Derby du Languedoc | |
Other Names: | Languedoc Derby |
Team1: | Montpellier |
Team2: | Nîmes |
City Or Region: | Languedoc, France |
First Contested: | 5 September 1937 |
Most Wins: | Nîmes (18) |
Mostrecent: | Nîmes 1–1 Montpellier Ligue 1 (14 March 2021) |
The Derby du Languedoc is a football match contested between French clubs Nîmes Olympique and Montpellier HSC.[1] [2] [3] The name of the derby derives from the fact that Nîmes and Montpellier are the two major clubs in France that are located in the former region of Languedoc-Roussillon.
The distance between the two cities (about fifty kilometers) accentuates the rivalry. Nîmes Olympique was considered the best club in the region from the 1950s until the early 1980s. This leadership is challenged by the rise of Montpellier HSC in the 1970s. The club gradually weakens Nîmes by recovering many important players like Louis Landi, Michel Mézy or the coach Kader Firoud.
Player | Montpellier career | Nîmes career | |||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Span | Apps | Goals | Span | Apps | Goals | ||
Michel Mézy | 1979-1982 | 78 | 1 | 1965-1975, 1977-1979 | 319 | 20 | |
Laurent Blanc | 1983-1991 | 243 | 76 | 1992-1993 | 29 | 1 | |
Eric Cantona | 1989-1990 | 33 | 10 | 1991 | 16 | 2 | |
Omar Belbey | 2000-2002 | 43 | 1 | 1995-2000 | 113 | 1 | |
Théo Sainte-Luce | 2022–present | 9 | 1 | 2019-2022 | 34 | 2 | |
Téji Savanier | 2019–present | 70 | 17 | 2015-2019 | 124 | 21 |