Olympique Lyonnais Reserves and Academy

Last updated

Olympique Lyonnais
Full nameOlympique Lyonnais
Nickname(s)Les Gones, Lyon, or OL
Founded1899/1950 [1]
Ground Stade Gérard Houllier  [ fr ],
Décines-Charpieu
Capacity1,524
Chairman Flag of the United States.svg John Textor
Manager Flag of France.svg Gueida Fofana (National 3)
Flag of France.svg Samy Saci (U-19s)
Flag of France.svg Amaury Barlet (U-17s)
League Championnat National 3
Championnat National Under-19
Championnat National Under-17
2022–23 (National 2)National 2 Group C, 14th (relegated)

The Olympique Lyonnais Reserves & Academy are the reserve team and academy of French club Olympique Lyonnais. The reserves squad play in the Championnat National 3, the fifth division of French football and the second highest division the team is allowed to participate in. Lyon have won the reserves title of the Championnat de France Amateur six times. They have won in 1998, 2001, 2003, 2006, and 2009, and 2010.

Contents

Overview

The U-19 squad participates in their weekly league, the Championnat National U19, which is a league comprising four groups of fourteen clubs who play each other twice during the regular season. This session is dubbed Phase 1. Following the regular season, the four group winners are randomly selected to face each other in semi-final matches (dubbed Phase 2) to decide who will play each other in the Under-18 Championnat National championship match, usually held in Mayenne. There is also a third-place match, which is usually held just before the championship match. The Under-18 squad also regularly participates in the Coupe Gambardella. They have won the title on 4 occasions. They won the cup in 1971, 1994, 1997 and 2022.

The U-17 side participates in a league, the Championnat National U17, a youth league comprising six groups of twelve clubs who play each other twice during the regular season, dubbed Phase 1. Following the regular season, the six group winners and the two best second place clubs are randomly inserting into two groups of four, where they play each other at neutral venues once over a span of four days. This portion is dubbed Phase 2. The two winners of each group will then face each other in the championship match to determine the champion of the Under-17 Championnat National. The Under-17 squad also participates in regional cup competitions.

The current National 3 manager is Gueida Fofana, who played for Olympique Lyonnais before but had his career cut-short due to injuries. He has been the manager of Lyon's reserves team since 2019. The manager of the Olympique Lyonnais U-19s and U-17s are Samy Saci and Amaury Barlet. [2]

Philosophy

According to Faouzi Djedou-Benabid, the scout for Niort and the co-author of Pourquoi le foot français va dans le mur (lit.'Why French football goes into wall'; 2015), published by Hugo Sport, the training provided in Olympique Lyonnais academy favors the technical learning of football over match results, like FC Barcelona: thus, "Lyon educators do not hesitate to have defenders play in midfield so that 'they can learn to use their feet better". In addition, the formation does not favor any pattern of play, allowing the players to adapt easily to all positions during the game. [3]

As a result of this philosophy, since the 2010s, Lyon youth academy gained reputation all around Europe as being one of the top football academies in the continent, producing several players playing in European top tier competitions. [4] Between 2012 and 2019, Lyon appears successively eight times in top 4 of the International Centre for Sports Studies list of the best football academies in Europe. Lyon was also rated by the French Football Federation as the best football academy in France for six seasons in a row, between 2013 and 2019. [5]

In February 2014, L'Équipe writes that Olympique Lyonnais ranks second in terms of the number of players trained at the club and playing in the "five major European championships" (Germany, England, Spain, France and Italy) tied with Real Madrid, and the first being FC Barcelona. [6] [7] In 2015, France Football rated Lyon youth academy as one of the best in Europe, as it is used to feed the first team, and also having a pool of players with value on the transfer market, without this being in the heart of the club's policy. [8] Indeed, the competition level in Lyon's youth team is very difficult for young players, they will regularly, voluntarily or not, emancipate themselves in other very young clubs. Just as regularly, a certain number of them manage to have a good national or international career such as Ludovic Giuly, Karim Benzema, Alexandre Lacazette, Samuel Umtiti, or Nabil Fekir.

Honours

Current squad

Reserve squad (Olympique Lyonnais II)

As of 1 July 2025 [9]

