Paris FC · History

Paris Football Club is a French football club based in Paris, founded on 1 August 1969 on the initiative of the French Football Federation, which wanted to give the capital a major professional club after the city's historic sides had given up professional status in the 1960s. Its badge combines the Eiffel Tower with the ship from the coat of arms of Paris, and since the 2025-26 season the club has competed in Ligue 1, the top flight of French football, after nearly half a century away from the elite.

A club created for the capital and the PSG split

The project began in 1969 and in 1970 merged with Stade Saint-Germain to create Paris Saint-Germain. The arrangement did not last: the split became official on 1 June 1972, in a division of assets that looks paradoxical today. Paris FC kept the first-division place and the capital's name, while Paris Saint-Germain was sent down to the third tier to rebuild from the bottom. The two clubs then travelled in opposite directions: PSG grew into the giant of French football, and Paris FC spent decades cast as the city's second club, watching from the lower divisions as its former partner collected French titles and, eventually, the resources of a global superclub.

Decades in the lift and an elusive cup run

After the separation, Paris FC played in the first division in 1972-73, 1973-74 and 1978-79, with the Parc des Princes as its home, before settling into the lower divisions for a very long spell in the wilderness. It has never won a national championship. Its best run in the Coupe de France is the 1980 semi-final, and among its more recent marks is fourth place in Ligue 2 in 2018-19, a season in which it also had the division's best defence, a reminder that even in the wilderness the club was capable of building well-organised, competitive teams. For years the club alternated between the second and third tiers on a modest budget, sustained by the presidency of Pierre Ferracci and by a loyal but small fanbase in a city devoted to PSG.

Colours, badge and grounds

Paris FC's visual identity has shifted several times: orange after the 1972 split, sky blue in the late 1970s and through the 1980s, and from the 2000s the dark navy blue that identifies it today. As for venues, after its years at the Parc des Princes the club settled at the Stade Charléty in 2007, in the 13th arrondissement, its home for almost two decades and the ground on which it built the side that finally climbed back to the top flight. In February 2025 it reached an agreement with rugby club Stade Français to move to the Stade Jean-Bouin, with a capacity of 20,000, from the 2025-26 season onwards.

The ownership revolution: Arnault and Red Bull

The decisive turn came in late 2024, when the Arnault family took control of the club through its holding company Agache Sport with 52.4% of the shares. Long-standing president Pierre Ferracci retained 29.8%, while Red Bull —also present at clubs such as RB Leipzig— came in with 10.6% and BRI Sports Holdings with 7.2%. The deal moved the second club of Paris onto an entirely different financial and sporting scale, with an explicit plan to establish itself in the elite and to compete for media space with its neighbour at the Parc des Princes.

Back in the top flight and two historic wins

On 2 May 2025, Paris FC confirmed promotion to Ligue 1, 46 years after its previous appearance in the top division. The return, in 2025-26, was bumpy but memorable. The team flirted with relegation, changed coach —Stéphane Gilli was dismissed on 22 February 2026 and replaced by Antoine Kombouaré— and eventually stayed up comfortably enough to finish eleventh. Along the way it produced the two most celebrated nights of its recent history: it knocked Paris Saint-Germain out of the Coupe de France in the round of 32 with a 1-0 win at the Parc des Princes (Jonathan Ikoné, 74th minute), and beat them again 2-1 on matchday 34 of Ligue 1, with a Gory brace.

The women's section

Paris FC also runs a strong women's structure. In 2017 it absorbed the historic FCF Juvisy, one of the founding clubs of French women's football, which took the club straight into the national elite. That decision has made the women's section one of the hallmarks of the project and a route of growth running parallel to the men's first team, with its own supporters and its own competitive calendar, in a country where the domestic competition has historically been dominated by Olympique Lyonnais and Paris Saint-Germain.