Olympique Marseille (France)

Olympique de Marseille; often known locally as OM is one of the most prominent football clubs in France; having been formed in the Mediterranean port city of Marseilles on August 31st 1899.

The club was initially part of an organisation which was called Sporting Club, US Phocéenne and then Football Club de Marseille. Rugby union was the most important of several sports played by Olympique de Marseille until 1902 when football was taken up.

Olimpique had bigger competitors in the city in their early stages as they played games at Stade de l'Huveaune before the club took the initiative winning the local Championnat du Littoral competition in 1904.

OM quickly gained ground becoming a prominent national club as 29,000 fans turned up at Stade Pershing in Paris to see Marseilles defeat FC Sète to lift the Coupe de France for the first time in 1924 under Scottish coach Peter Farmer.

The final had moved to Colombes as ‘Les Phocéens’ lifted the trophy in 1926 against AS Valentigney and then again, the following year courtesy of a 3-0 victory against US Quevilly. French internationals Jules Dewaquez, Jean Boyer and Joseph Alcazar were OM stars of the day, as another Scot, Victor Gibson, led the side.

Rival club Stade Helvétique de Marseille had been crowned as champions of France three times in the amateur era. OM clinched their first title in 1928-29 when Club Français were defeated in the final before the competition entered professional status from 1932.

OM were members of the first Division 1; which was initially split into two groups. In 1935 the Coupe was won for a fourth time, as Stade Rennes were defeated. In 1936-37 the club were crowned as champions ahead of Sochaux on goal difference with József Eisenhoffer in charge of the team.

An extra time win over Metz at Parc des Princes secured another Coupe de France win in 1938 before a six triumph in the competition came in 1943 following a replay against Bordeaux at Colombes before popular forward Larbi Ben Barek joined the club.

OM had moved into the newly built Stade Vélodrome as a third league title was secured in 1947-48. The goals of Swedish striker Gunnar Andersson; widely acclaimed to be one of OM’s greatest players, saved his side from relegation in 1951-52.

Several head coaches had come and gone from the club in an unsuccessful attempt to restore former glories. The team were Coupe runners-up in 1954; going down 2-1 to OCG Nice under head coach Henri Roessler.

OM were relegated for the first time in 1958-59 before going back up to the top flight in 1961-62 under coach Lucien Troupel before he was replaced by Otto Glória the following season. The Brazilian couldn’t do enough to save his team from the drop.

A Division 2 runners-up spot in 1965-66 was enough to secure promotion for Mario Zatelli’s team under the presidency of Marcel Leclerc. Marseilles lifted the Coupe in 1969 with a 2-0 victory against Bordeaux.

The good times were back as Lucien Leduc took over the side mid-season as a fourth league title was secured in 1970-71 thanks to the goals of Josip Skoblar with the assistance of Roger Magnusson.

Georges Carnus and Bernard Bosquier were signed from Saint-Étienne as OM completed the league and cup double in 1971-72 as Zatelli returned for a third spell as head coach before the season’s end as Bastia were defeated in the Coupe final at Parc des Princes.

Leclerc was dismissed by the club after getting into an altercation over the number of foreign players permitted at each club. Brazilian World Cup winner Jairzinho was signed in 1974 but was not a success as the club continued hiring and firing coaches in rapid succession.

Olympique Lyonnais were defeated 2-0 in the Coupe final of 1976, with Jules Zvunka in charge of the team. A period without honours followed before Marseilles went back down to Division 2 in 1980-81 as three different coaches tried to stem the flow throughout the campaign.

Stalwart defender Marius Trésor who was with the club from 1972 to 1980 moved on as the side was rebuilt with local youngsters such as Éric Di Meco. Promotion with the Division 2 Group A title was secured in 1983-84 with Roland Gransart in charge of the team.

A couple of seasons of consolidation followed before local businessman Bernard Tapie became club president in April 1986 as Karl-Heinz Forster and Alain Giresse were signed at the start of an incredible reign of club ownership.

The team were losing finalists in both the 1986 and 1987 Coupe de France finals to Bordeaux with Žarko Olarević in charge of the first encounter before the appointment of Gérard Banide as head coach.

The goals of Jean-Pierre Papin fired OM to the league runners-up place in 1986-87 as the big signings began to pour in at Stade Vélodrome starting with Klaus Allofs and Abedi Pele and then Eric Cantona a year later with Gérard Gili leading the team.

