Auxerre

The Stade de l'Abbe Deschamps is the traditional home of AJ Auxerre, located on Route de Vaux in Auxerre, the capital of the Yonne department in Burgundy. The stadium holds 18,541 spectators and has been Auxerre's home since 1918, making it one of the longest-serving professional football grounds in France. Named after Abbe Louis Deschamps, a local Catholic priest who was an early patron and supporter of the club in its formative years, the ground sits beside the Yonne river on the edge of the city and has been progressively developed across the decades, with a distinctive covered main stand that has defined the stadium's character across generations of supporters.

AJ Auxerre are one of French football's most remarkable stories, having achieved extraordinary success relative to the size of their city under the legendary coach Guy Roux, who managed the club for an extraordinary 44 years between 1961 and 2005 with a brief interruption. Under Roux, Auxerre won the Ligue 1 title in 1996 and the Coupe de France five times, and developed an extraordinary succession of world-class players including Eric Cantona, Laurent Blanc, Basile Boli, Djibril Cisse, Stephane Guivarc'h, and many others who were recruited young and developed before being sold for substantial profits. This model of provincial excellence made Auxerre one of football's most admired clubs globally.

The Stade de l'Abbe Deschamps has hosted Champions League group stage football on multiple occasions during Auxerre's European era, welcoming elite clubs from across the continent to the Burgundy wine capital. After years in Ligue 2 following Guy Roux's final departure and a period of financial challenge, Auxerre returned to Ligue 1 in 2022 under a new ownership regime and returned the club to the top flight after an extended absence. The stadium's renovation is a priority for the club's redevelopment plans. The beautiful medieval old town of Auxerre, with its Gothic cathedral overlooking the Yonne river, provides one of French provincial football's most picturesque settings.