Olympique de Lotrique
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| Full name | Olympique de Lotrique | |||
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| Nickname(s) | Les Olympiens (The Olympians) | |||
| Short name | OL | |||
| Founded | 2 September 1891 | |||
| Ground | Arène de Xambar | |||
| Capacity | 72,164 | |||
| Chairman | Thierry Lasalle | |||
| Manager | Bastien Martin (interim) | |||
| League | Liga Premiére | |||
| 2018–19 | Liga Premiére, 3rd | |||
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Olympique de Lotrique; also known as OdL or simply Olympique is a professional association football club based in Lotric, Midrasia. The club currently competes in Liga Premiére, the highest tier of Midrasian football. The club has won a number of trophies including 23 domestic league titles, 8 Mydran Cups, 20 Supercopas, 12 Asuran Leagues and one FFA Champions Cup.
Founded in 1891 as an omnisport club focusing on association football, rugby, tennis, gymnastics and swimming; it wasn't until the early 1900s that the football team as it is known today emerged from the club. For much of their history as a football club, Olympique de Lotrique have competed in the highest tier of Midrasian football and hold the title of the most successful Midrasian football club, and arguably most successful in Aeia.
The club's home stadium is the Arène de Xambar, formerly known as the Arène d'Aurelie, which holds a capacity of 72,164. The stadium is located in north-western Lotric and is the second-largest stadium in the city, behind the Stade Nationale used by the Midrasian national team. The club has a large domestic following, with average home attendances averaging 68,000 as of 2015, the highest in Liga Premiére. The club also have a notable overseas following, holding followers across Aeia, particularly in countries such as Renneque, Batisuria, and Ajerrin. The club is also one of the highest-earning in Aeia with an annual income of around Đ650 million. According to international statistics, Olympique de Lotrique is the most valuable football club in Aeia, valued at Đ3.65 billion.
Fans of the club have a number of notable long-standing rivalries with a number of domestic and international clubs. In domestic football, most notable is the Lotric derby against AC Lotric and la Classique against FC Almiaro. Internationally, the club is renowned for its rivalries with Bersk SK from Navack and Aleanto Calcio from Atresca.
History
Early years
Olympique de Lotrique was founded as an omnisport club by local entrepreneur Pierre Virarde in 1891. Virarde formed the club initially as a goodwill initiative toward the community of northern Lotric, and as a way to ensure his factory workers remained fit and healthy. Workers in Virande's furniture factories would be given access to tennis, athletics and gymnastic facilities as part of the entrepreneur's scheme to maintain a balanced working life. Factory workers would also be given access to sports teams which would compete against other athletics associations throughout the city, fostering a spirit of cooperation and unity among the workforce. However, soon the club was opened to the wider public and members of the local community were invited to partake in the sports club and its various activities.
Whilst football had always played a major part in the club's operations, it wasn't until the twentieth century that it came to surpass rugby or tennis in importance for the club. The rising popularity of the sport, in addition to the increasing number of members joining the club specifically for its football team, led Olympique to invest far more time and money into its footballing operations. In order to fund the improved football team, the club was forced to cut a number of under-subscribed sports, such as squash and croquet. Soon the club became large enough and had raised sufficient capital to be entered into the newly formed Midrasian football league.
Olympique officially became a professional team in 1906, one year after the official formation of the Midrasian football league. The team played their first professional game against FC Locarno, resulting in a 0-0 draw. The team went on to finish middle of the Midrasian third-tier, allowing Olympique to remain within the Midrasian leagues. Olympique would remain in the third tier until 1911 when they gained promotion to the second-tier after a second-place finish. The team performed reasonably well for their size within the second tier, regularly finishing between 4th and 12th place, allowing the club to retain its place within the division. A number of new signings, in conjunction with newly emerging youth talent within the sports club saw an increased focus placed on the football team by club owner Virarde. Yet in spite of this, Virarde was sceptical of dedicating all of his attention toward football, instead of wishing to place Olympique as a sports club for the local community of northern Lotric. In 1913 however, due to the collapse of his furniture company, Virarde was forced to sell the sports club in its entirety to cover his debts. The club were eventually sold to local Lotric landowner Jacob Bertrand.
Immediately following his takeover of Olympique, Bertrand chose to make the football team completely independent of the wider sports association. Bertrand also chose to move the football team to the district of Noulit within which he had a considerable number of infrastructural developments underway, such as a residential expansion and an agreement to expand the Lotric rail system into the area. The club's new stadium was to be built on a site within the district which would provide space for amicable growth and expansion over the following years. The divorce and expansion proved beneficial to the club who gained promotion to tier-one in 1921 and were able to retain their position within the league despite a difficult first season.