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No.Pos.NationPlayer
32 FW Flag of England.svg  ENG Alejandro Gomes Rodríguez
35 DF Flag of France.svg  FRA Yacine Chaïb
36 FW Flag of France.svg  FRA Romain Perret
41 DF Flag of Croatia.svg  CRO Téo Barisic
44 MF Flag of France.svg  FRA Khalis Merah
45 MF Flag of France.svg  FRA Rémi Himbert
53 MF Flag of France.svg  FRA Mathys De Carvalho
GK Flag of France.svg  FRA Axel Barreau
GK Flag of Portugal (official).svg  POR Matthias Da Silva
GK Flag of Cote d'Ivoire.svg  CIV Yvann Konan
DF Flag of France.svg  FRA Imdad Charifou
DF Flag of France.svg  FRA Boubacar Diarra
DF Flag of France.svg  FRA Timothée Dutot
DF Flag of Tunisia.svg  TUN Wassim El Abrougui
DF Flag of France.svg  FRA Emeric Etondé
DF Flag of Cameroon.svg  CMR Ibrahim Halilou
No.Pos.NationPlayer
DF Flag of France.svg  FRA Ali Ali Hassan
DF Flag of Algeria.svg  ALG Steeve Kango
DF Flag of the Democratic Republic of the Congo.svg  COD Prince Mbatshi
DF Flag of France.svg  FRA Melvyn Otobo
DF Flag of France.svg  FRA Kelyan Yahia
MF Flag of Senegal.svg  SEN Pierre Dorival
MF Flag of Senegal.svg  SEN Fallou Fall
MF Flag of Thailand.svg  THA Erawan Garnier
MF Flag of Portugal (official).svg  POR Tiago Gonçalves
MF Flag of France.svg  FRA Billy-Paul Mavudia
FW Flag of France.svg  FRA Daryll Benlahlou
FW Flag of Senegal.svg  SEN Ibrahima Fall
FW Flag of France.svg  FRA Adil Hamdani
FW Flag of Algeria.svg  ALG Yannis Lagha
FW Flag of France.svg  FRA Nehemie Lurika
FW Flag of Gabon.svg  GAB Bryan Meyo

U19 squad

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No.Pos.NationPlayer
GK Flag of France.svg  FRA Zaki Atamna
GK Flag of France.svg  FRA Adrien Danis
GK Flag of France.svg  FRA Mathis Iwosso
DF Flag of Morocco.svg  MAR Adam Alioui
DF Flag of France.svg  FRA Angel Garcia
DF Flag of France.svg  FRA Kassim Mnandji
DF Flag of France.svg  FRA Paul-Ianel Moulot
DF Flag of France.svg  FRA Kylian Negri
DF Flag of France.svg  FRA Emmanuel Pampi
DF Flag of France.svg  FRA Aboubacar Sacko
DF Flag of France.svg  FRA Esteban Thyvent
DF Flag of France.svg  FRA Nolan Velut
No.Pos.NationPlayer
MF Flag of France.svg  FRA Jalis Bouabdellah
MF Flag of France.svg  FRA Kenan Doganay
MF Flag of France.svg  FRA Noah Duclieu
MF Flag of Algeria.svg  ALG Walid Nechab
MF Flag of Turkey.svg  TUR Haktan Sener
FW Flag of France.svg  FRA Hocine Boulegroun
FW Flag of France.svg  FRA Gnadou Gohi
FW Flag of France.svg  FRA Mathieu Hoareau
FW Flag of Turkey.svg  TUR Ottman Katirag
FW Flag of France.svg  FRA Nader Saad
FW Flag of France.svg  FRA Issiaga Soumah

U17 squad

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No.Pos.NationPlayer
GK Flag of France.svg  FRA Ethan Leveneur
GK Flag of France.svg  FRA Joël Mbala
DF Flag of the Comoros.svg  COM Nizard Ahmed Moussa
DF Flag of France.svg  FRA Tiago Asse-Bille
DF Flag of France.svg  FRA Yanis Bah Girondins
DF Flag of France.svg  FRA Rubio Berliat
DF Flag of France.svg  FRA Jérémie Mputu
DF Flag of France.svg  FRA Félix Onana
DF Flag of France.svg  FRA Aaron Trincat
MF Flag of France.svg  FRA Naïm Adjimi
MF Flag of Italy.svg  ITA Lylian Di Nota
MF Flag of France.svg  FRA Rayhan Hajjari
MF Flag of France.svg  FRA Emany Mayulu
No.Pos.NationPlayer
MF Flag of the Democratic Republic of the Congo.svg  COD Jason Nkelenda
MF Flag of the Central African Republic.svg  CTA Edwin Penka
MF Flag of France.svg  FRA Théo Petan Ranguin
FW Flag of France.svg  FRA Hedi Chekhab
FW Flag of Belgium (civil).svg  BEL Ousmane Fofana
FW Flag of France.svg  FRA Ilan Khadraoui
FW Flag of France.svg  FRA Amine Lazak
FW Flag of France.svg  FRA Khalil Mahici
FW Flag of France.svg  FRA Mohamed Meguenni
FW Flag of France.svg  FRA Djibril Merouani
FW Flag of France.svg  FRA Ajdin Muminovic
FW Flag of France.svg  FRA Farès Tracol
FW Flag of France.svg  FRA Bojan Zekovic

