Amiens Sporting Club (French pronunciation:[amjɛ̃]; commonly referred to as Amiens SC or simply Amiens) is a French association football club based in the northern city of Amiens in the Hauts-de-France region. The club was formed in 1901 and play in Ligue 2, the second division of French football. The club plays its home matches at the Stade de la Licorne located within the city. The 2017–18Ligue 1 season was the first in the club's 116-year history, where they finished in 13th place to secure a position in Ligue 1 for the following year.
History
Amiens Athlétic Club (AAC) was set up in 1901 by a group of players from the Association du Lycée d'Amiens, French schoolboy champions in 1902, 1903, and 1904. AAC crushed its first opponents, Saint-Quentin, 13–0 a few months after its creation. In April 1902, the Comité de Picardie de l'U.S.F.S.A was established by the then-president of the AAC (Henri-Frédéric Petit). AAC dominated the early USFSA league for the first 12 seasons. In 1909, the club got a new ground, at the Henry Daussy Park, allowing an attendance of more than 1,000.
In 1933, the club got its first professional section, later abandoned in 1952, before becoming professional again in 1993. Since the early days, AAC has undergone two name changes: In 1961, to Sporting Club d'Amiens, and in 1989, as Amiens Sporting Club. Amiens played in Ligue 2 between 2001 and 2009.
The team made a return to the second tier of French football for the 2016–17 season, after finishing 3rd in the Championnat National. Their first season back in Ligue 2 was the most successful ever, as they finished runners-up and were promoted to top-tier Ligue 1 for the first time ever. It was a dramatic promotion, too, as they would have dropped out of the promotion places but for a last-gasp winning goal in the final game against Reims.[1][2] Amiens first season in Ligue 1 ended in survival with a comfortable 13th-placed finish on the table.[3]
In the 2018–19 season, Amiens finished in 15th place on the table and secured their survival after a 2–1 victory over already relegated EA Guingamp.[4]
Despite this, during the 2019–20 season with just 10 games to play, the side sat in 19th position having slipped down the table after a modest start, sitting just 4 points behind 18th placed Nîmes. The LFP suspended Ligue 1 and Ligue 2 indefinitely as a result of the coronavirus outbreak, and on 30 April 2020, the league title was awarded to Paris Saint-Germain and thus the bottom two placed teams, Amiens and Toulouse were automatically relegated to Ligue 2 for the 2020–21 season.[5]
Below are the notable former players who have represented Amiens and its predecessors in league and international competition since the club's foundation in 1901. To appear in the section below, a player must have played in at least 80 official matches for the club.