Olympique performed considerably well within their following seasons in tier-one and went on to win their first league title in 1929. Olympique were able to follow up this feat by repeating their league success in 1933, and also winning the team's first Supercopa in 1934. Olympique de Lotrique were also the first team to win the league following the conclusion of the Second Great War, clinching the title in 1943. Much of the club's success during this era was put down to player-manager Henri Aurelie, who was renowned for both his tactical brilliance and masterful pace in spite of his age. Despite this, financial difficulty on the part of the club's ownership saw a period of decline during the post-war era. The team's rising status, as well as its location in the capital of Lotric made it a standard-bearer for Midrasian football on the international scene. The club would eventually be purchased by the Midrasian government, at the time run by the controversial National Coalition.
'The regime's club'
Considerable controversy followed the club's purchase by the government, though Consul François Capet assured fans and Midrasian football's governing body that the team would be independent and would not be funded through taxpayer's money. The appointment of an official club president did little to alleviate these concerns however, and evidence suggests that considerable sums of public money was spent improving the club's facilities and purchasing expensive foreign players. Other Midrasian teams, particularly FC Mydroll and AC Lotric petitioned the Midrasian FA to kick Olympique out of the league due to its government ownership, though it is believed the National Coalition strongarmed the federation into inaction.
Over the coming years, Olympique received new training facilities and a new stadium bankrolled by the government, though the National Coalition suggested the funds to cover these projects had come from the team's revenues. Despite these new investments, Olympique did not come to single-handedly dominate the Midrasian league, though they were able to more than double their number of league titles, becoming the most successful side in the league's history with 8 titles, surpassing Mydroll's previous record of 5. Despite this success, Olympique were still unable to win the Copa de Mydra. During the 1953 cup final against Mydroll, the team lost on penalties. Theories about government bribes being paid to referees for favourable decisions were rife during the 1950s, with many continuing to this day, though little evidence exists to back up such claims. Internationally however, Olympique de Lotrique began to put Midrasia on the footballing map. The team won the Continental Cup in 1952 against Gylnebyen FK of Navack. The team also won the Intercontinental Cup against Bonaire Pelosiens in 1954. Many of the team's successes were brought about through the performances of key players such as captain Grégoire Fournier, as well as foreign acquisitions such as Atrescan Turi Zolla, and Veleazan refugee Franco Santángel who became an icon for the Midrasian regime and its propaganda war against its neighbour.
With the worsening economic climate in the late 1950s and rising decolonisation movements in the empire, the government was gradually forced to withdraw its investment in the team, leading to worse results on the pitch. With the downfall of the National Coalition government in 1958 the new Social Democratic government immediately cut its ties to the club.
Post-CN era
The departure of the National Coalition's funding for the club pushed Olympique into a position of uncertainty. Despite owning some of the best players and facilities within the division, it was unknown whether the club would be able to cover the cost of maintining its status. Nevertheless, Olympique were able to hold on to claim the 1958-59 league title, though the following summer were forced to sell much of the squad. Given the power vacuum which existed at the helm of the club, the existing management along with many of the club's supporters and players grouped together to transform the club through a 'fan ownership' model where various 'socios' could vote to elect a club chairman. Local entrepreneur Louis Chevalier was elected based on his campaign of pumping money back into the club to retain its status. Despite this promise the club went through several years of instability until 1967 where the club won its first Asuran League title. However, it would take until 1971 for Olympique to once again win Liga 1.
The 1970s and 80s heralded a period of dominance for the club, with the team winning eight league titles and four Asuran League trophies. The considerable success of the club also allowed Midrasian football to reach an international audience, providing a considerable increase in the revenue earned by the sport. The success of the club allowed it to attract an increasing number of international players and much more investment into the sport as a whole. The club's continued success saw a number of other Midrasian teams purchased by foreign investors. This expansion of Midrasian football also saw much greater commercialisation of the sport and greater broadcasting of Midrasian games. By the new millennium, Olympique had won a total of twenty league titles making it the most successful club in Midrasian history. However, the 3-1 defeat of the club in the 1999 Super Cup final at the hands of FC Ibbené was viewed by many as the end of the club's unparalleled dominance of Midrasian football.
The early 2000s were nicknamed 'the wilderness years' by Olympique fans as the club struggled to regain its former dominance following the departure of long-standing manager Ramon Matarodona. Though the club won the Asuran League in 2001 they would go on a barren streak for five years which was unheard of for the club in the modern age. Under manager Klaes van Emerick however the club would win the Copa de Mydra in 2007 and the league and supercopa the following season marking the club's return to the zenith of Midrasian football.
