# 2011–12 in French football

The 2011–12 season was the 107th overall season of football and the 74th season of competitive professional football in France.
The men's France national team began play on 10 August 2011 contesting a friendly match against Chile. The team continued its qualification matches for UEFA Euro 2012. The men's youth international teams also began playing qualification matches for their yearly European Championship tournament. Les Espoirs began its qualification campaign for the 2013 UEFA European Under-21 Football Championship, while the under-19 and under-17 teams played qualification matches for the 2011 UEFA European Under-19 Football Championship and 2011 UEFA European Under-17 Football Championship, respectively. Similarly, the women began their qualification campaign for UEFA Women's Euro 2013.

## News
### Coupe de France final date change

In February 2011, it was reported by the French media that the French Football Federation had scheduled the 2011–12 edition of the Coupe de France final to be played on 5 May 2012. The date is significant because it would mark the 20th anniversary of the Furiani disaster, which occurred when a tribune at the Stade Armand Cesari in Furiani collapse during a Coupe de France semi-final match between Bastia and Marseille. The tragedy resulted in the death of 18 individuals and injuries to over 2,000. The resulting outcry and criticism of the decision to schedule the final on that date led to the Federation issuing a statement declaring that the official calendar for the competition had not been released, so the reports were only rumors. On 31 March 2011, the schedule was released and the date for the final was set for 28 April 2012.

### Supercup in Morocco

On 15 April 2011, the Ligue de Football Professionnel announced that, for the third consecutive season, the Trophée des champions will be held on international soil. The match will be played in Tanger, Morocco at the recently completed Stade de Tanger and will be contested by the winner of Ligue 1 and the winner of the Coupe de France. The match will be played on either 27 July 2011. Like the previous two years, the idea will be to promote French football abroad, but this time more specifically in Africa and the Arab world.

### New FFF president

On 18 June 2011, following an election, Federal Council member Noël Le Graët was named as the federation's 12th president after winning almost 55% of the vote. Le Graët defeated the incumbent Fernand Duchaussoy and third candidate Eric Thomas, the former receiving 45% of the vote, while the latter took in only .19% of the vote.

### DNCG rulings
#### Ligue 2

On 1 July 2011, following a preliminary review of each club's administrative and financial accounts in the Championnat National, the DNCG ruled that Tours would be relegated to the Championnat National. Tours president, Frédéric Sebag, confirmed the demotion was as a result of the club's failure to "balance its books". Sebag also confirmed that the club would be appealing the ruling. On 13 July, Tours successfully appealed to the DNCG and was, subsequently, reinstated into Ligue 2.

#### National

On 26 May 2011, following a preliminary review of each club's administrative and financial accounts in the Championnat National, the DNCG ruled that Pacy Vallée-d'Eure, Strasbourg, Gap, Grenoble, and Cannes would be relegated to the Championnat de France amateur after the organization determined that the club's were enduring financial difficulties. The clubs had the option to appeal the ruling. On 24 June 2011, Pacy Vallée-d'Eure officials confirmed in a press conference that it would accept its relegation to the fourth division in an effort to smooth over its €350,000 debt into next year. Two weeks later, Grenoble confirmed on its website that the Appeals Board of the DNCG had informed club officials that it will be relegated to the fourth division. Grenoble, subsequently, entered liquidation on 7 July. On 13 July, Grenoble's relegation was validated after the French Football Federation confirmed via letter to SAS Épinal that the club would be replacing Grenoble in the Championnat National.
On 8 July 2011, the Appeals Board of the DNCG confirmed that both Strasbourg and Gap would remain relegated after the clubs failed to convince the board of its intent to fix its financial liabilities. Strasbourg has a deficit of over €4 million, while Gap's debt has exceeded over €80,000. Following the appeal denial, Gap officials announced that the club would appeal to the CNOSF, the National Sporting Committee of France. On 18 July, despite both clubs still having the option to appeal the DNCG rulings, the Ligue du Football Amateur (LFA) announced that Red Star and Cherbourg would replace Strasbourg and Gap, respectively, for the 2011–12 edition of the Championnat National. On the following day, Cannes had its appeal to remain in the Championnat National rejected by the DNCG. Similar to Gap, following the decision, Cannes announced its intent to appeal the ruling at the CNOSF. On 29 July, the CNOSF gave a favorable ruling for Cannes recommending to the federation that Cannes should remain in the third division. On 3 August, the CNOSF ruled Gap confirmed the demotion of Gap to the Championnat de France amateur. The French Football Federation determined whether Cannes would be allowed to participate in the league on 4 August, one day before the season was set to begin at the federation's annual executive meeting. At the meeting, the Federation re-affirmed its decision to relegate Cannes to the CFA stating it "trust the DNCG and followed its decisions".

