Editing OGC Nice (section)

== History ==
{{See also|OGC Nice in European football}}
Gymnaste Club 'Azur was founded in the residential district of Les Baumettes on 9 July 1904 under the name '''Gymnaste Club'''. The club was founded by Marquis de Massingy d'Auzac, who served as president of the ''Fédération Sportive des Alpes-Maritimes'' ({{lit|[[Alpes-Maritimes]] Sporting Federation}}). Akin to its name, the club primarily focused on the sports of gymnastics and athletics. On 6 July 1908, in an effort to remain affiliated with the FSAM and also join the amateur federation [[Union des Sociétés Françaises de Sports Athlétiques|USFSA]], the head of French football at the time, ''Gymnaste Club de Nice'' split into two sections with the new section of the club being named ''Gymnastes Amateurs Club de Nice''. The new section spawned a football club and, after two seasons, the two clubs merged. On 20 September 1919, Nice merged with the local club ''Gallia Football Athlétic Club'' and, subsequently, adopted the club's red and black combination. In 1920, the club was playing in the Ligue du Sud-Est, a regional league under the watch of the [[French Football Federation]]. While playing in the league, Nice developed rivalries with [[AS Cannes|Cannes]] and [[Olympique de Marseille|Marseille]]. On 22 December 1924, the club changed its name to '''Olympique Gymnaste Club de Nice'''.

In July 1930, the National Council of the [[French Football Federation]] voted 128–20 in support of professionalism in French football. Nice, along with most clubs from southern France, were among the first clubs to adopt the new statute and subsequently became professional and were founding members of the new league. In the [[1932–33 French Division 1|league's inaugural season]], Nice finished seventh in its group. In the [[1933–34 French Division 1|following season]], Nice finished 13th and were relegated from the league. The club did not play league football in the ensuing season and returned to French football in 1936 playing in Division 2. Nice spent the next three years playing in the second division. In 1939, professional football in France was abolished due to [[World War II]]. Nonetheless, Nice continued to play league football under amateur status with the club participating in the Ligue du Sud-Est in 1939 and the Ligue du Sud in the following seasons.

After World War II, Nice returned to professional status and was inserted back into the second division. The club achieved promotion back to the first division for the [[1948–49 French Division 1|1948–49 season]] under the leadership of the Austrian manager [[Anton Marek]]. After two seasons of finishing in the top ten, Nice, now led by manager [[Jean Lardi]], achieved its first-ever honour by winning the league title in the [[1950–51 French Division 1|1950–51 season]]. Led by [[France national football team|French internationals]] [[Marcel Domingo]], [[Antoine Bonifaci]], [[Abdelaziz Ben Tifour]], and Jean Courteaux, as well as the Argentine duo of [[Pancho Gonzales (footballer)|Pancho Gonzales]] and [[Luis Carniglia]] and the Swede [[Pär Bengtsson]], Nice won the league despite finishing equal on points with [[Lille OSC|Lille]]. Nice was declared champions due to having more wins (18) than Lille (17).<ref>{{cite news |title=Champion de France 1951 |url=http://www.ogcnice.com/histoire/champions_1951.php |publisher=OGC Nice |access-date=10 January 2011 |language=fr |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100205123908/http://ogcnice.com/histoire/champions_1951.php |archive-date=5 February 2010 |df=dmy-all }}</ref> In the following season, under new manager [[Numa Andoire]], Nice won [[Double (association football)|the double]] after winning both the league and the Coupe de France. In the league, the club defended its title by holding off both [[FC Girondins de Bordeaux|Bordeaux]] and Lille. In the Coupe de France final, Nice faced Bordeaux and defeated the [[Aquitaine]] club 5–3 courtesy of goals from five different players.

Nice continued its solid run in the decade by winning the Coupe de France for the second time in 1954. The club, now being led by a young and unknown [[Just Fontaine]], faced southern rivals Marseille and earned a 2–1 victory with [[Victor Nuremberg]] and Carniglia scoring the goals. Carniglia retired from football after the season and began managing Nice. In [[1955–56 French Division 1|his first season in charge]], Nice won the league for a third time after being chased for the entire season by rivals Marseille and Monaco, as well as [[RC Lens|Lens]] and [[AS Saint-Étienne|Saint-Étienne]]. After the campaign, Fontaine departed the club for [[Stade de Reims]]. Three seasons later, Nice won the last title of the decade in 1959. The club finished the decade (1950–1959) with four league titles and two Coupe de France trophies. Nice also appeared in [[UEFA|European competition]] for the first time in the [[1956–57 European Cup|1956–57 season]], losing to [[Real Madrid C.F.|Real Madrid]] in the quarter-finals.

