Ligue Magnus
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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. 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.
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 Eurasian 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. Regulation wins are worth 3 points, as per international rules. The top 8 teams qualify for the Magnus Cup playoffs, with all series contested in a best-of-seven format. The remaining 4 teams play a 6-game round-robin, at the end of which the last-place team is relegated.
The Magnus Cup champions qualify for the following season's Champions Hockey League. 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 22 December 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 30 December 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.
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. In 2018, mobile ice rink supplier Synerglace became the series' new title sponsor.
Media
Television
Since the 2020–21 season, select regular season and playoff games have aired on free cable and broadband television channel Sport en France. Starting with the 2024–25 campaign, another package of games has been made available in their local markets through affiliates of the free, over-the-air BFM Régions network (today BFM Locales).
Internet streaming
From the 2016–17 season, all of the league's games have been accessible via live internet streaming. Originally broadcast through a third-party platform, they moved in 2024 to a proprietary subscription service, Magnus.TV, managed by Swedish company Sportway Media Group on behalf of the French federation. Starting in the 2025–26 season, select games are also being shown for free on the YouTube and Twitch channels of RMC Sport, which belongs to the same group as BFM Locales.
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.
2025/26 teams
| Team | City | Arena | Founded |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gothiques | Amiens | Coliséum | 1967 |
| Ducs | Angers | IceParc | 1982 |
| Hormadi | Anglet | Patinoire de la Barre | 1969 |
| Boxers | Bordeaux | Patinoire de Mériadeck | 1999 |
| Diables Rouges | Briançon | Patinoire René Froger | 1934 |
| Jokers | Cergy-Pontoise | Aren'Ice | 1981 |
| Pionniers | Chamonix | Centre Sportif Richard Bozon | 2016 |
| Rapaces | Gap | Alp'Arena | 1937 |
| Brûleurs de Loups | Grenoble | Patinoire Pole Sud | 1963 |
| Spartiates | Marseille | Palais omnisports Marseille Grand-Est | 2012 |
| Aigles | Nice | Patinoire Jean Bouin | 1969 |
| Dragons | Rouen | Patinoire de l'Île Lacroix | 1982 |
Former teams
- Albatros de Brest
- Chamois de Chamonix
- Corsaires de Dunkerque
- Drakkars de Caen
- Ducs de Dijon
- Jets de Viry-Essonne
- Ours de Villard-de-Lans
- Pingouins de Morzine-Avoriaz
- Sangliers Arvernes de Clermont-Ferrand
- Scorpions de Mulhouse
- Avalanche du Mont-Blanc
Defunct teams
Previous winners
Titles by team
| Pl | Team | Titles | Winning seasons |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Chamonix | 30 | 1923, 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 |
| 2 | Rouen (earlier known as RHC (Rouen Hockey Club) and also known as Rouen Hockey Élite 76) | 18 | 1990, 1992, 1993, 1994, 1995, 2001, 2003, 2006, 2008, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2016, 2018, 2021, 2023, 2024 |
| 3 | Grenoble (earlier known as CSG Grenoble) | 9 | 1981, 1982, 1991, 1998, 2007, 2009, 2019, 2022, 2025 |
| 4 | Club des Patineurs de Paris (also known as Ice Skating Club de Paris and Sports d'Hiver de Paris) | 7 | 1908, 1912, 1913, 1914, 1920, 1921, 1922 |
| 5 | Saint-Gervais | 6 | 1969, 1974, 1975, 1983, 1985, 1986 |
| 6 | Français Volants Paris | 4 | 1936, 1937, 1938, 1989 |
| 7 | Gap | 4 | 1977, 1978, 2015, 2017 |
| 8 | Stade Français Paris (also known as Rapides de Paris) | 4 | 1932, 1933, 1934, 1935 |
| 9 | AC Boulogne-Billancourt | 3 | 1957, 1960, 1962 |
| 10 | Brest | 2 | 1996, 1997 |
| Mont-Blanc | 2 | 1987, 1988 | |
| Racing Club de Paris | 2 | 1950, 1951 | |
| Reims HC | 2 | 2000, 2002 | |
| Amiens Somme | 2 | 1999, 2004 | |
| 15 | Megève | 1 | 1984 |
| CP Lyon | 1 | 1956 | |
| SC Lyon | 1 | 1907 | |
| ASG Tours | 1 | 1980 | |
| Paris Université Club | 1 | 1953 | |
| Hockey Club de Mulhouse | 1 | 2005 | |
| Briançon | 1 | 2014 |
Awards
- Charles Ramsay Trophy (top scorer)
- Albert Hassler Trophy (most valuable French player)
- Marcel Claret Trophy (most sportsmanlike team)
- Raymond Dewas Trophy (most sportsmanlike player)
- Jean-Pierre Graff Trophy (most promising player)
- Jean Ferrand Trophy (most valuable goaltender)
- Camil Gélinas Trophy (coach of the year)
Notable players
- Philippe Bozon (St. Louis Blues, Genève-Servette HC)
- Alain Daigle (Chicago Blackhawks)
- Evgeny Davydov (HC CSKA Moscow, Winnipeg Jets)
- Steve Gainey (Dallas Stars, Phoenix Coyotes)
- Cristobal Huet (Los Angeles Kings, Montreal Canadiens, Washington Capitals, Chicago Blackhawks)
- Steve Montador (Calgary Flames, Florida Panthers, Anaheim Ducks, Boston Bruins, Buffalo Sabres)
- Steven Reinprecht (Calgary Flames, Colorado Avalanche, Florida Panthers, Los Angeles Kings, Phoenix Coyotes)
- Mark Rycroft (St. Louis Blues, Colorado Avalanche)
- Richard Sévigny (Montreal Canadiens, Quebec Nordiques)
- Claude Verret (Buffalo Sabres, Lausanne HC, Rochester Americans)
In addition, Bob Gainey (Montreal Canadiens) and Brian Propp (Philadelphia Flyers) have played in the second tier of French hockey.