#### CFA

On 26 May 2011, following a preliminary review of each club's administrative and financial accounts in the Championnat National, the DNCG ruled that Pacy Vallée-d'Eure, Strasbourg, Gap, Grenoble, and Cannes would be relegated to the Championnat de France amateur (CFA) after the organization determined that the clubs were enduring financial difficulties. The organization also excluded Toulon from participating in the CFA and relegated both Agde and Chambéry to the fifth division. On 4 June, the DNCG announced that, for the second consecutive season, Calais would not be allowed to ascend to the CFA. All clubs had the option to appeal the rulings.
On 24 June 2011, Pacy Vallée-d'Eure officials confirmed in a press conference that it would accept its relegation to the fourth division in an effort to smooth over its €350,000 debt into next year. Two weeks later, on 4 July, Grenoble confirmed on its website that the Appeals Board of the DNCG had informed club officials that it will be relegated to the fourth division. Grenoble, subsequently, entered liquidation on 7 July, which made the club unable to participate in the CFA. On the same day as the Grenoble ruling, the DNCG also rejected the appeals of Toulon and Calais. On 8 July 2011, the Appeals Board of the DNCG confirmed that both Strasbourg and Gap would remain relegated after the clubs failed to convince the board of its intent to fix its financial liabilities. Strasbourg has a deficit of over €4 million, while Gap's debt has exceeded over €80,000. Following the appeal denial, Gap officials announced that the club would appeal to the CNOSF, the National Sporting Committee of France. On 13 July, Agde successfully appealed to the DNCG and was, subsequently, re-instated into the CFA, while Chambéry had its appeal rejected.
On 19 July, Cannes had its appeal to remain in the Championnat National rejected by the DNCG. Similar to Gap, following the decision, Cannes announced its intent to appeal the ruling at the CNOSF. On 29 July, the CNOSF gave a favorable ruling for Cannes recommending to the federation that Cannes should remain in the third division. On 3 August, the CNOSF ruled Gap confirmed the demotion of Gap to the Championnat de France amateur. The French Football Federation determined whether Cannes would be allowed to participate in the league on 4 August, one day before the season was set to begin at the federation's annual executive meeting. At the meeting, the Federation re-affirmed its decision to relegate Cannes to the CFA stating it "trust the DNCG and followed its decisions".

## Promotion and relegation
### Men

| Competition | Promoted | Relegated |
| Ligue 1 | N/A | AS Monaco Lens Arles-Avignon |
| Ligue 2 | Évian Dijon Ajaccio | Vannes Nîmes Grenoble |
| Championnat National | Bastia Amiens Guingamp | Bayonne Rodez Plabennec Alfortville Gueugnon |
| CFA | Besançon Cherbourg Épinal Gazélec Ajaccio Le Poiré-sur-Vie Martigues Quevilly Red Star | Aurillac Béziers Caen B Louhans-Cuiseaux Genêts Anglet Lille B Lyon-Duchère Mantes Monts d'Or Azergues Noisy-le-Sec Rennes B Saint-Pryvé Saint-Hilaire |
| CFA 2 | AC Amiens Bordeaux B Calvi Concarneau Dunkerque Marseille Consolat Mont-de-Marsan Pontivy Saumur Sarre-Union Valence Valenciennes B | Alençon Bagnols Pont Bonchamp Borgo Brive Changé Dives Douai Évreux Gueugnon B Hazebrouck Jura Dolois La Trinité La Châtaigneraie Langon Castets Lannion La Valette Le Puy Les Lilas Lesquin Libourne-Saint-Seurin Montluçon Ornans Pacy Vallée-d'Eure B Prix-lès-Mézières Quimper Revel Saint Marcel Selongey Toulouse Fontaines Vauban Strasbourg |
| Division d'Honneur | | N/A |

### Women

| Competition | Promoted | Relegated |
| Division 1 Féminine | N/A | Le Mans Toulouse La Roche-sur-Yon |
| Division 2 Féminine | Vendenheim Soyaux Muret | Arlac Mérignac Aulnat Besançon Leers Limoges Landouge Templemars-Vendeville |