In subsequent decades, Nice struggled to equal the success of the 1950s with Reims and, later Saint-Étienne eclipsing the club in the 1960s and '70s. During this time, Nice regularly competed in Division 1 with the exception of two seasons in Division 2 in 1965 and 1970. In 1973 and 1976, Nice achieved a second-place finish in the league, its best finish since winning the league in 1959. However, following the latter finish, the club finished in lower positions in the next six seasons and was relegated in the [[1981–82 French Division 1|1981–82 season]] after finishing 19th. Nice played three seasons in the second division before returning to the top flight in 1985. After six seasons of mid-table finishes, Nice was back in Division 2.

[[File:Fréderic Antonetti.jpg|thumb|upright|220px|[[Frédéric Antonetti]] led Nice to the 2006 Coupe de la Ligue final.]]
In 1997, Nice, now back in the first division, stunned many after winning the Coupe de France. However, the victory did not shock most French football enthusiasts mainly due to the club's competition in the run-up to the final in which Nice faced only Division 2 clubs, save for first division club [[SC Bastia|Bastia]]. In [[1997 Coupe de France Final|the final]], Nice defeated [[En Avant de Guingamp|Guingamp]] 5–4 on penalties to earn cup success. On a sourer note, Nice were relegated from the first division only days after winning the Coupe de France in dead last in the league. The club spent five seasons in [[Ligue 2]] and returned to [[Ligue 1]] for the [[2001–02 French Division 1|2001–02 season]]. In the lead-up to the season, Nice failed to meet the financial requirements set by the [[DNCG]] and was subsequently relegated to the [[Championnat National]], the third level of French football. However, after achieving stability, mainly due to selling a few players, Nice was allowed into Ligue 1 after successfully appealing. In the [[2005–06 Ligue 1|2005–06 season]], Nice made it to the final of the [[Coupe de la Ligue]] in [[Coupe de la Ligue Final 2006|2006]], losing to [[AS Nancy|Nancy]] 2–1.

In 2016, a Chinese and American consortium led by [[Chien Lee]] and Alex Zheng purchased 80% of the club.<ref name="Frater">{{cite web|url= https://variety.com/2016/biz/asia/china-investors-buy-nice-soccer-club-1201793668/|title= Chinese Investors Buy French Soccer Club OGC Nice|first= Patrick|last= Frater|date= June 11, 2016|access-date= June 13, 2016|work= [[Variety (magazine)|Variety]]|archive-date= 11 December 2017|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20171211164748/http://variety.com/2016/biz/asia/china-investors-buy-nice-soccer-club-1201793668/|url-status= live}}</ref>  In the [[2016–17 Ligue 1]] season, Nice finished third in the final standings and qualified for the third round of the [[UEFA Champions League]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://edition.cnn.com/2017/06/08/football/ogc-nice-jean-pierre-rivre-champions-league/index.html|title=OGC Nice: From Ligue 1 strugglers to Champions League challengers|author=Matias Grez and Stef Blendis|website=cnn.com|access-date=15 October 2018|archive-date=6 December 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181206173846/https://edition.cnn.com/2017/06/08/football/ogc-nice-jean-pierre-rivre-champions-league/index.html|url-status=live}}</ref>

On June 11, 2018, [[Patrick Vieira]] was announced as Nice manager, replacing [[Lucien Favre]].<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.theguardian.com/football/2018/jun/11/patrick-vieira-nice-manager-new-york-city |title=Patrick Vieira named new Nice manager after leaving New York City FC |work=The Guardian |date=11 June 2018 |access-date=25 August 2021 |url-status=live |archive-date=9 November 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201109023443/https://www.theguardian.com/football/2018/jun/11/patrick-vieira-nice-manager-new-york-city }}</ref> In the 2018–19 season, Nice finished in 7th place on the table.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.independent.co.uk/sport/football/premier-league/arsenal-news-patrick-vieira-manager-nice-ligue-1-manchester-city-a8931961.html/|title=Arsenal news: Patrick Vieira flattered by Arsene Wenger's future Gunners manager comment|website=The Independent|date=27 May 2019|access-date=29 May 2019|archive-date=29 May 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190529123537/https://www.independent.co.uk/sport/football/premier-league/arsenal-news-patrick-vieira-manager-nice-ligue-1-manchester-city-a8931961.html|url-status=live}}</ref>