Marseilles won a sixth league title in 1988-89 as the team began a period of domination of the French game. The double was completed with a Coupe win over AS Monaco. Further signings Chris Waddle, Enzo Francescoli, Didier Deschamps and Marcel Desailly arrived as the title was retained in 1989-90.

The 1990-91 season saw the arrival of Basile Boli to strengthen the team further as a third consecutive league title was won with Franz Beckenbauer having a spell as head coach before being succeeded by Raymond Goethals.

OM also went all the way to the final of the European Cup where they were defeated in a dreadfully dull final on penalties by Crvena Zvezda at Stadio San Nicola in Bari. Goethals moved on but was quickly re-appointed.

Papin continued to bang in the goals as Marseilles made it four Division 1 titles in a row in 1991-92 with Jean Fernandez having a spell in charge of the team before Goethals came back for a third go at the helm.

The 1992-93 season would end in triumph but controversy as Rudi Völler was added to the team. OM reached the Champions League final after seeing off Rangers in Group A. In the final a solitary goal from Boli saw off Milan at the Olympiastadion in Munich.

Other players to help in the triumph included Franck Sauzée, Fabien Barthez, Jocelyn Angloma, Alen Bokšić, Jean-Jacques Eydelie and the veteran local lad Di Meco who’d been there through from the second division days.

In domestic football OM also finished top of Division 1. However, their title would later be taken away. When the side lost their European Cup final in 1991 the team was depleted of two vital players due to injury. Tapie did not want a repeat.

Tapie told midfielder Eydelie to contact three players of Valenciennes who were to play Marseilles and offer them bribes to take it easy in the match, which OM went on to win 1-0 through a Bokšić goal to clinch the championship.

One of the bribed players; Christophe Robert, contacted a local magistrate a couple of weeks after the game and police unearthed F250,000 in cash in his auntie’s garden. Tapie claimed it was a loan to help Robert to set up a restaurant business.

OM general manager Jean-Pierre Bernès and Eydelie were arrested and banned. Tapie was ordered to resign as president of Marseille by the FFF and given a life ban from football. The team was relegated to Division 2 for the 1994-95 season.

Many big names moved on. Tony Cascarino was signed to bolster the attacking options. In 1995 the club filed for bankruptcy despite winning the title and remained in the second tier until they went up as Division 2 runners-up in 1995-96.

In March 1995 the trial into the bribery found that Tapie used the tactic five or six times each season. He was jailed for two years; which was later reduced to six months. Other guilty parties received prison or suspended sentences. Players also claimed that they took part in doping during Tapie’s reign.

Rolland Courbis was appointed as OM head coach for their return to Division 1 with cash being spent on new signings Fabrizio Ravanelli, Laurent Blanc, and Andreas Köpke. These were added to by Robert Pires, Florian Maurice, and Christophe Dugarry the following year.

OM finished as league runners-up in 1998-99 as well as going on a run all the way to the UEFA Cup final, where they lost 3-0 to Parma in Moscow’s Luzhniki Stadium. The quick turnaround in head coaches continued leading to a lack of stability.

Marseille narrowly averted relegation two seasons running at the turn of the millennium, which included a spell in charge of the team from Javier Clemente. The arrival of Alain Perrin saw an improvement, until he was replaced by José Anigo in January 2004.

Anigo led the side to the 2003-04 UEFA Cup final where they found Valencia too strong in a 2-0 win at the Ullevi in Gothenburg as Didier Drogba became the latest fans hero. Barthez returned in goal to add further cheer alongside the skills of Franck Ribéry.

Fernandez was back in charge as OM lost in the 2005-06 Coupe de France final to Paris Saint-Germain before Albert Emon led the team to second place in 2006-07 and a return to the Coupe final; which was lost on penalties to Sochaux.

The goals of Mamadou Niang and Djibril Cissé took OM to third place in the 2007-08 Ligue 1 campaign under Belgian coach Eric Gerets. This performance was backed up with a runner-up finish the following season before the return of former playing legend Deschamps as head coach.

Marseilles were crowned as French champions in 2009-10 as Niang continued to score while aided by Hatem Ben Arfa, Fabrice Abriel and Lucho González. The side won two consecutive Coupe de la Ligue finals and reached the last sixteen of the Champions League before going out to Manchester United.

Loïc Rémy top scored as OM finished runners-up in Ligue 1 in 2010-11 with keeper Steve Mandanda captaining the side and Mathieu Valbuena exciting the supporters. Élie Baup replaced Deschamps in July 2012, taking the side to second place as André-Pierre Gignac banged in the goals.

