Football is the most popular sport in France. As you know, their national team has won two World Cups and has always been a great symbol for the country. Every major city in France also has professional clubs and some of them are very popular. One of the most successful teams is Paris Saint Germain.
In the past decade, Paris Saint Germain was transformed into a frightening team for its opponents. Since the entry of investor, Nasser Al-Khelaifi, became the owner of the club, PSG has changed from an ordinary club to an extraordinary club.
Furthermore, with the provision of abundant money, PSG can bring the players with the world’s top labels to Paris at a very expensive price which arguably makes no sense. They got various domestic trophies.
Getting compared with other famous European clubs, Paris Saint Germain is a relatively young football team. This club has been established for about 49 years. However, not many people know about the historical facts behind the establishment of PSG.
Including the fact that the Spanish club Real Madrid has a big part in the founding of PSG.
For a long time, the capital of France, Paris, did not have a football club that belonged to the elite. But it finally changed in 1970, when a group of businessmen left with a plan to merge the new one-year-old Paris FC with the Stade Saint-Germain which was founded in 1904 into a single club called Paris Saint Germain.
Even so, the establishment of Paris Saint-Germain was very much linked to Real Madrid. The Spanish capital club indeed played a large role in the foundation of the founding of PSG.
At that time, Real Madrid had become the biggest team in Europe and even the world after winning six championship league titles that were once called the trophy champions. Their big ambition in 1969 was to develop football in Paris since Paris did not have an elite football team.
PSG’s future board of directors, Guy Crescent, Piere Ettine Guyot, and Henry Patrelle were stuck with issues related to the project financing until they met with the president of Real Madrid at that time, Santiago Bernabéu.
Bernabéu told them that starting with fundraising was the best solution for establishing PSG. “You should only rely on yourself and the love of Parisians,” he whispered to the Paris directors. (Quoted from Discoverwalks)
After the petition was signed by 20,000 people, the French Football Federation ratified the merger and formation of Paris Saint-Germain on August 12, 1970. For the first time in the history of French football, fans had a financial contribution to the creation of a football club.
PSG’s first season in French football began in the second division or Ligue 2 competition. It was only in the following season that they ascended the throne to the first division, although they were finally relegated at the end of the season.
After experiencing various problems, PSG finally began its golden era in the hands of Francis Borelli, where he served as the chairman of PSG from 1978 to 1991. Two French Cup titles and a Ligue 1 title were successfully obtained by PSG under his leadership.
After the takeover by the French TV channel Canal + in 1991, the club’s future was destined to become great. With the new owner investing a large amount of money into the signing of big names like George Weah and Raí.
PSG quickly developed into one of the most dominant clubs in France. Besides winning their second Ligue 1 trophy in 1994, three French Cups in 1993, 1995, 1998 and two League Cups in 1995 and 1998, PSG also became the second French club to win a European trophy by beating Rapid Wien in the 1996 Winners Cup Final.
These golden periods were followed by a decreasing period due to severe mismanagement when they should also face pressure for the title race.
In the 2000s, although PSG had some success, including winning three French Cups and League Cups, this year was instead remembered due to various crises and problems with the fans. Even so, PSG can still survive in the caste of French football.
PSG’s fate changed drastically after the arrival of 2011 investors from the Middle East who bought 70% of the French capital club’s shares. A series of achievements have been achieved, including six French league trophies and many star players brought in to strengthen the French capital team.
