Football club
Football Club Istres Ouest Provence (French pronunciation: [istʁ]; commonly referred to as simply Istres) is a French association football club based in Istres. The club was formed in 1920 and currently play their home matches at the Stade Parsemain in Fos-sur-Mer, a commune in the Arrondissement of Istres.
History
FC Istres was founded in 1920 by Édouard Guizonnier as SS Istréenne. In 1969, SS Istréenne was merged into the more general sports club Istres Sports, who chose to keep Istréenne's distinctive purple and black colours. In 1977 the club made young entrepreneur Michel Aviet the club's president and ex-Yugoslav goalkeeper Georges Korac the club's manager. During the Aviet-Korac years, the club advanced from France's lower amateur regional divisions all the way up to Ligue 2.
In the 2004–05 season, the club reached Ligue 1 for the first time in their history but finished last and were immediately relegated to Ligue 2 the following year. The club returned to Ligue 2 for the 2009–10 season after winning the Championnat National 2008–09. They were joined by Laval and Arles Avignon. but on the 23 June, the DNCG ruled that AC Arles-Avignon would not be allowed to play in Ligue 2 despite their promotion from the Championnat National, due to irregularities in the club's financial accounts and management.[1] On 3 July, following an appeal, the DNCG reversed its decision reinstating Arles' Ligue 2 status.[2] The club got relegated from Ligue 2 in 2013–14 season after a 2–4 defeat to Dijon FCO,[3] but were readmitted because Luzenac were denied promotion because they had a inadequate stadium. But on the 11th of July 2014, the ruling against Valenciennes FC was revoked and FC Istres were relegated again.
In July 2015, the club was relegated to the 7th tier for financial reasons, but in 2018, they were promoted to the 2018-19 Championnat National 3.
Naming history
- SS Istréenne (1920–1969)
- Istres Sports (1969–1990)
- FC Istres Ville Nouvelle (1990–2004)
Players
Current squad
Updated as of 17 May 2022. None of the players have a fixed/assigned shirt number by the club.
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
Notable former players
For a list of former FC Istres players, see below
Rivalries
The club has two major rivalries. First is with neighbours FC Martigues, with many encounters over the years. The second is the Provence derby against AC Arles-Avignon.[4]
