Limoges

Player to watch : Nicolas Lang

As the only player to have competed in the Betclic ÉLITE for 18 consecutive seasons, Nicolas Lang holds a unique place in the history of French basketball. The two-time French champion is entering his seventh season in Limoges as the team’s leader.

Comfortably settled in the corner, Nicolas Lang continues to punish even the slightest defensive lapses by opponents. From beyond the arc, it’s hard to find anyone better in the entire history of the league! He holds the record for most three-pointers made in Betclic ÉLITE, won the All-Star Game three-point contest, and is just a few shots away from joining the ranks of Pro A’s all-time leading scorers… His track record speaks for itself.

Deadly shots, polished fundamentals, a very, very high basketball IQ. Nicolas Lang has been entrusted with the mission of launching this new chapter for Limoges. Still, care must be taken not to overuse him like last season.

Style de jeu

As the face of this new generation of coaches hailing from Belgium, Dario Gjergja until recently served in the dual role of head coach and national team coach. Under his leadership, his teams employ a particularly precise and structured style of play. Regardless of the team or the situation, the Limoges coach relies on a defense that is as tough in the paint as it is aggressive on the perimeter.

Once the ball is in play, Dario Gjergja constantly adapts to the roster at his disposal. While certain key principles remain—such as a fluid and organized offense—overall, his entire set of instructions follows a clear vision, marked by great precision and consistently high standards for his players.

Club History

Although 1929 marked the founding of Limoges Cercle Saint-Pierre, it wasn’t until 1933 that the club played the first official game in its history. Departmental and regional titles followed one after another, but CSP’s national ambitions truly took shape in the postwar period with the arrival of Xavier Popelier at the club in 1950. The priority was then placed on the club’s infrastructure to ensure steady growth.

This long-term vision paid off. Spurred by the signing of star forward Radenkovic, Limoges climbed the ranks one by one without a hitch: National Division II, professional status, National Division I, playoffs, and even European competition. All of this within the span of five years. The icing on the cake: the legendary Beaublanc arena was built in 1881, a date synonymous with the beginning of the LCSP’s golden age.

For as early as the following season, Cercle Saint-Pierre made French sports history by becoming the first French club to win a European Cup – the Korać Cup (C3). It was a historic year, capped off by the club’s first major national trophy following a crushing victory over ASVEL in the 1982 Federation Cup. André Buffière smoothly handed the reins to Pierre Dao on the bench, before the latter achieved a back-to-back victory on the continental stage while securing the first of three consecutive national championship titles. Limoges dominated relentlessly until the departure of Ed Murphy in 1985 – four-time LNB leading scorer.

The end of a golden generation, replaced… by a new golden generation! Richard Dacoury handed this victorious banner to Stéphane Ostrowski. And after two barren years, Limoges achieved a legendary treble—Semaine des AS, the Championship, and the European Cup Winners’ Cup (C2)—in 1988. This was followed by two consecutive Betclic ÉLITE titles, another AS Week, and a Final Four appearance in the European Cup Winners’ Cup (C1). However, this meteoric rise slowed down from 1991 to 1992. But after six coaches had come and gone on the Limoges bench during that period, the team finally found the right fit in Božidar Maljković.

And at the end of a truly wild run that culminated in that final against Treviso (55-59), Limoges lifted the coveted European Champions League (C1) trophy. To top it off, they won another league title, followed by a second one the following year. The Božidar Maljković era ended with the 1994 French Cup, heralding a slump. Under Jacques Monclar in particular, the Green Team won just one minor trophy in five seasons before a final major triumph. The Korać Cup (C3), the French Cup, and the Betclic ÉLITE in 2000 capped off a 20th century dominated by the CSP, which had made Europe its favorite playground.

Between 2001 and 2004, Limoges experienced one promotion to the top flight, one on-court relegation, and two administrative relegations. It was a difficult period during which the Beaublanc crowd remained loyal to the club. Step by step, the CSP rebuilt itself until 2012, which ended an 11-year drought with the Pro B title. Then, quickly, the Limougeauds returned to their old ways with three titles in three years to mark their return to the top flight. Starting in 2018, however, Limoges’ renewed ambitions on the European stage were met with growing financial difficulties. So much so that a last-minute buyout at the start of the 2025 season allowed the Green Team to narrowly avoid administrative relegation. The goal is now clear in Limousin: to restore the club’s stability and ambition to a level befitting its history

Spotlight : Europe

These days, Limoges and Europe are inseparable in French basketball. Clubs like ASVEL and Le Mans have racked up national championship titles. Others, such as Monaco and even Nanterre, have made their mark more on the continental stage. But only one club has managed to excel in both arenas: CSP.

At the same time, the list of “firsts” in European competition is one of the longest not just in basketball, but in all of French sports! It was the first French club to win a European title, and above all, the only club in French basketball to have lifted the coveted trophy in the European Champions League (the predecessor to the EuroLeague).

Limoges alone has as many European titles (5) as all the clubs competing in the 2025-2026 Betclic ÉLITE combined.

The Number : 137

That’s the number of points scored in a single game by Limoges CSP against Saint-Étienne during the 1984–1985 season—an all-time record in the Betclic ÉLITE.

other teams

Cholet

Strasbourg

Gravelines-Dunkerque

Nanterre

Monaco

Boulazac

Chalon/Saône

Dijon

Cholet

Le Mans

Limoges

LDLC ASVEL Villeurbanne

Nancy