It's a crossover, a mixture of worlds that we're not really used to seeing: a rugby club is going to take over a football stadium.
This Thursday, Racing 92, a legendary rugby team from the Paris region, announced that it will play two of its end-of-season top-14 matches in the Abbé-Deschamps stadium, occupied since 1918 by footballers. of AJ Auxerre.
These two matches will be the 23rd day of the Top 14, the weekend of May 11-12 against Aviron Bayonnais, and the 25th day, the weekend of June 1-2 against Section Paloise.
Two matches which take place around the last match scheduled at home for AJA in the Ligue 2 regular season, the weekend of May 18 against Concarneau.
In a press release published Thursday, the
Racingmen
were pleased to be able to play in “the stronghold of this legendary French football club”.
“This initiative reinforces the club’s desire to share the spirit of professional rugby with communities across France,” we read.
⚽️ @AJA x R92 🏉
R92 and AJA are delighted to announce the organization of 2 Top 14 matches which will be held at the emblematic Abbé Deschamps stadium in Auxerre!
R92 v AB 🗓️ 11-12/05
R92 v SP 🗓️ 01-02/06
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https://t.co/R7lOfKoUxl#RacingFamily pic.twitter.com/C3PWgABFRh
— Racing 92 (@racing92) January 18, 2024
“We are delighted to bring the Top 14 competition to Auxerre and to offer sports fans in the region an exceptional opportunity to live the Racing 92 experience up close,” said Laurent Travers, President of Racing. .
The Stade de l'Abbé Deschamps is a place steeped in history and we are convinced that this will add a unique dimension to the two upcoming confrontations.
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Racing had already played at Bollaert and at the Océane stadium
Balptiste Malherbe, the president of AJ Auxerre, prided himself on this partnership: “The Stade Abbé Deschamps is a mecca for sport.
After having hosted the French Football teams on several occasions (twice the men in 1995 and 2007 and twice the women in 2016 and 2019) and of course the AJA matches for more than 105 years, we are delighted to welcome Racing 92 to our stadium and bring fans to two new sporting events on our territory this year.
Welcome to our friends from Racing 92 and our rugby cousins.
Long live sport and proud to be from Auxerre!
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If the meeting of the two worlds and stadium exchanges are not commonplace, they do happen from time to time.
Latest example: US Revel, an amateur club which took over the Castres Olympique stadium for its Coupe de France match against PSG.
In recent seasons, Racing itself has played matches at the Bollaert stadium in Lens or at the Océane stadium in Le Havre.
We were also able to see Racing Toulon play several matches at the Marseille Vélodrome, Aviron Bayonnais play on the Anoeta pitch, the Real Sociedad stadium in Spain, or even UBB at Matmut Atlantique, the Girondins stadium from Bordeaux.