AS Monaco FC

Early history

AS Monaco FC was founded on 1 August 1919 as a unification of numerous local clubs based in France and the principality. Then, the multiple sports club of the Association Sportive de Monaco was founded on the 23rd August 1924. AS Monaco FC was then absorbed by the latter and became the football section of the enlarged Monegasque sporting club.^[4]

The club's early years were spent in the amateur regional divisions of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region, rising rapidly between the leagues in the 1920s. In 1933, Monaco were invited by the French Football Federation to turn professional. The Monégasques' first year of second division football ended in failure, however, as they were relegated to the amateur leagues the following year. By 1948, Monaco re-acquired its professional status and returned to the French second division; they subsequently consistently finished in its upper echelons, with this sustained effort resulting in promotion to the French first division for the first time in 1953.

1960–1986: Domestic successes

Lucien Leduc guided Monaco to three league titles and two domestic cups

In 1960, Monaco coach Lucien Leduc led the club to its first professional trophy, the Coupe de France, beating Saint-Étienne 4–2 in extra time. This initial success was bettered in the following year with the club winning the French Championship for the first time in its history, qualifying for the European Cup. Leduc subsequently led the club to its first League and Cup Double in 1963. Upon Leduc's departure in 1963, Monaco endured a barren run, entrenched in the middle half of the league for the best part of the next decade and alternating between the first and second divisions after 1963. In 1975, Jean-Louis Campora, son of former president Charles Campora, became chairman of the club. In his second season, he brought back Leduc, who immediately won the club promotion to the first division and won them the championship the following year in 1978.^[5][6] Leduc subsequently left the club again in 1979, to be succeeded by Lucien Muller and Gérard Banide, both of whom were unable to halt the club's decline.

The early 1980s saw a steady stream of successes in national competitions. Monaco won a title almost every other year; the Coupe de France in 1980 and 1985, the French Championship in 1982, was Coupe de France finalist in 1984. In the 1985–86 season, Monaco hammered Bordeaux 9–0, one of the biggest wins in club history.^[7]

Disappointingly for Monaco fans, the club could not translate its domestic leadership into European success. Up to this point, Monaco had never passed the first round of any European competition. Monaco lost to Dundee United (1981), CSKA Sofia twice (1982 and 1984) and Universitatea Craiova (1985).^[8]

1990s: Wenger and Tigana

Arsène Wenger led Monaco to the 1987–88 league title.

The former AS Monaco logo used until 2013.

In 1986, former Ajax manager Ștefan Kovács, who succeeded Rinus Michels and honed his Total Football ideals with the Dutch champions, came out of a three-year "retirement" to manage Monaco, but even he could not bring them success. With the club facing a second barren spell, they signed Arsène Wenger, who had hitherto been relatively unknown, managing Nancy without much success. Wenger's reign saw the club enjoy one of its most successful periods, with several inspired signings, including George Weah, Glenn Hoddle, Jürgen Klinsmann, and Youri Djorkaeff. Youth team policies produced future World Cup winners Emmanuel Petit, Lilian Thuram and Thierry Henry. Under Wenger, they won the league in his first season in charge (1988) and the Coupe de France in 1991, with the club consistently competing in the latter stages of the European Cup and regularly challenging for the league title.^[9] The club could have had even greater success in this period, as it emerged in 1993 that bitter rivals Marseille had indulged in match fixing and numerous improprieties, a view that Wenger had long held.^[9] In 1994, after being blocked by the Monaco board from opening discussions with German powerhouse Bayern Munich for their vacant managerial post after being shortlisted for the role, Wenger was released from the club, several weeks after the post had already been filled.^[9][10]

After Wenger's departure, the club went on to record two further league championships; under Jean Tigana in 1997 and under Claude Puel in 2000. However, as the decade came to an end, rumours were surfacing that the club was facing numerous financial difficulties. In 2003, these financial problems came to a head. Despite finishing second in the league, the club was relegated to Ligue 2 by the French Professional League for amassing a €50 million ($68 million) debt.^[11] Whilst this was reduced on appeal to a ban on purchasing players, it was enough to force President Jean-Louis Campora, who had been in charge for 28 years, to step aside. He was replaced by Pierre Svara, an administrator considered to be close to the principality's princely family but with no footballing experience.^[12]

The following season saw remarkable success on the field, given the club's financial strife. The team, coached by former French national team captain Didier Deschamps and featuring stalwarts such as Fernando Morientes, Ludovic Giuly, Jérôme Rothen and Dado Pršo, finished third in Ligue 1 and enjoyed a remarkable run to the final of the UEFA Champions League, beating Real Madrid and Chelsea along the way. However, despite the on-field success, the 2003–04 season was the club's worst financial year in its history. Within 12 months, Deschamps had left as coach and Svara had been replaced by Michel Pastor.^[11]

Relegation and takeover

Russian billionaire Dmitry Rybolovlev bought the club in 2011 and has made it one of the biggest spenders in the football world.