In July 2019, it was announced that [[Jim Ratcliffe]] acquired the French club for a reported €100 million.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.insideworldfootball.com/2019/07/31/ogc-nice-debuts-ineos-sponsorship-ratcliffe-closes-e100m-buy/ |title=OGC Nice debuts Ineos sponsorship as Ratcliffe closes in on €100m buy |website=insideworldfootball.com |date=31 July 2019 |access-date=25 August 2021 |url-status=live |archive-date=20 October 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211020063024/http://www.insideworldfootball.com/2019/07/31/ogc-nice-debuts-ineos-sponsorship-ratcliffe-closes-e100m-buy/ }}</ref>

After a run of poor form saw Nice sitting in 11th place in Ligue 1 and eliminated from the Europa League, manager Patrick Vieira was sacked. Vieira's assistant, Adrian Ursea, took over as caretaker.  Nice would finish the [[2020–21 Ligue 1]] season in ninth place on the table.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.ogcnice.com/en/news/41360/ogc-nice-part-ways-with-patrick-vieira/ |title=OGC Nice part ways with Patrick Vieira |access-date=5 December 2020 |archive-date=4 December 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201204105812/https://www.ogcnice.com/en/news/41360/ogc-nice-part-ways-with-patrick-vieira |url-status=dead }}</ref>

On 28 June 2021, [[Christophe Galtier]] was appointed as the new head coach.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.ogcnice.com/en/actualite/43050/galtier-named-as-ogc-nice-head-coach |title=Galtier named as OGC Nice Head Coach |date=28 June 2021 |access-date=1 July 2021 |website=www.ogcnice.com |publisher=OGC Nice |archive-date=9 July 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210709182433/https://www.ogcnice.com/en/actualite/43050/galtier-named-as-ogc-nice-head-coach |url-status=live }}</ref> On 27 June 2022, Lucien Favre returned to Nice as manager.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.lequipe.fr/Football/Actualites/Nice-officialise-l-arrivee-de-lucien-favre-et-le-depart-de-christophe-galtier/1340618|title=Nice officialise l'arrivée de Lucien Favre et le départ de Christophe Galtier|trans-title=Nice formalizes the arrival of Lucien Favre and the departure of Christophe Galtier|language=fr|publisher=L'Équipe|date=27 June 2022|access-date=27 June 2022|archive-date=27 June 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220627124434/https://www.lequipe.fr/Football/Actualites/Nice-officialise-l-arrivee-de-lucien-favre-et-le-depart-de-christophe-galtier/1340618|url-status=live}}</ref>

After a complicated first part of the season, Lucien Favre was fired. He was replaced by the coach of the reserve team [[Didier Digard]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=Lucien Favre n'est plus l'entraineur de l'OGC Nice |url=https://www.ogcnice.com/fr/article/123471/lucien-favre-nest-plus-lentraineur-de-logc-nice.html |access-date=2023-01-29 |website=OGC Nice |language=fr |archive-date=12 January 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230112172808/https://www.ogcnice.com/fr/article/123471/lucien-favre-nest-plus-lentraineur-de-logc-nice.html |url-status=live }}</ref> For the following season, [[Francesco Farioli]] was appointed as the next head coach.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.ogcnice.com/fr/article/124884/francesco-farioli-nouvel-entraineur-de-logc-nice.html |title=Francesco Farioli nouvel entraîneur de l'OGC Nice |publisher=OGC Nice |language=fr |date=30 June 2023 }}</ref>
In the [[2023–24 Ligue 1]] season, Nice qualified for the [[UEFA Europa League]] finishing in 5th place on the table.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.ogcnice.com/en/article/127122/francesco-farioli-leaves-ogc-nice.html/|title=Francesco Farioli leaves OGC Nice|website=ogcnice.com}}</ref>