Today Olympique is seen to have maintained its position in the top flight of Midrasian football, despite its small setback in the early 2000s. The club has been able to win five more league titles since the millennium, including the 2016-17 season under manager Álvaro Câmara. New investment has allowed the club to target key talent and the international prestige the club wields makes it a lucrative target for the greatest football players in Aeia. The club's recent success in the FFA Champions Cup has also confirmed the club's place as one of the most successful and profitable in Aeia.
Stadium
Initially, Olympique de Lotrique played at a stadium called the Parc Blanc in the suburb of Helorie to the north of central Lotric. Constructed in 1878 as a multi-purpose athletics facility, the football pitch present at the time was little more than a field surrounded by a running track. The field was also used at the time by the club for other sports such as rugby and cricket. The stadium itself had a capacity of around 10,000 however in the very early year's spectators very rarely filled half of the stadium. Throughout its usage, the stadium was renowned for its wretched conditions, being heavily blighted by its use in rugby fixtures, which regularly took place immediately before football matches.
In 1915, with the club now competing full time in the Midrasian football league, it was decided that a new stadium would be required to house the football team, separate from the wider athletics association. After scouting several sites, a location was chosen in the emerging district of Noulit in north-western Lotric. The new stadium was named Parc Nouveau and held a capacity of just short of 30,000, allowing the stadium to handle the increased number of spectators turning up to matches. It was during their tenure at the Parc Nouveau that Olympique confirmed their place as a top-tier side with regular finishes in the top 10 and a league title in 1929. The stadium was however heavily damaged after the Bloody Month of 1937 requiring a number of repairs to re-enter service. However, upon completion it was discovered that many repairs had been botched, owing to the club's poor financial situation. Many of these issues were covered-up by the club until the North stand collapse of 1952, during which 112 spectators were killed.
Following the ownership change after the stand collapse, it was decided that the entire stadium would have to be demolished and rebuilt. It was during this time that the stadium was renamed to the Arène d'Aurelie after player-manager Henri Aurelie. The stadium was extensively redesigned upon its reconstruction, increasing capacity to around 50,000 standing. Costing around Đ500,000, the project was mostly bankrolled by new owners Pallas Group and was seen as an attempt to revitalise a club which had been struggling in recent years. The new investment was seen as a considerable success, allowing the club to bring in additional revenue through the increased number of spectators and also saw the club achieve considerable success in the domestic league. In 1985 the stadium was converted to all-seater in order to abide with new health and safety regulation brought out by the Republican government. This redevelopment reduced the stadiums capacity to 42,000, however in light of the club's considerable domestic and international success, plans were drafted to increase this number.
In 1997 the stadium was redeveloped and modernised, taking its capacity to around 68,000, making it the largest stadium in the country at the time, other than the Stade Nationale. The redevelopment was also accompanied by considerable infrastructural improvements in the areas surrounding the station, including the expansion of nearby metro stations and new housing and commercial developments in the area, such as the Olympique food court and shopping centre. The stadium was renamed the Arène de Xambar in 2007 as part of a new sponsorship deal with the Xambar group. Whilst the move was initially met with much hostility from fans, plans to name the southern stand after Aurelie, reduce ticket prices and increase stadium capacity to around 72,000 saw most opposition die down. In 2010 the stadium's capacity was increased to 72,164 after a redesign of the Aurelie stand.
Badge and colours
The club's badge has gone through a number of redesigns, however, has throughout its history maintained the navy and burgundy colour scheme of the city of Lotric. The badge has usually always featured in one form or another the fleur de lis as its central component. The club has always maintained its spelling as Lotrique in spite of 1900 language standardisation identifying Lotric as the official designation of the city. This move was done to differentiate the club from its rival AC Lotric, but also due to the continued widespread usage of the Lotrique spelling among certain circles. The crest of the club was redesigned following the club's victory in the 2017 FFA Champions Cup. The new logo features a design inspired by the art deco movement which has seen somewhat of a revival in recent years. The fleur de lis was completely redesigned in this style and features the Midrasian colours. Gold trims were also added to areas of the badge, along with the star to represent the club's Champions cup title.
The club has played in its iconic navy and burgundy colour scheme since 1921. Before this, the club played in black and white, though changed its scheme to associate the club more with the city of Lotric itself. Initially the club utilised navy jerseys for home games and burgundy for away games, however, in 1969 the club began to use navy with a burgundy stripe through the middle as its home jersey. This has throughout the club's history been the case, except in a number of circumstances, where the home kit has utilised a half-navy, half-burgundy colour scheme. In recent years the team's away jersey has been yellow, with a blue stripe. However, in 2017 the away kit was redesigned to a white and gold colour scheme to represent the club's victory in the Champions Cup.
Players
Current Squad
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under international eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one nationality.
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Out on loan
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under international eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one nationality.
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Reserve Squad
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under international eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one nationality.
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