Anigo returned to replace the sacked Baup in December 2013 before the arrival of Marcelo Bielsa in May 2014. Dimitri Payet excited the fans at Stade Vélodrome which was undergoing reconstruction and enlargement ahead of Euro 2016.

Franck Passi became the latest incumbent of the head coach’s role in August 2015 after the resignations of Bielsa and then Míchel within a few weeks. The goals of Michy Batshuayi couldn’t lift the side in a disappointing season.

Bafétimbi Gomis captained a side led by Rudi Garcia before Payet returned for the 2017-18 season as Marseilles finished fourth. André Villas-Boas took over as head coach in May 2019 with Florian Thauvin continuing to exert his skills on the team.

OM finished the 2019-20 season as Ligue 1 runners-up after the COVID-19 pandemic forced its early abandonment. 

Olympique de Marseille will play in Ligue 1 in the 2020-21 season.

My visits

Friday 13^th October 2000

My Eurorail tour had been going as well as I had hoped. I arrived at Saint-Charles station the previous evening after two nights in both Madrid and Barcelona, to stay at the budget Hôtel Gambetta near to Réformés-Canebière for two nights.

I’d heard some pretty hairy stories from England fans about the city from the 1998 World Cup and consequent club sides visits, and I was quite naïve back in the day. I’d gone in a couple of bars near the station that freaked me and aided me to speed up my drinking.

I’d found refuge at Le Giulia, a tabac bar opposite the hotel; an establishment that had regular lotto games on the TV that you could have a go on. The staff and locals were friendly as I enjoyed a few beers and had a go on the games.

Despite being on a tight budget; having to cash traveller’s cheques at a bank each day before the days of the Euro, I thought this was a good idea to supplement my kitty. Yeah right!

The following morning, I headed to Stade Vélodrome hoping to get inside for a look. There was to be no entry despite plenty of workmen being about and the club didn’t do stadium tours. I bought an OM pin badge and a postcard, but that was my lot.

A wet and blustery day was spent with a trip up to Basilique Notre-Dame de la Garde after lunch at one of the restaurants on Quai du Port, partly to try and get local authenticity and to gain credence with my friend and colleague Alain Le Ker who used to regale me with tales of his temperamental national service in the French Navy.

The Bouillabaisse put a dint in my budget. I’m still not sure if I got the right one or if they just gave me any old rubbish from the bottom of the bed of the sea. I really needed a local with me. I was the only diner outside under a brolly, but I was determined to do it right!

It was an experience that would live with me ever since. OM played away to Paris Saint-Germain that evening, but I stayed in my room after spending up; hearing the shouts from the supporters bar a couple of doors down.

Like much of the tour I wish I’d have been a bit savvier and even undertaken it in the age of the Euro or the internet so that I could have planned better and got more out of it. However, it did make me determined to revisit many of the places I got a brief glimpse of.

Marseilles had something about it. An edge but a special culture. I loved the way the walls of the Vieux Port Metro station were decorated with stone and pebbles from the sea. There was definitely more, and I wanted to find out; albeit with a bit more advanced planning.

Olympique de Marseille 1 (Saturday 8th February 2020) Ligue 1 (att: 53,995)

My return to the city was long overdue. I’d been looking for a few games over my long weekend off work. The fixtures only come out in Ligue 1 a few weeks before the match, so I was relieved that the trip was still cost effective when the kick-offs were confirmed.

The adventure would incur an awful lot of not straightforward travel after Marseille, but it would be worth it. I just knew that the city had something about it that I hadn’t fully appreciated on my earlier visit.

Sure enough, I wasn’t to be disappointed. My early flight from Gatwick had run to time before I enjoyed an early afternoon of sightseeing and a couple of beers before heading to the first half of a fourth tier local derby.

My experiences and report of US Marseille Endoume Catalans v Olympique de Marseille II can be read about here. Just before the interval of the game I replicated my movements on the number 44 bus back to Boulevard Michelet proudly wearing my OM pin badge from 2000.

The crowds were busy on the approach to the Orange Vélodrome, as the stadium was named under a sponsorship deal. The area outside was now surrounded by a smart shopping and retail complex.

The redevelopment of the arena meant a climb up some steps to reach the entrances, which in turn meant that the lower tier was below ground level once inside. There had been inobtrusive checks for tickets and body searches before the electronic turnstiles; a little like New White Hart Lane at Tottenham.