With Francesco Guidolin hired to replace Deschamps, one of Pastor's first tasks was to hold on to the players who had turned the club into one of the best in Europe. However, he failed to convince them to stay and their replacements were unable to replicate previous successes. Guidolin lasted only one year, before being replaced by assistant coach Laurent Banide who, in turn, only lasted a year, before being replaced by Brazilian Ricardo Gomes. In 2008, after four years at the club featuring six coaches and only mid-table finishes, Pastor left the club amid severe criticism of his management skills.

In 2008, Jérôme de Bontin, a leading shareholder of the club since 2003, took charge of the club, promising a complete shake-up. Under his reign as president, the club brought in players such as Park Chu-young and Freddy Adu, so they did not find much success on the pitch, going through a torrid season and only managing a mid-table finish. De Bontin resigned at the end of the season, replaced by banker Étienne Franzi and a new board of directors.^[13]

In July 2009, Ricardo Gomes was replaced by former Cannes and Rennes coach Guy Lacombe, inheriting a youthful squad featuring numerous highly lauded youth team prospects, including Cédric Mongongu, Serge Gakpé, Vincent Muratori, Frédéric Nimani, Nicolas N'Koulou, Park Chu-young, Yohan Mollo and Yohann Thuram-Ulien.^[14] Lacombe led Monaco to eighth place in Ligue 1 in his first season in charge, but he was unable to replicate this performance in his second season and was sacked in January 2011, with Monaco in 17th place in Ligue 1. He was replaced by former coach Laurent Banide, who was unable to turn around the club's fortunes; Monaco finished the 2010–11 season in 18th, thus becoming relegated to Ligue 2.

In December 2011, 66.67% of the club was sold to the Russian billionaire Dmitry Rybolovlev (via a trust under his daughter Ekaterina's name) while the club were bottom of Ligue 2.^[3] Banide was sacked due to this poor start to the 2011–12 season, and was replaced by Italian manager Marco Simone. Although he lifted the club to eighth by the end of the season, the club's board targeted promotion for the upcoming season and so fired him and appointed his compatriot Claudio Ranieri, whose attacking style of football saw the club score 64 goals in the 2012–13 season. With the club only losing four times, Monaco finished the season as champions, earning promotion back to Ligue 1. Using Rybolovlev's funds, Monaco were one of the biggest spenders in Europe in 2013, spending roughly £140 million, including a club-record £50 million for Radamel Falcao from Atlético Madrid.^[15]

2016–17 season

Monaco won the Ligue 1 title on 17 May 2017 by defeating AS Saint-Étienne 2-0. Radamel Falcao and Kylian Mbappé scored 30 and 26 goals respectively to ensure Monaco won their first Ligue 1 title in 17 years. Also, Les Monégasques reached the semifinals of the UEFA Champions League for the first time in 13 years.

2018–19 season

Les Monegasques started off the season poorly, starting the season with a 4-0 loss to PSG in the Trophée des Champions. They followed with a 1-3 win over FC Nantes, but drew to Lille OSC and a 2-1 loss to Bordeaux. They carried on with consistent losses, including a 1-2 loss against Atletico Madrid and a 3-0 loss to Borussia Dortmund in the 2018–19 UEFA Champions League. Following the poor results, Leonardo Jardim was removed from his role as manager, being succeeded by Thierry Henry.

Current squad

As of 30 August 2018.^[16]

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Position Player 1 GK Danijel Subašić 3 DF Antonio Barreca 4 MF Jean-Eudes Aholou 5 DF Jemerson 6 MF Kévin N'Doram 7 MF Rony Lopes 8 MF Youri Tielemans 9 FW Radamel Falcao (captain) 10 FW Stevan Jovetić 11 MF Adama Traoré 13 FW Willem Geubbels 15 MF Youssef Aït Bennasser 16 GK Diego Benaglio 17 MF Aleksandr Golovin 18 DF Ronaël Pierre-Gabriel 19 DF Djibril Sidibé 20 MF Nacer Chadli

No. Position Player 21 DF Julien Serrano 22 FW Jordi Mboula 23 FW Pietro Pellegri 24 DF Andrea Raggi 25 DF Kamil Glik (vice captain) 26 MF Robert Navarro 28 MF Pelé 29 FW Samuel Grandsir 30 GK Seydou Sy 31 DF Romain Faivre 32 DF Benoît Badiashile 34 MF Moussa Sylla 36 MF Sofiane Diop 38 DF Almamy Touré 39 DF Benjamin Henrichs 40 GK Loïc Badiashile — DF Jordy Gaspar