## Managerial changes
### Ligue 1

| Team | Outgoing head coach | Manner of departure | Date of vacancy | Position in table | Incoming head coach | Date of appointment | Position in table |
| Auxerre | Jean Fernandez | End of contract | 2 June 2011 | Off-season | Laurent Fournier | 8 June 2011 | Off-season |
| Valenciennes | Philippe Montanier | Joined Real Sociedad | 4 June 2011 | Off-season | Daniel Sanchez | 8 June 2011 | Off-season |
| Nancy | Pablo Correa | Resigned | 5 June 2011 | Off-season | Jean Fernandez | 5 June 2011 | Off-season |
| Sochaux | Francis Gillot | Resigned | 5 June 2011 | Off-season | Mehmed Baždarević | 10 June 2011 | Off-season |
| Bordeaux | Eric Bédouet | Mutual consent | 6 June 2011 | Off-season | Francis Gillot | 6 June 2011 | Off-season |
| Lyon | Claude Puel | Fired | 20 June 2011 | Off-season | Rémi Garde | 21 June 2011 | Off-season |
| Nice | Eric Roy | Fired | 15 November 2011 | 17th | René Marsiglia | 15 November 2011 | 17th |
| Paris Saint-Germain | Antoine Kombouaré | Resigned | 30 December 2011 | 1st | Carlo Ancelotti | 30 December 2011 | 1st |
| Evian | Bernard Casoni | Fired | 1 January 2012 | 11th | Pablo Correa | 2 January 2012 | 11th |
| Sochaux | Mehmed Baždarević | Fired | 6 March 2012 | 20th | Eric Hély | 6 March 2012 | 20th |
| Auxerre | Laurent Fournier | Fired | 18 March 2012 | 20th | Jean-Guy Wallemme | 18 March 2012 | 20th |

### Ligue 2

| Team | Outgoing head coach | Manner of departure | Date of vacancy | Position in table | Incoming head coach | Date of appointment | Position in table |
| Sedan | Landry Chauvin | Mutual consent | 26 May 2011 | Off-season | Laurent Guyot | 26 May 2011 | Off-season |
| Lens | László Bölöni | Mutual consent | 1 June 2011 | Off-season | Jean-Louis Garcia | 1 June 2011 | Off-season |
| Nantes | Philippe Anziani | Miutual consent | 26 May 2011 | Off-season | Landry Chauvin | 1 June 2011 | Off-season |
| Angers | Jean-Louis Garcia | Joined Lens | 1 June 2011 | Off-season | Stéphane Moulin | 2 June 2011 | Off-season |
| Tours | Daniel Sanchez | Joined Valenciennes | 8 June 2011 | Off-season | Peter Zeidler | 14 June 2011 | Off-season |
| AS Monaco | Laurent Banide | Sacked | 12 September 2011 | 17th | Marco Simone | 12 September 2011 | 17th |
| Arles-Avignon | Faruk Hadžibegić | Sacked | 23 November 2011 | 19th | Thierry Laurey | 28 November 2011 | 19th |
| Le Mans | Arnaud Cormier | Sacked | 22 December 2011 | 17th | Denis Zanko | 28 December 2011 | 17th |

### National

| Team | Outgoing head coach | Manner of departure | Date of vacancy | Position in table | Incoming head coach | Date of appointment | Position in table |
| Le Poiré-sur-Vie | Alain Ferrand | Resigned | 11 May 2011 | Off-season | Oswald Tanchot | 11 May 2011 | Off-season |
| Fréjus | Athos Bandini | Sacked | 27 May 2011 | Off-season | Franck Priou | 3 June 2011 | Off-season |
| Paris | Jean-Luc Vannuchi | Sacked | 27 May 2011 | Off-season | Alain Mboma | 7 June 2011 | Off-season |
| Cannes | Victor Zvunka | Mutual consent | 27 May 2011 | Off-season | David Guion | 7 June 2011 | Off-season |
| Martigues | Franck Priou | Joined Fréjus | 3 June 2011 | Off-season | Jérôme Erceau | 9 June 2011 | Off-season |
| Créteil | Hubert Velud | Resigned | 22 May 2011 | Off-season | Jean-Luc Vasseur | 9 June 2011 | Off-season |
| Red Star | Alain Mboma | Joined Paris | 7 June 2011 | Off-season | Athos Bandini | 10 June 2011 | Off-season |
| Red Star | Athos Bandini | Fired | 13 October 2011 | 18th | Vincent Doukantié | 13 October 2011 | 18th |
| Fréjus | Franck Priou | Fired | 7 December 2011 | 10th | Charly Paquille | 7 December 2011 | 10th |
| Martigues | Jérôme Erceau | Fired | 13 February 2012 | 18th | Jean-Luc Vannuchi | 15 February 2012 | 18th |
| Rouen | Éric Garcin | Fired | 14 March 2012 | 8th | Emmanuel da Costa | 14 March 2012 | 8th |

