Trophée des Champions to be presented in Montréal

The Impact de Montréal and the French Football League announced Thursday that the Champions Trophy (Trophée des Champions), a competition between the French Cup winner and the Ligue 1 season champion, will be held in Montréal at Stade Olympique this 25 July (15.00 kickoff).



It is the first time in the competition’s history that the match will be played outside of France.



“We are proud to be presenting at home the Champions Trophy,” said Impact President Joey Saputo. “For a long time, we wanted to host a high profile international game in Montréal, which offers a fantastic market for international level soccer games. In the past months, the Impact had made intensive and sustained efforts to hold this unprecedented event in Québec and we are very happy with the outcome.”



The 14th edition of the Champions Trophy will feature the two top French clubs. French second division club (Ligue 2) Guingamp clinched a spot in this game by winning the French Cup on 9 May after a 2:1 victory in the final against Rennes. The victory came in front of 80,056 spectators at the Stade de France. It was the first time since 1959 that a second-division club won the French Cup.



Bordeaux and Marseille are the two remaining clubs in the race for the Ligue 1 championship. Bordeaux is one point short of the title, with one more game to play.



“This is a first for Québec soccer,” said Executive Vice President of the Impact Richard Legendre. “It will be an exceptional event that will make history. Soccer fans will get the opportunity to see high-level soccer in a competitive international setting. We are expecting a considerable crowd, so we have chosen Stade Olympique to hold this event. Keeping in line with our organization’s tradition, tickets will once again be affordable.”



Tickets will be on sale starting Friday 29 May at noon through Admission (514-790-1245 / admission.com) and at the ticketing offices of Stade Saputo and Stade Olympique. Ticket prices range between $15 and $50 (taxes included). The organization will also offer youth rates at $10 and $15 for spectators aged 16 and under, as well as special group rates.



This past 25 February at Stade Olympique, the Impact drew 55,571 spectators to the CONCACAF Champions League quarter-final match between the Impact and Mexican club Santos Laguna.