US Créteil-Lusitanos

Union Sportive Créteil-Lusitanos Football (French pronunciation: [yunyən spɔrtɪv kʁetɛi-lusitɛ̃no]; commonly referred to as US Créteil or simply Créteil) is a French football club based in Créteil, a southeastern suburb of Paris. The club was founded in 1936 and currently play in the Championnat National, the third division of French football. The football club forms part of an omnisports club that is also known for its handball team.

US Créteil was founded in 1936 as an omnisports club and have a rich history, despite achieving minimal honours. The club has won the Division d'Honneur on two occasions in 1962 and 1986. In 1987, Créteil were crowned champions of the now-defunct Division 4 and, a year later, captured the Division 3 title. The club's best finish in the prestigious Coupe de France was during the 1985–86 edition of the competition when the team reached the quarter-finals. For eight consecutive seasons (1999–2007), Créteil played in Ligue 2, the second division of French football. Due to harboring in the third division, the club plays under semi-professional status.

Créteil play its home matches at the 12,000-seat Stade Dominique Duvauchelle, named after Dominique Duvauchelle, a local sports journalist from the city of Créteil. Despite playing in a modern facility, the club's level attendance is very low, averaging only 650 supporters during the 2009–10 season.

Créteil is affectionately known as Les Béliers, which translates to The Rams.

History

Association football ventured to the city of Créteil relatively late compared to other communes located in and around Paris. The first club to enter the fray was Club Sportif de Créteil. However, the club was considered unstable from the start and was declared unofficial as the city was attempting to replicate the passion and heart clubs such as Red Star 93, CA Paris-Charenton, and Racing Club de France displayed in nearby communes. The declaration soon came to fruition following the foundation of Union Sportive Créteil in 1936 by a man commonly known as M. Hemon. Créteil spent almost 30 years hovering in the lower divisions. During this time, the football club played its home matches at the Stade Desmont, which seated only 800 spectators. Under the leadership of B. Hainque, Créteil reached the Championnat de France amateur in 1962. The team then proceeded to falter back into the Promotion d'Honneur before reaching the Division d'Honneur in the new decade.

Créteil were a lucky beneficiary in 1978 when the French Football Federation announced the creation of the Division 4. The club was promoted to the new league despite its 7th place finish in the Division d'Honneur the previous season. Due to the club's instant promotion, the team's form showed as they were in dead last after ten matches were contested. By the end of the season, Créteil were back in the Division d'Honneur. In 1983, the club moved into its new stadium, the Stade Dominique Duvauchelle, after having spent almost 50 years at the Stade Desmont. Two years later, under the guidance of the city's deputy mayor Laurent Cathala, Union Sportive Créteil merged with the Créteil omnisports club in order to give the city a better sporting identity. The club's main sports became football, swimming, athletics, and cycling.

Players

Current squad

As of 22 September, 2011.^[1] Note: Flags indicate national team as has been defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

Former players

For a complete list of former US Créteil-Lusitanos players with a Wikipedia article, see here.

Managers

Current coaching staff

As of 5 September 2011.^[2]

Managerial history

US Créteil-Lusitanos has had numerous managers and caretaker managers since the club's foundation in 1936. The list below begins with the club's managers since 1986.

Managers in italics were hired as caretakers

Honours

• Division 3
  • Champions (1): 1988
• Division 4
  • Champions (1): 1987
• Division d'Honneur (Île-de-France)
  • Champions (2): 1962, 1986

References

External links

• (French) Official site