## Ownership changes
### Ligue 1

| Club | New owner | Previous owner | Date |
| Paris Saint-Germain | Qatar Investment Authority | Colony Capital and Butler Capital Partners | 1 July 2011 |

### Ligue 2

| Club | New owner | Previous owner | Date |
| Monaco | Monaco Sports Invest | AS Monaco | 23 December 2011 |

## Competitions

| Competition | Winner | Details | Match Report |
| Ligue 1 | Montpellier | 2011–12 Ligue 1 | 1st Ligue 1 title |
| Ligue 2 | Bastia | 2011–12 Ligue 2 | |
| Championnat National | Nîmes | 2011–12 Championnat National | |
| Championnat de France amateur | Carquefou | 2011–12 Championnat de France amateur | |
| Championnat de France amateur 2 | | 2011–12 Championnat de France amateur 2 | |
| Division 1 Féminine | Lyon | 2011–12 Division 1 Féminine | |
| Coupe de France | Lyon | 2011–12 Coupe de France Beat Quevilly 1–0 | |
| Coupe de la Ligue | Marseille | 2011–12 Coupe de la Ligue Beat Lyon 1–0 | Report |
| Coupe de France Féminine | Lyon | 2011–12 Coupe de France Féminine Beat Montpellier 2–1 | |
| Coupe Gambardella | Nice | 2011–12 Coupe Gambardella Beat Saint-Étienne 2–1 | |
| Trophée des Champions | Marseille | 2011 Trophée des Champions Beat Lille 5–4 | Report |

### International competitions
#### Men's

| Team / Competition | UEFA Champions League | UEFA Europa League |
| Lille | Group stage Eliminated | Did not qualify |
| Marseille | Quarter-finals eliminated by Bayern Munich | Did not qualify |
| Lyon | Round of 16 eliminated by APOEL | Did not qualify |
| Paris Saint-Germain | Did not qualify | Group stage Eliminated |
| Sochaux | Did not qualify | Playoff round eliminated by Metalist Kharkiv |
| Rennes | Did not qualify | Group stage Eliminated |

#### Women's

| Team / Competition | UEFA Women's Champions League |
| Lyon | Champions Beat FFC Frankfurt in Final |
| Paris Saint-Germain | Round of 16 eliminated by FFC Frankfurt |

## National teams
### Men's senior

Friendly
UEFA Euro 2012 qualification
Friendly
UEFA Euro 2012
Last updated: 23 June 2012 Source: French Football Federation and UEFA

### Women's senior

Friendly
UEFA Women's Euro 2013 qualification
Friendly
2012 Cyprus Cup
UEFA Women's Euro 2013 qualification
Friendly
2012 Summer Olympics
Last updated: 9 August 2012 Source: French Football Federation Archived 16 January 2013 at the Wayback Machine

### France U-21

2013 UEFA European Under-21 Football Championship qualification
Friendly
2013 UEFA European Under-21 Football Championship qualification
Friendly
2013 UEFA European Under-21 Football Championship qualification
Last updated: 8 June 2012 Source: French Football Federation U-21 Schedule Archived 22 February 2012 at the Wayback Machine

### France U-20

Friendly
2012 Toulon Tournament
Last updated: 1 June 2012 Source: French Football Federation U-20 Schedule Archived 24 September 2010 at the Wayback Machine

### France U-19

Friendly
Tournoi de Limoges
Friendly
Porto Tournament
2012 UEFA European Under-19 Football Championship Elite Round qualification
2012 UEFA European Under-19 Football Championship
Last updated: 12 July 2012 Source: French Football Federation U-19 Schedule Archived 3 September 2011 at the Wayback Machine

### France U-18

Czech Republic Tournament
Friendly
Last updated: 24 May 2012 Source: French Football Federation Archived 29 July 2011 at the Wayback Machine

### France U-17

Friendly
2012 UEFA European Under-17 Football Championship First Round qualification
2012 Algarve Cup
2012 UEFA European Under-17 Football Championship Elite Round qualification
2012 UEFA European Under-17 Football Championship
Last updated: 10 May 2012 Source: French Football Federation U-17 Schedule Archived 3 September 2011 at the Wayback Machine

### France U-16

Friendly
2011 Tournoi du Val-de-Marne
2011 Nike International Tournament
2012 Aegean Cup
Friendly
2012 Montaigu Tournament
Friendly
Last updated: 30 May 2012 Source: French Football Federation U-16 Schedule Archived 26 September 2010 at the Wayback Machine