Out on loan

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Position Player — GK Álvaro Fernández Llorente (on loan to Extremadura) — GK Paul Nardi (on loan to Cercle Brugge) — DF Dinis Almeida (on loan to Xanthi) — DF Yoann Etienne (on loan to Cercle Brugge) — DF Jorge (on loan to Porto) — DF Pierre-Daniel N'Guinda (on loan to Cercle Brugge) — MF Kévin Appin (on loan to Cercle Brugge) — MF Adrien Bongiovanni (on loan to Cercle Brugge)

No. Position Player — MF Gabriel Boschilia (on loan to Nantes) — MF Gil Dias (on loan to Nottingham Forest) — MF Ibrahima Diallo (on loan to Brest) — MF Jonathan Mexique (on loan to Cholet) — MF Guevin Tormin (on loan to Cercle Brugge) — FW Nabil Alioui (on loan to Cercle Brugge) — FW Irvin Cardona (on loan to Cercle Brugge) — FW Keita Baldé (on loan to Inter Milan)

Reserves

As of 29 August 2018^[17]

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Position Player — GK Hugo Hagege — GK Yanis Henin — DF Yannis N'Gakoutou-Yapende — DF Abdoulaye Koté — DF Jonathan Cissé — DF Jonathan Panzo — MF Jalil Enjolras — MF Han-Noah Massengo — MF Tristan Muyumba

No. Position Player — MF Tiago Ribeiro — MF Francesco Antonucci — MF Robert Navarro — MF Salam Jiddou — MF Eliot Matazo — MF Théo Epailly 37 FW Wilson Isidor — FW Jason Mbock — FW Eric Ayiah

Ownership history

List of presidents

1952–1953 Roger-Félix Médecin 1954 Joseph Fissore 1955–1956 Charles Campora 1956–1957 Roger-Félix Médecin 1958–1959 Charles Campora 1960–1963 Antoine Romagnan 1964–1968 Max Principale 1969 Edmond Aubert 1970–1972 Henry Rey 1973–1974 Henri Orengo 1975 Henri Corvetto 1976–2003 Jean-Louis Campora 2003–2004 Pierre Svara 2004–2008 Michel Pastor 2008–2009 Jérôme de Bontin 2009–2011 Étienne Franzi 2011– Dmitry Rybolovlev

Managerial history

List of Managers

1948–1950 Jean Batmale 1950–1952 Elek Schwartz 1952–1953 Angelo Grizzetti 1953–1956 Ludwic Dupal 1956–1957 Anton Marek 1957–1958 Louis Pirroni 1958–1963 Lucien Leduc 1963–1965 Roger Courtois 1965–1966 Louis Pirroni 1966–1969 Pierre Sinibaldi 1969–1970 Louis Pirroni / Robert Domergue 1970–1972 Jean Luciano 1972–1974 Ruben Bravo 1974–1975 Alberto Muro 1976–1977 Armand Forcherio 1977–1979 Lucien Leduc 1979–1983 Gérard Banide 1983–1986 Lucien Muller

1986–1987 Ștefan Kovács 1987–1994 Arsène Wenger 1994 Jean Petit 1994–1995 Jean-Luc Ettori 1995 Gérard Banide 1995–1999 Jean Tigana 1999–2001 Claude Puel 2001–2005 Didier Deschamps 2005 Jean Petit 2005–2006 Francesco Guidolin 2006 László Bölöni 2006–2007 Laurent Banide 2007–2009 Ricardo Gomes 2009–2011 Guy Lacombe 2011 Laurent Banide 2011–2012 Marco Simone 2012–2014 Claudio Ranieri 2014–2018 Leonardo Jardim 2018– Thierry Henry

Domestic competitions

• Ligue 1
  • Winners (8): 1960–61, 1962–63, 1977–78, 1981–82, 1987–88, 1996–97, 1999–00, 2016–17
  • Runners-up (7): 1963–64, 1983–84, 1990–91, 1991–92, 2002–03, 2013–14, 2017–18
• Ligue 2
  • Winners: 2012–13
  • Runners-up (3): 1952–53, 1970–71, 1976–77
• Championnat de France Amateur
  • Winners (3):1963–64, 1970–71, 2007–08
• Coupe de France
  • Winners (5): 1959–60, 1962–63, 1979–80, 1984–85, 1990–91
  • Runners-up (4): 1973-74, 1984–84, 1988–89, 2009–10
• Coupe de la Ligue
  • Winners: 2002–03
  • Runners-up (3): 2000–01, 2016–17, 2017–18
• Trophée des Champions
  • Winners (4): 1961, 1985, 1997, 2000
  • Runners-up (3): 1960, 2017, 2018
• Coupe Charles Drago
  • Winners: 1961

International competitions

• UEFA Champions League
  • Runners-up: 2003–04
  • Semi-finalists (3): 1993–94, 1997–98, 2016–17
• UEFA Cup Winners' Cup
  • Runners-up: 1991–92
  • Semi-finalists: 1989–90
• UEFA Cup/UEFA Europa League
  • Semi-finalists: 1996–97