After two and a half years, football fans can once again enjoy a clash between perhaps the biggest rivals in French football: Lyon’s Olympique will host their neighbors, Saint-Étienne, this Sunday at 8:45 p.m. as part of the 11th round of Ligue 1. Expect anything but a friendly welcome for the men in green jerseys, as the residents of these two cities have long disliked each other. This animosity has roots going back far beyond modern France, deeply ingrained in the genetics of the people of Lyon and Saint-Étienne and nurtured over centuries. Historical records suggest it dates back even to ancient times. This topic was covered in Mozzart Sport Kenya a few years ago, but it’s been a while since we last saw an Olympique vs. Saint-Étienne match. The Greens spent the past two seasons in Ligue 2, so this is a perfect opportunity to revisit the historical tensions that have kept the residents of these two cities at odds since “time immemorial.”LES GLADIATEURS SONT PRÊTS POUR LE DERBY ⚔️#OLASSE I @DAZN_FR pic.twitter.com/QTV6qqbO5L— Ligue 1 McDonald’s (@Ligue1) November 10, 2024 The initial conflicts trace back to ancient times, when an area around modern-day Saint-Étienne housed the Gallic state’s capital, Gergovie, near Lyon’s Roman colony, Lugdunum. In the eyes of the Gauls, their Roman-allied neighbors were traitors, leading to military conflicts between the two settlements. Over the years, central France saw many conquerors, changing rulers and nations, but somehow these two growing cities always found themselves on opposing sides. In the Middle Ages, the area saw three major battles—1158, 1312, and 1362. Saint-Étienne was under the control of the French crown, while Lyon was part of the Holy Roman Empire, and border skirmishes frequently erupted around the cities. Even the Renaissance didn’t ease tensions. During the French Revolution, an uprising in Lyon on August 28, 1793, was crushed with Saint-Étienne’s help, as weapons from their factories arrived just in time, and Saint-Barbe Chapel—where the revolutionaries had their headquarters—was bombarded. Saint-Étienne’s authorities supported the suppression of the revolt to curb Lyon’s growing influence over the Forez region.ALLEZ LES VERTSLos fans de Saint-Étienne acompañaron a su equipo en su salida hacia Lyon para jugar el Derby#OLASSE📽 @Site_Evect🇫🇷 10.11 pic.twitter.com/BGttkbadpl— 𝕊𝕋𝔸ℕ𝔻 𝕐𝕆𝕌ℝ 𝔾ℝ𝕆𝕌ℕ𝔻 👊 (@Ultramaniatics) November 10, 2024 Today, Lyon is much larger and wealthier than Saint-Étienne. According to the 2021 census, central Lyon has 522,250 residents, with its metropolitan area totaling around 2.3 million people. In contrast, Saint-Étienne’s population is around 400,000, with 173,000 in the city center, a difference even greater than it was three years ago. Once a major industrial hub, Saint-Étienne has grown poorer as its weapon factories and coal mines declined, forcing its residents to watch Lyon’s steady rise. The wage and class disparity between the two cities fuels the rivalry further. In 20th-century football, Saint-Étienne was dominant, winning the French championship ten times, holding the record until recently. However, the Greens haven’t won a title since 1981, as the city began to decline.The craziest transfer story: refusal, tears, and disappearanceOlympique Lyonnais rose in the early 21st century, capturing all seven of their championships between 2002 and 2008. Thus, during the peak periods for both clubs, they weren’t true rivals. However, every one of their matches remains a derby, possibly the greatest in all of France. Neither club is currently competitive with Paris Saint-Germain in the title race. After ten rounds, Lyon is eighth with 15 points, while Saint-Étienne is in the relegation zone with ten points. Olympique is in good form, with three wins and two draws in their last five matches, while Saint-Étienne broke a two-game losing streak last weekend with a 2-0 win over Strasbourg.09.11.2024🇫🇷Olympique Lyonnais – Saint-Étienne, Saint-Étienne on training before tomorrow match against Lyon, click here for more: https://t.co/NFHOpRn01s pic.twitter.com/NirU5QbtLv— Hooligans.cz Official (@hooliganscz1999) November 9, 2024 Saint-Étienne has been waiting to beat their biggest rival since the fall of 2019. Since then, they have met five times, with Lyon winning four and drawing once. If we consider only games played in Lyon, Saint-Étienne’s record is even worse, having last won there in March 2014. Of the last eight home matches, Olympique has triumphed six times, with two draws.In French derby between the gentlemen and the workers, the only question is who’s less terribleThe significance of this match is evident from the fact that around 3,500 fans attended Olympique’s last training session to support the players. Many fans would likely sign up for a season without trophies for Lyon if it meant Saint-Étienne would be relegated again and continue to struggle. Olympique captain Alexandre Lacazette acknowledged how difficult it was to explain to his teammates what to expect from tonight’s match.“I’m very excited about the game. Whenever we try to explain to outsiders how big this derby is, they’re often surprised. I don’t think they expect it to be such a significant match. These cities have always been rivals. I can guarantee you that fans prefer their team winning both matches against Saint-Étienne over winning the league title. Luckily, there are plenty of videos from past derbies, so it was easy to show them. I think that left a mark. When we saw that Saint-Étienne would return to Ligue 1, we knew an important date awaited us,” Lacazette said.LIGUE 1 – MATCHDAY 11FridayOlympique Marseille – Auxerre 1-3 (0-3)/Greenwood 64 pen – Sinayoko 10, Perrin 43, Traore 45/SaturdayStrasbourg – Monaco 1-3 (1-0)/Doue 29 – Ben Seghir 79 pen, 89, Ilenikhena 90+1/Lens – Nantes 3-2 (1-1)/Frankowski 21 pen, Ojediran 86, Thomasson 90 – Simon 36 pen, Cozza 71/Angers – PSG 2-4 (0-4)/Lepaul 90+1, Biumla 90+7 – Lee 17, 20, Barcola 31, 45+2/Sunday17:00: (2.55) Nice (3.20) Lille (2.85)19:00: (3.25) Le Havre (3.40) Reims (2.35)19:00: (3.25) Montpellier (3.45) Brest (2.20)19:00: (2.20) Rennes (3.60) Toulouse (3.40)22:45: (1.37) Olympique Lyon (5.80) Saint-Etienne (8.00)***odds are subject to change***
