Ligue 1, officially known as Ligue 1 McDonald's for sponsorship reasons, is a French professional league for men's association football clubs. At the top of the French football league system, it is the country's primary football competition. Administrated by the Ligue de Football Professionnel, Ligue 1 is contested by 20 clubs and operates on a system of promotion and relegation from and to Ligue 2.
Seasons run from August to May. Clubs play two matches against each of the other teams in the league – one home and one away – totalling to 38 matches over the course of the season. Most games are played on Saturdays and Sundays, with a few games played during weekday evenings. Play is regularly suspended the last weekend before Christmas for two weeks before returning in the second week of January. As of 2021, Ligue 1 is one of the top national leagues, ranked fifth in Europe, behind England's Premier League, Spain's La Liga, Italy's Serie A and Germany's Bundesliga.
Ligue 1 was inaugurated on 11 September 1932 under the name National before switching to Division 1 after a year of existence. It continued to operate under that name until 2002, when it adopted its current name. AS Saint-Étienne is the most successful club with ten league titles in France while Olympique Lyonnais is the club that has won the most consecutive titles (seven between 2002 and 2008). With the presence of 71 seasons in Ligue 1, Olympique de Marseille hold the record for most seasons among the elite, while Paris Saint-Germain hold the league record for longevity with 47 consecutive seasons (from 1974 to present). FC Nantes is the team with the most consecutive unbeaten streak in a single season (32 matches) and have the least number of defeats (1 match) in the 1994/95 season. In addition, FC Nantes also holds the record for the longest time without losing at home with 92 matches from May 1976 to April 1981.
The current champions are Lille, who won in the 2020–21 season. The league has been won on multiple occasions by foreign-based club AS Monaco, the presence of which within the league makes it a cross-border competition.
Clubs[]
2023-24 season teams[]
| Club | Location | Stadium |
|---|---|---|
| Brest | Brest | Stade Francis-Le Blé |
| Clermont | Clermont-Ferrand | Stade Gabriel Montpied |
| Le Havre | Le Havre | Stade Océane |
| Lens | Lens | Stade Bollaert-Delelis |
| Lille | Villeneuve-d'Ascq | Decathlon Arena – Stade Pierre-Mauroy |
| Lorient | Lorient | Stade du Moustoir |
| Lyon | Décines-Charpieu | Groupama Stadium |
| Marseille | Marseille | Orange Vélodrome |
| Metz | Longeville-lès-Metz | Stade Saint-Symphorien |
| Monaco | Monaco (Fontvieille) | Stade Louis II |
| Montpellier | Montpellier | Stade de la Mosson |
| Nantes | Nantes | Stade de la Beaujoire |
| Nice | Nice | Allianz Riviera |
| Paris Saint-Germain | Paris (16th arrondissement) | Parc des Princes |
| Reims | Reims | Stade Auguste Delaune |
| Rennes | Rennes | Roazhon Park |
| Strasbourg | Strasbourg | Stade de la Meinau |
| Toulouse | Toulouse | Stadium Municipal |
Relegated teams[]
| Club | Location | Stadium |
|---|---|---|
| Aix-en-Provence | Aix-en-Provence | Stade Georges Carcassonne |
| Ajaccio | Ajaccio | Stade François Coty |
| Alès | Alès | Stade Pierre Pibarot |
| Amiens | Amiens | Stade de la Licorne |
| Angers | Angers | Stade Raymond Kopa |
| Angoulême | Angoulême | Stade Camille-Lebon |
| Antibes | Antibes | Stade du Fort Carré |
| AS Nancy | Tomblaine | Stade Marcel Picot |