Staff

As of 1 July 2025
PositionName
General Director Flag of France.svg Fabien Caballero
Reserves Manager Flag of France.svg Gueïda Fofana
Reserves Assistant Manager Flag of France.svg Pierre Chavondrier
Academy Goalkeeper Coach Flag of France.svg Olivier Blondel
Flag of France.svg Sébastien Gerin
Academy Fitness Coach Flag of France.svg Nicolas Quinault
U-19 Manager Flag of France.svg Florent Balmont
U-19 Assistant Manager Flag of France.svg Rémy Kaleche
U-19 Fitness Coach Flag of France.svg Antoine Maennel
U-19 Athletic Coach Flag of France.svg Florian Testard
U-17 Manager Flag of France.svg Samy Saci
U-17 Assistant Managers Flag of France.svg Mour Paye
U-17 Fitness Coach Flag of France.svg Mattéo Cathalot
Preformation Director Flag of France.svg Nicolas Brun
Sporting Coordinator Flag of France.svg Guy Genet

Notable alumni

Many players from Lyon's youth system have managed to reach the professional level in football, whether at Lyon or at other clubs. As of June 2025, 37 players formed in the Lyon academy had capped for the France national football team. [10] Below is a non-exhaustive list of notable players who trained in the youth or reserve teams of Olympique Lyonnais:

Players in bold are those who capped for their National team.

Alumni in France national football team

The following table shows the current list of Olympique Lyonnais-trained players in the French national team as of 8 June 2025, along with their year of birth, number of caps, and the corresponding period. Players whose international careers are still in progress are shown in bold type.

Players from the French National team trained at Olympique Lyonnais [11]
PlayerBirthyearPeriodCapsGoals
Ernest Schultz 1931196111
Fleury Di Nallo 19431962-1971108
Jean Djorkaeff 19391964-1972483
Néstor Combin 19401964-196884
Marcel Aubour 19401964-1968200
Yves Chauveau 1945196910
Daniel Ravier 1948197320
Raymond Domenech 19521973-197980
Bernard Lacombe 19521973-19843812
Daniel Xuereb 19591981-198981
Jean-Philippe Durand 19601988-1992260
Rémi Garde 19661990-199260
Laurent Fournier 1964199230
Bruno Ngotty 19711994-199760
Florian Maurice 19741996-199961
Ludovic Giuly 19762000-2005173
Jérémie Bréchet 19792001-200330
Sidney Govou 19792002-20104910
Franck Jurietti 1975200510
François Clerc 19832006-2008130
Karim Benzema 19872007-20229737
Hatem Ben Arfa 19872007-2015152
Loïc Rémy 19872009-2014307
Maxime Gonalons 19892011-201580
Clément Grenier 19912013-201450
Alexandre Lacazette 19912013-2017163
Nabil Fekir 19932015-2020252
Anthony Martial 19932015-2021302
Samuel Umtiti 19932016-2019314
Corentin Tolisso 19942017-present282
Alassane Pléa 1993201810
Houssem Aouar 1998202010
Malo Gusto 20032023-present30
Castello Lukeba 20022023-present10
Bradley Barcola 20022024-present142
Pierre Kalulu 20002025-present10
Rayan Cherki 20032025-present21
Total1961-present??

References

  1. "According to Lyon's official website, it suggests that they consider this their foundation date rather than 1900 – (translation: "1950, date of the club's creation")". OLWeb.fr. Archived from the original on 10 December 2005. Retrieved 23 August 2006.
  2. "Academy : Notre nouvelle organisation". Olympique Lyonnais. 28 June 2023. Archived from the original on 5 July 2023. Retrieved 5 July 2023.
  3. "Football français : "L'incompétence est à tous les étages"". Le Point. Retrieved 19 February 2023..
  4. "The Talent Factory: How Lyon Built a Production Line for World-Class Talent". Bleacher Report. Retrieved 19 February 2023.
  5. "PRESENTATION D'OL ACADEMY". Olympique Lyonnais. Archived from the original on 19 February 2023. Retrieved 19 February 2023.
  6. "OL : l'Équipe vante le deuxième centre de formation européen". L'Équipe. Retrieved 19 February 2023.
  7. "Lyon: La fabrique à champions". L'Équipe. Archived from the original on 23 June 2015. Retrieved 19 February 2023.
  8. "Umtiti, Tolisso, Lacazette : une fierté lyonnaise". Le Libéro. Archived from the original on 14 October 2017. Retrieved 19 February 2023..
  9. "RÉSERVE EFFECTIF & STAFF". OLWeb.fr. Archived from the original on 1 November 2018. Retrieved 14 January 2021.
  10. "Aux Pays-Bas, Malo Gusto est devenu le 33e international A français formé à l'OL" (in French). Le Progrès. 14 October 2023. Archived from the original on 16 December 2023. Retrieved 14 October 2023.
  11. "L'OL Académie, fournisseur officiel de l'équipe de France depuis 2000". olympique-et-lyonnais.com. 19 August 2022.