FIFA Magazine

2600 years of turbulent history - Marseilles: where football is king

Marseilles is the cross-roads linking Europe in the north with the Mediterranean and the East. In terms of culture and history, the city has a lot to offer. And it is passionate about its football.

Marseille BY: ANTOINE VIERNE
French World Cup Organising Committee.

arseilles is the second largest city in France and the largest port. It is also the oldest town in the country, celebrating its 26th centenary in 1999.

It was the Phoenicians who first set up residence on the shores near what is today's Vieux Port, over 2600 years ago. Massala was the name the settlement went by, later becoming Marseilles. But in the underwater grotto of Cosquer, located in an inlet to the east of the town, there is evidence that the area was inhabited far earlier..... 28,000 years ago.

Marseilles: Fort St. Jean at the entrance to the Old Port (left) and the Rue St. Ferreol in the city centre.

Yet while the city can look back on a long, rich and varied history, as the number of monuments testify, it is also looking forward to the start of the third millennium. Very conscious of its role as a cross-roads between the north, the Mediterranean and the East, it has chosen to restructure around the port, the largest in France. Development and economic progress in the Euro-Mediterranean area will make Marseilles a real focal point of international exchange in southern Europe.

There are plans for major urban renewal, which include development and renovation of the poorer areas of the city. But already the renovation of the city centre is bearing its first fruits: improvement in living quarters, construction of a university and halls of residence for the students, opening up new stores...

Mixed population
There is also a rich cultural history - Marseilles is one of the most important cultural centres on the European coast of the Mediterranean. There are many museums and the "Marseillais" are devoted to their opera house, one of the most important in France, as well as to the Roland Petit National Ballet. And a bit of arithmetic shows that Marseilles also has the largest number of theatres per inhabitant. Apart from these permanent cultural fixtures, the town organises numerous festivals and concerts, and is careful to keep its own special ethnic cultures going, the inheritance of centuries of population mixing.

On the sporting side, Marseilles is without a shadow of doubt the most "football mad" town in France; the World Cup games there during France '98 will get a special welcome. Before then, the world's attention focused on the city when the draw for the final round groupings was made on 4 December (see below). The town will host seven of the 64 World Cup matches at the Stade Vélodrome, including one of the semi-finals; for the occasion, Marseilles has worked out a festival plan which will involve all its citizens in a welcoming programme.

Le Stade Vélodrome

Le Stade Vélodrome The 1998 World Cup will see France get a worthy national stadium at last Le Stade de France in Saint-Denis (capacity 80,000). But Marseilles too will benefit and from 1998 on will have a stadium to match the town's passion for the game.

Le Stade Vélodrome has been entirely rebuilt and now is one of the finest grounds in Europe. The stands and all the seating were restructured, with 32 km of terracing being built. The floodlights, public address systems and video installations were brought up to World Cup standard, the changing rooms were refurbished and a permanent media centre was set up. With the changes completed early in 1998, le Stade Vélodrome now is totally up to date and accommodates 60,000 spectators, all seated. It was here that FIFA and the CFO staged a true "premiere" when the ceremony for the group draw was held on Thursday, 4 December, 1997. As part of the programme there was a match between a selected European team and one representing "The Rest of the World". A great occasion to celebrate a great new football cathedral.

For more information on Olympique Marseilles, visit the official site of the French Football League