# Montpellier Hérault Rugby

Montpellier Hérault Rugby (MHR) (French pronunciation:; Occitan: Montpelhièr Erau Rugbi Club) is a French professional rugby union club, based in Montpellier, Occitanie and named after the Hérault department. The club competes in the top level of the French league system, the Top 14. They originally played at Stade Sabathé (capacity 5,000) but moved to the Stade Yves-du-Manoir, later known as Altrad Stadium, and since renamed the GGL Stadium, in 2007. They wear white and blue.

## History

The club was established in 1986 through the merger of two other rugby union clubs, the Stade Montpelliérain and MUC Rugby.
In 1993 the club won the Challenge de l'Espérance.
In 2003 the club became the champion of France's second division national rugby league, the Pro D2. After finishing second in the league table at the end of the 2002–03 season, Montpellier advanced to the playoffs. They defeated Auch in the semi-finals and Tarbes in the finals to win promotion to the Top 14. The following season the club played for the European Shield, and contested the final. Played in May 2004, Montpellier defeated Italian club Viadana 25 points to 19 to win the Shield.
The club barely avoided relegation after the 2006–07 season. Winning only nine games during a twenty-six-game season, Montpellier found itself in a relegation position with only two games left to play. Thanks to a bonus-point victory in week 25, the team finished just four points ahead of Agen which was relegated to the Pro D2 at the end of the year.
After 2006–07, the club's fortunes began to improve. In June 2007, Fulgence Ouedraogo became the first Montpellier player to play on the French national rugby union team. That same summer the club's new stadium, the Stade Yves-du-Manoir (now GGL Stadium), opened. In 2007–08 Montpellier enjoyed its first winning season in the Top 14. The club made its next step up the table in 2010–11 when it unexpectedly finished sixth by a single point and made the Top 14 playoffs for the first time. The underdog squad defeated both Castres and Racing Métro to make the championship game where they were defeated 15–10 by Toulouse. Since that season, Montpellier has become a consistent playoff contender, finishing fifth in both 2011–12 and 2012–13 and second on the league table in 2013–14.
Thanks to the club's excellent 2010–11 showing, Montpellier was awarded its first spot in the Heineken Cup tournament for 2011–12. The club returned for the 2012–13 tournament and made the quarter-finals before being eliminated by Clermont. Montpellier returned for the final edition of the Heineken Cup in 2013–14, and are participating in the successor to the Heineken Cup, the European Rugby Champions Cup, in 2014–15.
From 2011 the club has been chaired and funded by Mohed Altrad.

## Honours

* French championship Top 14
** Champions (1): 2022
** Runners-up (2): 2011, 2018
* European Rugby Challenge Cup
** Champions (2): 2016, 2021
* European Shield
** Champions (1): 2004
* Pro D2
** Champions: 2003

## Finals results
### French championship

| Date | Winners | Score | Runners-up | Venue | Spectators |
| 4 June 2011 | Stade Toulousain | 15–10 | Montpellier Hérault RC | Stade de France, Saint-Denis | 77,000 |
| 2 June 2018 | Castres Olympique | 29–13 | Montpellier Hérault RC | Stade de France, Saint-Denis | 79,441 |
| 24 June 2022 | Montpellier Hérault RC | 29–10 | Castres Olympique | Stade de France, Saint-Denis | 78,245 |

### European Rugby Challenge Cup

| Date | Winners | Score | Runners-up | Venue | Spectators |
| 13 May 2016 | Montpellier Hérault RC | 26-19 | Harlequins | Grand Stade de Lyon, Lyon | 28,556 |
| 21 May 2021 | Montpellier Hérault RC | 18-17 | Leicester | Twickenham, London | 10,000 |

### European Shield

| Date | Winners | Score | Runners-up | Venue | Spectators |
| 21 May 2004 | Montpellier Hérault RC | 25-19 | Viadana | Sergio Lanfranchi, Parma | 2,553 |

