FC Metz

Football Club de Metz, commonly referred to as FC Metz or simply Metz (mɛs), is a French association football club based in Metz, Lorraine. The club was formed in 1932 and plays in Ligue 1, the first division in the French football league system, for the 2023–24 season after having been promoted as Ligue 2 runners-up for the 2022–23 season. They play their home matches at Stade Saint-Symphorien located within the city. The team is currently managed by László Bölöni. Despite never winning the top flight, they have won the Coupe de France twice and the Coupe de la Ligue twice. FC Metz was founded in 1932 by the amalgamation of two amateur athletic clubs, and shortly thereafter became a professional team; it is one of the oldest professional football teams in France. Its roots trace back further, to the SpVgg Metz club, formed in 1905 when the city of Metz was part of the German Empire. SpVgg played in the tier-one Westkreis-Liga for a season in 1913–14, before the outbreak of the First World War stopped all play. Some players of this club were part of the Cercle Athlétique Messin in 1919, which went on to become FC Metz in 1932. Messin was a leading club in the Division d'Honneur – Lorraine, taking out league titles in 1920, 1921, 1922, 1924, 1926, 1927, 1929 and 1931. The club played in the French second division north from 1933, winning the league in 1935 and earning promotion to Ligue 1 for the first time. The team became a mid-table side in the first division until the outbreak of the war interfered with play once more. FCM did not take part in the top-tier regional competitions in 1939–40. During World War II, the Moselle département being annexed by Germany, the club had to play under the Germanised name of FV Metz in the Gauliga Westmark. In the three completed seasons of this league from 1941 to 1944, the club finished runners-up each year. Despite the city of Metz being retaken by allied forces in autumn 1944, the club did not take part in French league football in 1944–45 but returned to Ligue 1 in 1945–46, to come 17th out of 18 clubs.