I’d bought my €20 ticket online and printed it at home for a seat towards the corner of Tribune Jean Bouin down the side where the main facilities were located. However, the stand was by no means full and the stewards apparently oblivious to patrons moving to better positions.

It really was a jaw dropping first sight when through the vomitory and in view of the pitch, with its steep seating and high sides covered by a remarkable roof, which created superb acoustics. Every seat had an unobstructed view of the pitch.

You can view the arrival of the teams here, along with the crowd reaction in the aftermath of the goal. The excitement of the home fans was very nearly quelled within thirty seconds when Wesley Said put through Aaron Leya Iseka for Toulouse.

Keeper Steve Mandanda was quickly out to force the forward wide, meaning he could only hit the post from a narrow angle. Kouadio Kone had a shot blocked before Mandanda saved from Quentin Boisgard as the visitors continued to press.

Toulouse came into the game in the relegation places, with OM in second spot. The form book was in danger of being reversed as Boisgard fired over and then Ruben Gabrielsen headed wide.

The home fans at either end of the stadium continued their impressive noise throughout. It was like a competition between the two groups, although they joined together on occasions. It was an experience I was really pleased I’d made the effort for.

Issiaga Sylla set up Said who shot narrowly wide before the hosts showed some attacking intent before the interval. Álvaro González headed over and Jordan Amavi had an effort blocked before a shot from Nemanja Radonjic was saved low down by sub goalie Baptiste Reynet.

At the break I wandered around the stand before taking up a seat bang on the halfway line but up in the rafters. The food and drink facilities were nothing to write home about, so I decided to leave it until after the game for refreshments.

André Villas-Boas kept his side in after the break. I can imagine he’d given them a stern talking to. His side came out looking livelier as an effort from González was just too high before OM took the lead with a moment of brilliance.

Some clever interplay around the edge of the box saw Bouna Sarr slip the ball to Dimitri Payet who fired in a superb dipping shot over Reynet and into the net. The Vélodrome erupted in noise as the scorer’s name was bellowed out.

Boubacar Kamara shot high and wide for OM before Payet set up Saif-Eddine Khaoui whose shot was saved with fifteen minutes remaining. Toulouse had not given up on grabbing something from the game and were unlucky not to secure at least a point.

Mandanda pulled off a world class save to keep out an Iseka volley from Steven Moreira’s right wing cross. Payet then missed a golden opportunity to double the lead on the break. He’d been sent through on goal by a pass from Morgan Sanson but he steered his effort wide of the post.

It had been a fine end to a decent enough game. The home fans were certainly happy enough. I descended down hundreds of steps to find the exit taped off at the bottom. Fortunately, I was soon among the rest of the crowd heading for the Metro as quickly as possible.

I had been concerned at possible queuing as I wanted to make the most of my time. I was on a train within a few minutes. They had a clever system in place with only half the length of the platform open at Rond Point du Prado.

The reverse action was used at the previous stop; Ste Marguerite Dromel, which served the opposite side of the stadium. This meant that half of each train was designated to each station. A simple but clever solution to crowd management I thought.

Within twenty minutes of leaving I was collecting my bag from left luggage at Saint-Charles station meaning I had the best part of three hours before my night bus to Milan. I grabbed some food at McDonalds before heading off for some exploration.

It would have been remiss for me not to have a drink in Le Giulia, just for old times sake. The supporters bar on Allée Léon Gambetta remained closed. I had a beer further down at a small establishment containing a few happy but abrasive OM fans.

I didn’t feel unsafe, but not comfortable either. A walk down La Canebière towards Vieux Port seemed a sensible option. The bars and restaurants were busy with Saturday evening revellers. I wanted somewhere nice but not mobbed.

Le Phonographe on Cours Honoré d'Estienne d'Orves; a couple of lanes behind the waterfront was just what the doctor ordered. Nice beer in a chic bar with decent chill out music. The couple serving the bar seemed most sensual and looking forward to closing time together.

After a few glasses I returned to the station via the Metro. My Flixbus service was running late and the journey was a bit cramped, but I got a seat in the corner of the back seat and nestled down after a long but most enjoyable day out.

I had been correct. Marseille was a great city; albeit a bit shabby in places. I was so glad that I’d given it a second go; but I wouldn’t even consider going anywhere near if the England team or a club side was visiting. Single or small group travel was certainly a wiser option!