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RC Strasbourg

From Biocrawler, the free encyclopedia.

Strasbourg

Full name

Racing Club de Strasbourg

Nickname

Founded

1906

Ground

Stade de la Meinau,
Strasbourg

Capacity

29,000

Chairman

Egon Gindorf

Manager

Jacky Duguépéroux

League

Ligue 1

2004-2005

Ligue 1, 11th





Home colours





Away colours

Racing Club de Strasbourg is a French football team, playing in the city of Strasbourg.

Contents

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History

It all begins at the beginning of the century. Some youngsters from the Neudorf neighborhood loved kicking a football that at the time was nothing but a ball of cloth.

Thanks to their savings and the support of their primary school teacher, they made the acquisition of a true leather football. Not much later, they formed a team and created an association that they christened Fußball Club Neudorf.

The year is 1906 and the meetings took place at the Polygone in German Alsace. In 1914, FC Neudorf rented le jardin Haemmerle for 300 deustchmarks a year, a green rectangle that will later take the name... Stade de la Meinau.

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Birth of “Racing”

After the war, “FC Neudorf” was rechristened “RC Strasbourg Neudorf” then in stride “Racing Club de Strasbourg”. The first spectators’ gallery, built out of wood, began to fill up to applaud Racing from 1921 and one had to wait just five years to see Racing bring back its first title in glory, that of the Champion of Alsace.

Saturday June 10th 1933, at the “restaurant de la Bourse”, Racing made the big jump to the professional ranks thanks to an extraordinary General Assembly that confirmed the addition of Racing. Several months later, they attended the first climb in Division 1 after four matches of blocking against Mulhouse (0-0 and 3-1) and against Saint-Etienne (2-0 and 4-4).

Everything started well for Racing that immediately placed itself at the top of the table, it finished 2nd in 34/35, 3rd in 35/36, 6th in 36/37, and 5th in 37/38. After World War II, the Alsatian club was always in the first division but at the end of the 48/49 season, it was condemned to relegation.

What that produced was considered a miracle at the time. SR Colmar liquidated their professional team. This sale brought about the continuation of Racing among the elite.

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The First Trophy

It brought back colors the two following seasons but at the time of training for the 51/52 season, the Meinau club would come to know the worst news with the first relegation to Division 2 due to the worst year in club history. Some months beforehand nevertheless, RC Strasbourg battled US Valenciennes 3-0, that was the first victory in the French Cup after the two lost finals in ’37 and ’47.

That began a frenzy in the streets of Strasbourg, the return of the champions was triumphant. The years that followed will not stay in the annals, Strasbourg climbed back to Division 1 then fell back to Division 2. In 1959, artificial lighting was unveiled and one has to wait until the mid-60’s to find a champion Racing side, in the Villes de Foire Cup.

The French Cup came back to Strasbourg in 1966, fifteen years later. The years will follow without flavor until the idea of the fusion with the Pierrots Vauban.

In 1970, a new status was adopted but Racing became Racing Club de Strasbourg again six years later. It’s 1976, the club is in Division 2 and going to be promoted back to Division 1. The manager, Gilbert Gress, and the players making up the team are Gemmrich, Specht...

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The Prettiest Page

The promoted team ended the year in 3rd place and prepared to write the prettiest page of its history. In 78/79, the Alsatians were the strongest in France and became for the first and only time of their history, champions of France.

That season will stay as the reference. 56 points in total, 63 goals scored and only 28 allowed (best defense), undefeated at the Meinau, Strasbourg was at the summit of French football and would qualify for the quarter-finals of the European Champions Cup the next season, eliminated by Ajax Amsterdam. Unfortunately, this high would not last and Racing plunged into crisis. The 80’s would be sinister memories and the “Blues” found themselves back in Division 2 in 1986. Then in 1992, gaining a return to Division 1, they would play at the top of the table…

At the level above. Thanks to a great match against Rennes, won 4-1, Strasbourg returned to the top flight in 1992. In 95, a place in the final of the French Cup (defeated 1-0) permitted it to get a taste for big matches and for the European Cup, Racing reached the final 16, eliminated by the great AC Milan.

Two years later, it played at the top of the table the whole year but only finished 9th in an exemplary season. That same year, the IMG group was chosen by the municipality to change the fate of the club and the players trained by the captain of the French champions in ’79, Jacky Duguépéroux, would write a new page in the history of Racing by taking the League Cup against Bordeaux.

A beautiful run in the UEFA Cup would follow, after qualifications against Glasgow Rangers and Liverpool, in the first round of the knockout stage, Racing beat Inter Milan 2-0 at Meinau, but fell 3-0 in the second leg.

Since, all the members of the club are rebuilding a future that all of Alsace hopes for, gorged with emotions to engrave again and again images of celebration in the heart of its supporters, like they saw on May 25th 2001 after the victory in the final of the French Cup against Amiens.

After a season in “purgatory” in 2001/2002, Racing immediately retook its place among the football elite in the Hexagon by finishing vice-champion of Ligue 2.

The 2002/2003 season, in which Racing would come to finish in an encouraging 13th place, would be marked by the withdrawal of the IMG group and the arrival of a new and ambitious group led by Egon Gindorf, who succeeded Patrick Proisy as president, and by Marc Keller, named General Director.

Placed under the title “recapture”, the 2003/2004 season needed to allow Racing to stabilize the club amongst the national elite and to win the favor of the Alsatian public once again.

Reference: Historique (http://www.rcstrasbourg.fr/club_historique.php) (in French)

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