Chamois Niortais Football Club 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.
Djibril Konaté is a Malian association footballer who plays for Vendée Fontenay Foot. He usually plays as a right-back, but can also play as a centre-half and a defensive midfielder.
Arnaud Gonzalez is a French football coach and former player who is assistant coach for Ligue 2 club Niort. who played as an attacking midfielder. Gonzalez started his career with AJ Auxerre, joining the club's youth setup at the age of 14. He made his senior debut in 1996, but failed to break into the first-team during the early stages of his career. Whilst with Auxerre, he represented France at under-19 level and was part of the team that won the 1996 UEFA European Under-19 Football Championship.
Damien Perrinelle is a former French footballer who played as a defender, currently assistant coach at Ligue 1 club Monaco.
Andé Dona Ndoh is a Cameroonian football coach and former professional player. who is assistant coach for Ligue 2 club Niort During his career, he played as a striker for various French clubs, including Le Havre, Rouen, Luzenac, Chamois Niortais and Nancy.
Pascal Gastien is a French professional football manager and former player who was most recently the head coach of French club Clermont.
Frédéric Bong is a Cameroonian professional footballer who plays as a defender for Régional 1 club AS Echiré Saint-Gelais.
The 2011–12 season is the 86th campaign in the history of the French association football club Chamois Niortais. It is their second consecutive season in the Championnat National, the third tier of French football, after an 11th-place finish in 2010–11. Former Niort midfielder Pascal Gastien remained as manager, having been appointed to the position in 2009. Niort finished as runners-up in the Championnat National, thereby earning promotion to Ligue 2 for the 2012–13 season after a four-year absence from the second tier of French football.
The 2008–09 season was the first season that Chamois Niortais returned to the Championnat National following their relegation from Ligue 2 at the end of the previous campaign. Denis Troch was hired as the new head coach, replacing Samuel Michel. Niort won only 9 of their 38 league matches and their total of 41 points saw the team finish 17th in the Championnat National, which meant relegation to the Championnat de France amateur for the first time in the club's history in the 2008–09 season.
The 2007–08 season was Chamois Niortais' second consecutive season in Ligue 2 after their 16th-place finish in the previous campaign. With the team struggling in the league, manager Jacky Bonnevay was sacked in January 2008 and replaced by Samuel Michel. However, the new coach could not prevent Niort's relegation to the Championnat National; the team was relegated after losing their final match of the season to a goal in the fourth minute of injury time from Boulogne defender Damien Perrinelle.
In the 2006–07 season Chamois Niortais played in Ligue 2, the second tier of French football, following their promotion after winning the Championnat National in the previous season. Philippe Hinschberger started the campaign as team manager, but was replaced by Bosnian Faruk Hadžibegić in February 2007. Niort finished the season in 16th position with a record of 10 wins, 14 draws and 14 defeats from their 38 matches. The team reached the last 32 of the Coupe de France, but was knocked out of the Coupe de la Ligue in the first round.
The 2012–13 season was the 87th season in the history of the French football club Chamois Niortais. After finishing as runners-up in the Championnat National in the 2011–12 campaign, the team competed in Ligue 2, the second tier of the French football pyramid. The promotion meant a return to professional status for the club, which was lost following relegation to the Championnat de France amateur three years earlier.
Quentin Bernard is a French professional footballer who plays as a left-back for Championnat National club Niort.
Julien Ricaud is a French professional footballer who plays for Avranches as a defensive midfielder.
Soutongo Louckmane Ouédraogo is a Burkinabé professional footballer who plays as a winger for French club CS Chaumontois.
Alassane N'Diaye is a French professional footballer who plays as a forward for Ligue 2 club AC Ajaccio.
The 2015–16 Coupe de la Ligue was the 22nd French league cup competition. The competition was organized by the Ligue de Football Professionnel and was open to the 44 professional clubs in France that are managed by the organization.
The 2015–16 season was the 90th season in the history of the French association football club Chamois Niortais. The senior team competed in Ligue 2 for the fourth consecutive season following an 11th-placed finish in 2014–15. The club also competed in both the Coupe de France and the Coupe de la Ligue.
Banfa Diakité is a French professional footballer who plays as an attacking midfielder for Championnat National 2 club Blagnac.
The 2020–21 Ligue 2 season, also known as Ligue 2 BKT for sponsorship reasons, was the 82nd season of second-division football in France, and the 19th season since the division was rebranded as Ligue 2 from Division 2. Due to the uncertainty caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, the announcement of the start and end dates for the season was delayed. There were suggestions that the season would feature just 18 teams, as opposed to the usual 20, after France's highest administrative court overturned the relegations of Amiens and Toulouse from Ligue 1; however, the relegations were reinstated by the General Assembly of the LFP with a vote on 23 June 2020. The league fixtures were announced on 9 July 2020 and the league season began on 22 August 2020 and ended on 15 May 2021.
