About

Chamois Niortais Football Club (often referred to as Les Chamois, Chamois Niortais, or simply Niort) is a French association football club based in the commune of Niort, in the Deux-Sèvres department of western France. It was founded in 1925 by Charles Boinot, the son of the owner of a local chamois leather factory. The club's home stadium is the Stade René Gaillard in Niort, which has a capacity of 10,898 although in the last 20 years attendances have generally averaged below 5,000 per match due to the club's relatively small fan base. Chamois Niortais has traditionally played in an entirely blue home strip, although away strips regularly differ. For the first 20 years of the club's existence they played in local leagues around the Centre-Ouest region. In 1945, after the Second World War, the side joined the Championnat de France amateur. They achieved promotion to Division 3 in 1970 and stayed in the division for the following eight seasons. From 1980 to 1984, the team played in Division 4 before promotion return to Division 3. The club gained professional status for the first time the following year when they were promoted to Division 2. After another promotion in 1987, they played in Division 1 for the 1987–88 season, only, then were relegated next season. Chamois Niortais were relegated to the Championnat National in 2008, and relegated again the next season, losing their professional status. After finishing as runners-up in the Championnat National, the team were promoted to Ligue 2 for the 2012–13 season.