Ligue Magnus

The Ligue Magnus, currently known as Synerglace Ligue Magnus for sponsorship reasons, is the top men's division of the French ice hockey pyramid, established in 1906.[1] The league operated under a variety of names before taking that of its championship trophy, the Magnus Cup, in 2004. The trophy was in turn named for Frenchman and IIHF founder Louis Magnus.

Ligue Magnus
Current season, competition or edition:
Current sports event 2022–23 Ligue Magnus season
Formerly
  • Championnat de France (1907-1930)
  • 1re Série (1930-1973)
  • Série A (1973-1975)
  • Nationale A (1975-1985)
  • Nationale 1A (1985-1990, 1996-1997)
  • Ligue nationale (1990-1991)
  • Élite (1991-1992, 1994-1996, 1997-2002)
  • Nationale 1 (1992-1994)
  • Super 16 (2002-2004)
  • Ligue Magnus (2004-)
SportIce hockey
Founded1906 (1906)
No. of teams12
CountryFrance
Most recent
champion(s)
Grenoble (8)
Most titlesChamonix (30)
TV partner(s)Sport en France, Fanseat
Relegation toFFHG Division 1
Domestic cup(s)Coupe de France
Official websiteliguemagnus.com

Teams from the Ligue Magnus can participate in the IIHF's annual Champions Hockey League (CHL), competing for the European Trophy. Participation is based on the strength of the various leagues in Europe (excluding the European/Asian Kontinental Hockey League). Going into the 2022–23 CHL season, the Ligue Magnus was ranked the No. 9 league in Europe, allowing them to send their top team to compete in the CHL.

Format

12 teams play a 44-game regular season. The schedule is fully balanced and there are no geographic conferences.[2] Regulation wins are worth 3 points, as per international rules.[2] The top 8 teams qualify for the Magnus Cup playoffs, with all series contested in a best-of-seven format.[2] The remaining 4 teams play a 6-game round-robin, at the end of which the last-place team is relegated.[2]

The Magnus Cup champions qualify for the following season's Champions Hockey League.[2] All Ligue Magnus teams also take part in the French Cup.

Import rule

Game night rosters must include at least 10 players who have spent 3 or more years in the French hockey system before the age of 21. French citizenship itself is not a requirement to qualify for non-import status, as long as the player meets the above criteria. Conversely, a citizen of France who was fully trained in a foreign country will count as an import regardless of his French citizenship.

Outdoor games

On December 22, 2013, Grenoble and Briançon played an outdoor regular season game at Stade des Alpes, the home of former Ligue 1 soccer club GF38. A sellout attendance of 19,767 set a league record.
Another outdoor game took place on December 30, 2016, when Lyon hosted Grenoble at Parc OL, the home field of seven-time Ligue 1 champions Olympique Lyonnais. The event drew a record 25,182 attendance.[3]

Title sponsors

In 2016, the league signed its first naming rights deal with Saxoprint, the online printing subsidiary of German conglomerate Cewe, and became known as Saxoprint Ligue Magnus for the following two seasons.[4] In 2018, mobile ice rink supplier Synerglace became the series' new title sponsor.[5]

Media

Television

Select regular season and playoff games air on cable and broadband television channel Sport en France.[6]

Internet streaming

All league games can be streamed for a monthly subscription fee of approximately €10. The service, managed by Finnish company Fanseat, employed a man-operated main camera for the first three years, before shifting to PlaySight automated technology in 2019.[7]

Video game

Hockey Dangles '16: Saxoprint Magnus Edition, an arcade-style mobile video game based on the league, was released for Android and iOS devices in September 2016.[8]

2023/24 teams

Ligue Magnus game in 2007
2004-13 logo
2013-16 logo
TeamCityArenaFounded
GothiquesAmiensColiséum1967
DucsAngersIceParc1982
HormadiAngletPatinoire de la Barre1969
BoxersBordeauxPatinoire de Mériadeck1999
Diables RougesBriançonPatinoire René Froger1934
JokersCergy-PontoiseAren'Ice1981
PionniersChamonixCentre Sportif Richard Bozon2016
RapacesGapAlp'Arena1937
Brûleurs de LoupsGrenoblePatinoire Pole Sud1963
SpartiatesMarseillePalais omnisports Marseille Grand-Est2012
AiglesNicePatinoire Jean Bouin1969
DragonsRouenPatinoire de l'Île Lacroix1982
ScorpionsMulhousePatinoire de l'Illberg2005

