The French Cup has a knack for offering us moments that border on fairy tales. Nowhere else is it more common for a lower-division team to pull off a sensation and eliminate a Ligue 1 club. Montpellier, a former champion of the nation of the Gallic Roosters, felt this firsthand, being humbled by Le Puy. But what happened in a small town at the foot of the Alps took madness to a whole new level. Who knows what else will happen to Lyon and how many more storms will batter the club before they find their way back to better days. Pierre Sage’s team suffered perhaps the most humiliating defeat on the field in its history—eliminated by Bourgoin-Jallieu, a fifth-tier side, after a poor penalty shootout, 4–2. There are no adequate words to describe what unfolded in a town of just over 20,000 inhabitants. Bourgoin-Jallieu’s stadium is used more for rugby than football. Perhaps the icy Alpine conditions froze the feet of the favorites. Whatever the reason, Lyon suffered a historic embarrassment tonight. To make the irony even greater, Lyon’s reserve team, which competes in the same tier as Bourgoin, had also previously lost to them.https://t.co/wBPTiviA1E— FC Bourgoin-Jallieu 🐬 (@FCBourgoin38) January 15, 2025 There’s no point in discussing market value—Bourgoin doesn’t have one. Their Wikipedia page contains only a few basic details. They’ve never played professional football, and the most notable player to have worn their jersey is Bryan Mbeumo, now at Brentford, who was with Bourgoin at the age of 11. Former Chelsea and Manchester United midfielder Nemanja Matić managed to score and equalize for Lyon. It seemed, at that point, that Lyon might avoid an epic fiasco. However, the incredibly determined home side held on until the end of the match and forced a penalty shootout. Under pressure, Alexandre Lacazette and Corentin Tolisso—players accustomed to these situations as routine—both cracked, turning the game into a nightmare.5th tier French side FC Bourgoin-Jallieu completed a HUGE upset over Lyon, knocking the Ligue 1 club out of the Coupe de France in the Round of 32 🤯🇫🇷Fans rushed the pitch in celebration 🎉 pic.twitter.com/neexISe6BY— FOX Soccer (@FOXSoccer) January 15, 2025 The home hero, Mehdi Mujecki, scored two goals in the regular 90 minutes but almost became the villain after missing his penalty. However, when a young man named Sofiane Attik converted his shot past Lucas Perri, it was the signal for the celebrations to begin. Fans stormed the pitch, a party broke out, and the players were in disbelief over what they had accomplished. A feat, a heroic act, a triumph—it’s hard to say exactly what, but whatever it was, Bourgoin’s players wrote their names into history and had their five minutes of fame. When you’re a David and you bring down a Goliath, you deserve nothing less than the admiration of the entire world.##NAJAVA_MECA_8632975##
