieuc. From 1999–2003, the club...
midfielder
Midfielder
A midfielder is an association football position. Some midfielders play a more defensive role, while others blur the boundaries between midfielders and forwards. The number of midfielders a team uses during a match may vary, depending on the team's formation and each individual player's role...
Eugénie Le Sommer
Eugénie Le Sommer
Eugénie Anne Claudine Le Sommer is a French football player who plays for French club Olympique Lyonnais of the Division 1 Féminine. Le Sommer plays as a creative attacking midfielder, but often plays as a second striker for the France women's national football team. She was awarded the Bronze...
. Following the 2009–10 season, the French Football Federation, who oversee the league, also began awarding a Player of the Year trophy. The jury panel who decided the winner consists of the twelve managers in the D1 Féminine.