## Current standings

2024–25 Top 14 Table :
| Pos | Teamvte | Pld | W | D | L | PF | PA | PD | TF | TA | TB | LB | Pts | Qualification |
| 1 | Toulouse | 13 | 9 | 1 | 3 | 385 | 211 | +174 | 48 | 24 | 5 | 3 | 46 | Qualification for playoff semi-finals and European Rugby Champions Cup |
| 2 | Bordeaux Bègles | 13 | 10 | 0 | 3 | 384 | 264 | +120 | 50 | 34 | 3 | 2 | 45 | Qualification for playoff semi-finals and European Rugby Champions Cup |
| 3 | Toulon | 13 | 8 | 0 | 5 | 327 | 279 | +48 | 37 | 30 | 3 | 3 | 38 | Qualification for playoff semi-final qualifiers and European Rugby Champions Cup |
| 4 | Bayonne | 13 | 9 | 0 | 4 | 345 | 306 | +39 | 39 | 39 | 1 | 1 | 38 | Qualification for playoff semi-final qualifiers and European Rugby Champions Cup |
| 5 | Clermont | 13 | 7 | 0 | 6 | 331 | 319 | +12 | 43 | 34 | 4 | 2 | 34 | Qualification for playoff semi-final qualifiers and European Rugby Champions Cup |
| 6 | La Rochelle | 13 | 7 | 0 | 6 | 300 | 293 | +7 | 37 | 31 | 3 | 1 | 32 | Qualification for playoff semi-final qualifiers and European Rugby Champions Cup |
| 7 | Montpellier | 13 | 6 | 0 | 7 | 270 | 241 | +29 | 24 | 24 | 1 | 4 | 29 | Qualification for European Rugby Champions Cup |
| 8 | Castres | 13 | 6 | 0 | 7 | 324 | 363 | −39 | 37 | 39 | 1 | 2 | 27 | Qualification for European Rugby Champions Cup |
| 9 | Racing 92 | 13 | 5 | 1 | 7 | 321 | 335 | −14 | 36 | 36 | 0 | 4 | 26 | Qualification for European Rugby Challenge Cup |
| 10 | Pau | 13 | 5 | 0 | 8 | 304 | 369 | −65 | 35 | 48 | 3 | 1 | 24 | Qualification for European Rugby Challenge Cup |
| 11 | Stade Français | 13 | 5 | 0 | 8 | 285 | 342 | −57 | 32 | 42 | 2 | 1 | 23 | Qualification for European Rugby Challenge Cup |
| 12 | Perpignan | 13 | 5 | 0 | 8 | 228 | 322 | −94 | 21 | 35 | 2 | 1 | 23 | Qualification for European Rugby Challenge Cup |
| 13 | Lyon | 13 | 4 | 2 | 7 | 324 | 362 | −38 | 36 | 40 | 1 | 1 | 22 | Qualification for relegation play-off |
| 14 | Vannes | 13 | 3 | 0 | 10 | 323 | 445 | −122 | 38 | 57 | 0 | 3 | 15 | Relegation to Pro D2 |

## Current squad

The Montpellier squad for the 2024–25 season is:
Note: Flags indicate national union under World Rugby eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-World Rugby nationality.
| Player | Position | Union |
| Vano Karkadze | Hooker | Georgia |
| Christopher Tolofua | Hooker | France |
| Jordan Uelese | Hooker | Australia |
| Nika Abuladze | Prop | Georgia |
| Baptiste Erdocio | Prop | France |
| Enzo Forletta | Prop | France |
| Mohamed Haouas | Prop | France |
| Wilfrid Hounkpatin | Prop | France |
| Luka Japaridze | Prop | Georgia |
| Bastien Chalureau | Lock | France |
| Tyler Duguid | Lock | Canada |
| Mahonri Ngakuru | Lock | New Zealand |
| Florian Verhaeghe | Lock | France |
| Paul Willemse | Lock | France |
| Alexandre Bécognée | Back row | France |
| Yacouba Camara | Back row | France |
| Nico Janse van Rensburg | Back row | South Africa |
| Nicolas Martins | Back row | Portugal |
| Lenni Nouchi | Back row | France |
| Sam Simmonds | Back row | England |
| Marco Tauleigne | Back row | France |
| Billy Vunipola | Back row | England |
| Player | Position | Union |
| Alexis Bernadet | Scrum-half | France |
| Léo Coly | Scrum-half | France |
| Cobus Reinach | Scrum-half | South Africa |
| Domingo Miotti | Fly-half | Argentina |
| Hugo Reus | Fly-half | France |
| Thomas Vincent | Fly-half | France |
| Auguste Cadot | Centre | France |
| Thomas Darmon | Centre | France |
| Pierre Lucas | Centre | France |
| Jan Serfontein | Centre | South Africa |
| Arthur Vincent | Centre | France |
| George Bridge | Wing | New Zealand |
| Maël Moustin | Wing | France |
| Gabriel N'Gandebe | Wing | France |
| Madosh Tambwe | Wing | South Africa |
| Julien Tisseron | Wing | France |
| Anthony Bouthier | Fullback | France |
| Stuart Hogg | Fullback | Scotland |
| Josh Moorby | Fullback | New Zealand |

### Espoirs squad

Note: Flags indicate national union under World Rugby eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-World Rugby nationality.
| Player | Position | Union |
| Lyam Akrab | Hooker | France |
| Noah Lartot | Hooker | France |
| Baptiste Gilliocq | Prop | France |
| Luka Kotorashvili | Prop | Georgia |
| Tom Petit | Prop | France |
| PJ Poutasi | Prop | Australia |
| Luca Tabarot | Prop | France |
| Sylvestre Vakauliafa | Prop | France |
| Nikoloz Chkhortolia | Lock | Georgia |
| Charlie Moss | Lock | Scotland |
| Nils Punti | Lock | France |
| Youssouf Soucouna | Lock | France |
| Romain Delemarle | Back row | France |
| Edgard Lubin | Back row | France |
| Solomon Shand | Back row | England |
| Jules Veyrier | Back row | France |
| Player | Position | Union |
| Tom Baraer | Scrum-half | France |
| Lucas Berti | Scrum-half | Chile |
| Gabin Came | Scrum-half | France |
| Aurelien Barreau | Fly-half | France |
| Giovanni Sante | Fly-half | Italy |
| Kilian Bakour | Centre | France |
| Julien Burguillos | Centre | France |
| Jules Ducros | Centre | France |
| Joan Notolan | Centre | France |
| Titoan Rouvelet | Centre | France |
| Crimson Tukino | Centre | New Zealand |
| Ridhau Bey | Wing | South Africa |
| Cesar Detranchant | Fullback | France |
| Jack Kellner | Fullback | France |