Pau FC

Since the Belle Époque, football had to play second fiddle to basketball and especially rugby union in Pau. Nowadays, the popularity of both Pau's rugby union and basketball clubs – Section Paloise and Élan Béarnais, respectively – remains greater than that of Pau FC.[1][2]

Historically and culturally, rugby was probably closer to the values of the place (Gascony), replacing the Béarnese and Basque rural sports in the hearts of the people of Béarn and Gascony.[3]

In spite of the strong English and British community in Pau during the Belle Époque, football was rather to take hold in Béarn, contrary to what happened in Northern France. However, at the end of the 19th century and after the Battle of the Pyrenees, wealthy Europeans, and especially the English, flocked to Pau and the Basque coast in large numbers. These wealthy tourists made Pau one of the leading winter destinations for thermal tourism, to take advantage of the curative virtues of the Béarn climate and the Pyrenean waters. As early as 1826, the English wintering in Pau had created the English Club of Pau, an association of notables discussing the current events in the city, while practising golf and horse riding. This Cercle Anglais still exists today in its premises at the Villa Lawrence. Thus, despite the very strong British and English historical presence in Pau, especially during the Belle Époque, since the troops of General Wellington remained posted in Pau after his defeat at the Battle of Orthez (1814), football arrived relatively late compared to other French regions.[4][5]

At that time, many rich American and English people flocked to Pau to enjoy the healing virtues of the Pau climate and Pyrenean waters, attracted by Dr. Alexander Taylor and his essay on medicine, "On the Curative Influence of the Climate of Pau, and the Mineral Waters of the Pyrenees On Diseases" which was hugely successful in England at the time.[6][3] James Gordon Benett was a regular visitor to the Boulevard des Pyrénées.[7] These expatriates, including Henry Russell's father, launched the fashion of Pyreneism and also regularly attended Billère's golf course. Thus, in November 1856, Major Pontifex, Colonels Anstruther and Hutchinson, Archdeacon Sapte and Lord Hamilton formally founded in Pau the first continental golf course in France and Europe, outside of the British Isles, the Pau Golf Club.[8][9]

Patrice O'Quin (FR), of Irish descent became mayor of Pau in 1860. In the region in the nineteenth century, a Scotsman called J. J. Shearer contributed to the establishment of rugby in Bordeaux and Welshman Owen Roe to rowing and rugby in Bayonne.[10] At the beginning of the 20th century, however, formal teams appeared in Béarn and French Basque Country under the patronage of the parishes of the districts of towns and villages. A first championship was organized by the Pyrenean Union, local body of the Gymnastics and Sports Federation of the patronages of France (FGSPF). Ten patronages participate in this original edition: seven located around Bayonne and three patronages of the region of Pau: Alerte de Ségure (patronage of the Lycée which would later be renamed Louis-Barthou Pau), FA Bourbaki of Pau and Avenir Salisien.[11]

Football has officially been practiced in Pau since 1902 and the first season of Football at the JAB Pau. This club, from the Saint Martin patronage, has trained many professional players like Jean-Michel Larqué, Jean-François Larios or Dominique Vésir. Like many other football clubs in South West France and Béarn, this club is originally a Catholic patronage. In 1904 took place the first season of the Football Association Bourbaki, whose colors are gray and purple. This patronage was founded in 1888 by the abbot Lafourcade, of the parish Saint-Jacques de Pau. The patronage is named after Charles-Denis Bourbaki, French general born in Pau in 1816 and known to have commanded the Armée de l'Est during the War of 1870.[12]

Tom Potter à Pau en 1912.

The adoption of football in Béarn has been quite late in comparison with the rest of France. However, rugby in Pau arrived much earlier, thanks to the numerous British expatriates that the city welcomed during Belle Époque.[13] Indeed, along with Bordeaux, Pau is the second city outside Paris to welcome rugby.[14] As early as 1890, the Coquelicots de Pau played friendly matches against the Montagnards of Bayonne and the Pyrenean of Tarbes. The first rugby club was the Stade Palois, founded in 1899. Meanwhile, the very oldest golf course in Europe had been established in 1856 in Pau. From around 1830 to the World War I, many English expatriates were headed for the Bearnese capital, and the city became "la ville Anglaise".[15]

The linguistic imperialism imposed on the Bearnese people by the French Third Republic, reflected in the policy of forced francization, provoked a movement in defence of the Béarnese language (see Linguicide and Vergonha) in this former independent state, historically a precursor of modern democracy.[16]

On 16 January 2020, Pau eliminated Ligue 1 side Bordeaux from the Coupe de France following a 3–2 victory.[17][18] Les Capbourruts went on to face national champions Paris Saint-Germain in the round of 16 of the cup, losing 2–0. Pau registered their highest attendance ever that day, with 16,707 persons witnessing the Parisian victory.[19]

When the 2019–20 Championnat National season was prematurely ended due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Pau were top of the table, and were declared promoted to Ligue 2 by the FFF executive committee.[20] In the 2020–21 season, the club placed fourteenth in Ligue 2.[21]

1920: Foundation of Bleuets Notre-Dame de Pau.

1923: First Football season at Bleuets Notre-Dame de Pau.

1951: French Champion – youth team

1956: Reached the top level of the French South-West Regional football league.

1958: Champion of the French South-West Regional football league. Promotion to the third tier of French football.

1959: Split of Football Club de Pau and Bleuets de Notre-Dame de Pau.

1995: The club went to administration, reformed, changed their name to Pau football Club and were relegated to the fourth tier of French football.

1998: Pau football Club is champion of the Group C of the Championnat de France Amateur groupe C and are promoted to the Championnat National. The club also reached the round of 16 of the Coupe de France, which they lost 2–0 to Paris Saint-Germain.

2008: Relegation to Championnat de France Amateur.

2016: Promotion to the Championnat National.

2020: Promotion to Ligue 2.

• Pau Pyrenees Region[24]
• Baily's Magazine of Sports & Pastimes, Volume 85[25]
• Selling the Yellow Jersey: The Tour de France in the Global [26]
• Dine, Philip (1 July 2001). French Rugby Football: A Cultural History. Bloomsbury Publishing. ISBN 978-1-84788-032-1[27]
• Praviel, Armand (1927). Biarritz, Pau and the Basque Country. Medici society.[28]
• Lowe, Benjamin; Kanin, David B.; Strenk, Andrew (1978). Sport and International Relations. Stipes Publishing Company. ISBN 978-0-87563-162-2.[29]