| Auxerre | Auxerre | Stade de l'Abbé-Deschamps |
| Avignon | Avignon | Parc des Sports |
| Bastia | Bastia | Stade Armand-Cesari |
| Bordeaux | Bordeaux | Matmut Atlantique |
| Boulogne | Boulogne-sur-Mer | Stade de la Libération |
| Caen | Caen | Stade Michel d'Ornano |
| Cannes | Cannes | Stade Pierre de COubertin |
| Châteauroux | Châteauroux | Stade Gaston Petit |
| Clermont | Clermont-Ferrand | Stade Gabriel Montpied |
| Colmar | Colmar | Colmar Stadium |
| Dijon | Dijon | Stade Gaston Gérard |
| Évian | Thonon-les-Bains | Stade Joseph-Moynat |
| Grenoble | Grenoble | Stade de Alpes |
| Gueugnon | Gueugnon | Stade Jean Laville |
| Guingamp | Guingamp | Stade de Roudourou |
| Hyères | Hyères | Stade Perruc |
| Istres | Istres | Stade Parsemain |
| Laval | Laval | Stade Francis Le Basser |
| Le Mans | Le Mans | MMArena |
| Martigues | Martigues | Stade Francis Turcan |
| Mulhouse | Mulhouse | Stade de l'Ill |
| Nîmes | Nîmes | Stade de Antonins |
| Niort | Niort | Stade René Gaillard |
| Paris FC | Paris (13th arrondissement) | Stade Sébastien Charléty |
| Paris-Charenton | Charenton-le-Pont | Stade Henri Guérin |
| Maisons-Alfort | Stade Charentonneau | |
| Racing Paris | Colombes | Stade Yves-du-Manoir |
| Red Star | Saint-Ouen-sur-Seine | Stade Bauer |
| Rouen | Rouen | Stade Robert Diochon |
| Saint-Étienne | Saint-Étienne | Stade Geoffroy-Guichard |
| Sedan | Sedan | Stade Louis Dugauguez |
| Sochaux | Montbéliard | Stade Auguste Bonal |
| Stade Français | Vaucresson | Haras Lupin |
| Tours | Tours | Stade de la Vallée du Cher |
| Troyes | Troyes | Stade de l'Aube |
| Valenciennes | Valenciennes | Stade du Hainaut |
Broadcasters[]
| Country | Broadcaster(s) |
|---|---|
| France | |
| France | DAZN, beIN Sports |
| Worldwide | |
| International (except Europe) | TV5Monde |
| Africa | |
| Sub-Saharan Africa | Canal+ |
| Angola Mozambique |
ZAP |
| Kenya Malawi Tanzania Uganda Zimbabwe |
Azam TV |
| Americas | |
| Brazil Caribbean Central America Mexico South America |
ESPN |
| Canada | beIN Sports, OneSoccer |
| Suriname | ABC, SCCN, STVS |
| United States | beIN Sports |
| Asia-Pacific | |
| Central Asia | Setanta Sports |
| Indian subcontinent | VH1, Voot |
| Australia Brunei Cambodia Hong Kong Indonesia Laos Malaysia New Zealand Philippines Singapore Thailand |
beIN Sports |
| China | Migu, CCTV |
| Macau | Macau Cable TV |
| South Korea | SBS Sports |
| Tajikistan | Varzish TV, Futbol TV |
| Vietnam | VTV Cab |
| Europe | |
| Albania | SuperSport |
| Armenia | Setanta Sports, Vivaro Sports |
| Azerbaijan Belarus Georgia Moldova |
Setanta Sports |
| Austria Germany |
DAZN |
| Belgium | Eleven Sports, Play Sports, VOO Sport World |
| Bosnia and Herzegovina Croatia Montenegro North Macedonia Serbia Slovenia |
Arena Sport |
| Bulgaria | Diema Sport |
| Cyprus Greece |
Nova Sports |
| Czech Republic Slovakia |
Nova Sport |
| Estonia Latvia Lithuania |
Setanta Sports, TV3 Sport |
| Hungary | Arena4 |
| Italy San Marino |
Sky Sport |
| Kosovo | ArtSport, K Sport |
| Liechtenstein | Blue Sport |
| Luxembourg | Eleven Sports, VOO Sport World |
| Netherlands | Ziggo Sport |
| Norway | Amedia |
| Poland | Eleven Sports, Canal+ |
| Portugal | Eleven Sports |
| Romania | Digi Sport, Prima Sport, Orange Sport |
| Spain Andorra |
Eurosport |
| Sweden | Expressen |
| Switzerland | Blue Sport, Canal+ |
| Turkey | beIN Sports |
| Ukraine | MEGOGO |
| United Kingdom Ireland |
BT Sport |
| Middle East and North Africa | |
| Middle East and North Africa | beIN Sports |
| Israel | Sport 5 |