Former teams

Defunct teams

Previous winners

Titles by team

PlTeamTitlesWinning seasons
1Chamonix301923, 1925, 1926, 1927, 1929, 1930, 1931, 1939, 1942, 1944, 1946, 1949, 1952, 1954, 1955, 1958, 1959, 1961, 1963, 1964, 1965, 1966, 1967, 1968, 1970, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1976, 1979
2Rouen (earlier known as RHC (Rouen Hockey Club) and also known as Rouen Hockey Élite 76)161990, 1992, 1993, 1994, 1995, 2001, 2003, 2006, 2008, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2016, 2018, 2021
3Grenoble (earlier known as CSG Grenoble)81981, 1982, 1991, 1998, 2007, 2009, 2019, 2022
4Club des Patineurs de Paris (also known as Ice Skating Club de Paris and Sports d'Hiver de Paris)71908, 1912, 1913, 1914, 1920, 1921, 1922
5Saint-Gervais61969, 1974, 1975, 1983, 1985, 1986
6Français Volants Paris41936, 1937, 1938, 1989
7Gap41977, 1978, 2015, 2017
8Stade Français Paris (also known as Rapides de Paris)41932, 1933, 1934, 1935
9AC Boulogne-Billancourt31957, 1960, 1962
10Brest21996, 1997
 Mont-Blanc21987, 1988
 Racing Club de Paris21950, 1951
 Reims HC22000, 2002
 Amiens Somme21999, 2004
15Megève11984
 CP Lyon11956
 SC Lyon11907
 ASG Tours11980
 Paris Université Club11953
 Hockey Club de Mulhouse12005
 Briançon12014

Awards

Notable players

In addition, Bob Gainey (Montreal Canadiens) and Brian Propp (Philadelphia Flyers) have played in the second tier of French hockey.

Notes

  1. Due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic in France, the full regular season was played but the 2020 play-offs were cancelled, and no team was crowned Magnus Cup champion for the 2019–20 season.
  2. Due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic in France, the regular season was terminated at its mid-point, the 2021 play-offs were cancelled, and (unlike 2019–20) regular season champion Rouen were crowned Magnus Cup champion of France for the 2020–21 season.

References

  1. "Championnat de France 1906/07". hockeyarchives.info. Hockeyarchives. Retrieved 11 February 2021.
  2. Règlements généraux de la Saxoprint Ligue Magnus. Issy-Les-Moulineaux: Fédération Française de Hockey sur Glace. August 2020.
  3. Riglet, Sébastien (31 December 2016). "Winter Game : 25182 personnes au Parc OL, vraiment ?". LeSportDauphinois.com. JHN Média. Retrieved 1 January 2017.
  4. "La D1 de hockey devient la "Saxoprint Ligue Magnus"". lexpress.fr. AFP. 6 January 2016. Retrieved 11 February 2021.
  5. Mandin, Louise (18 June 2018). "Synerglace succède à Saxoprint en tant que partenaire-titre de la Ligue Magnus". sportstrategies.com. Sport Stratégies.
  6. Warnier, Mathieu (24 September 2020). "Ligue Magnus : Le championnat arrive sur Sport en France". sports.orange.fr. Orange. Retrieved 11 February 2020.
  7. Mucret, Leslie (21 August 2019). "La FFHG prolonge son partenariat avec Fanseat". sportmag.fr. Even'Dia. Archived from the original on 10 April 2021. Retrieved 3 March 2021.
  8. Hockey Dangles'16 Saxoprint Magnus Edition - Trailer FR (Trailer) (in French). Toulon: GamYo Studio. 29 July 2016. Archived from the original on 19 December 2021. Retrieved 30 July 2016.
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