The Best Stadiums in France - Ranked

The murmur of the crowd, the faint smell of overpriced lager, the bloke behind you making near-libellous comments about the opposition manager - let's be honest, we're all absolutely craving the sensory bombardment of a good old-fashioned football stadium at the moment.

For some of us it's got so bad that we've taken to desperately searching out Ligue 1 games at the weekend (where some fans have been allowed back in) just to spice up the weekend with a bit of ambience. Nothing against the guy, but watching Kylian Mbappé miss a sitter against Reims the other day to a chorus of jeers instead of the now-usual sound of silence almost bought a tear to my eye.

Aside from the presence of fans, one thing you can learn from watching Ligue 1 matches is that they've got some pretty nifty stadiums over in France - a very nice mixture of modern, architecturally inventive stadia, classic grounds, and some stunning views (it's just a shame about all the rugby teams they have to share with).

So without further ado, let's take a deeper dive into the wonderful world of French football grounds, in a ranked list which will separate your Pierre Mauroys from your Geoffroy Guichards...

11. Stadium de Toulouse (Toulouse)

Known affectionately as the 'petit Wembley' on account of its oval shape, Toulouse's municipal stadium is one of France's most historic grounds, having been constructed to host the 1938 World Cup.

While it has had the honour of hosting both Pele, during a tour with Santos, and Maradona, in a match where Toulouse famously conquered his Napoli side, it also has the embarrassment of regularly hosting rugby matches, and accordingly loses marks for that.

10. Allianz Riviera (Nice)

The powers that be decided that a 'Nice Stadium' was needed in both sense of the word after Les Aiglons left the much smaller municipal stadium, and although sounds like a hotel, the Allianz Riviera is exactly that.

Obviously, it looks very similar to the Allianz in Munich, using that same panelled, slightly oval-shaped facade, but if it's nice, sometimes you've got to make it twice!

What really marks out Nice's new gaff is it's position at the very foot of the French Alps, meaning that you can at least indulge in a spot of snowboarding after a crushing away-day defeat.

9. Stade Louis II (Monaco)

Alright geography pedants, this is technically not in France but is instead in the Principality of Monaco, but Monaco also play in Ligue 1 and this stadium is absolutely stunning, so I have no choice but to pick it.

A stone's throw from the shimmering view of the Mediterranean for which this part of the French Riviera is renowned, the colourful roof and decorative arch of this stadium make it seem at one with its historical surroundings.

However, all that flowery stuff aside the Stade Louis II can also only seat 16,360 fans, which we can all admit is way too small.

8. Stade Geoffroy-Guichard (Saint-Étienne)

Another one of the old guard of French stadiums, and a cauldron worthy of its best (historic) club, L'Enfer Vert ('The Green Hell') hasn't let its advanced age of 90 years stop it from hosting some cracking games.

From an England perspective, you'll definitely remember it as the scene of that 1998 World Cup match against Argentina, and you'll have tried to forget the goalless draw against Slovakia that took place there during Euro 2016.

Plans to leave the stadium in 2009 were so violently rejected by fans that it was instead renovated, and it's now sitting pretty at a capacity of nearly 42,000.

7. Nouveau Stade de Bordeau / Matmut Atlantique (Bordeaux)

The exterior of this stadium, resembling something you'd see in the Pompidou Centre, is undoubtedly an acquired taste. It's formed of dozens of slender beams which support a matchbox-like roof, and you must start to think you're in a multi-storey car park at some point.

But the creativity and size of this thoroughly modern 42,000-seater stadium, which Bordeaux moved into in 2015, marks it out from many others in France, and when fully illuminated there is a slick beauty to it, which the etheriality of the slender beams add to.

In other words, the perfect location to watch former FIFA Ultimate Team legend Jimmy Briand kick a ball.

6. Stade Bollaert-Delelis (Lens)

Right, enough of stadiums constructed with the intention of winning the Turner Prize, what we've really come here to see is a classic slightly-aging ground which is absolutely bouncing on matchdays and has a lovely, noisy kop.

Unlike a lot of French stadia, which double up as athletics venues, the four separate stands at the Bollaert are crammed up right next to the pitch, much like a stadium you'd see in the Championship on any given Saturday.

Its crown jewel is the Marek, a kop named after former Lens forward Anton Marek, an 4,000-seater Kop where safe standing has been introduced.

5. Stade Pierre Mauroy (Lille)

Lille are another of France's most historically succesful clubs, and they too have an absolute belter of a stadium to back up their rich footballing reputation, although this one was built in 2012.

It's not your average stadium, with a complex system of hydraulics which allow it to change its capacity based on what sporting event is going on there at the time - so tennis fans, there's even something for you guys here.

It also has one of the classic features of any stadium built in the last ten years, a retractable roof, which you have to assume probably took a battering from some of Nicolas Pépé's crosses during his time there.

4. Parc des Princes (PSG)

The Parc des Princes is a lovely little stadium - picturesque, neat and modern, but able to host its fair share of supporters (just over 47,000), and with some nice nods to tradition throughout.

However, the one issue is that PSG, with their Air Jordan and their £200m footballers, might be a little bit to big for it now, and a complicated series of negotiations may ensue, either to purchase the Parc outright, or to find a new home for Les Parisiens. Talk about gratitude!

3. Parc Olympique Lyonnais / Groupama Stadium (Lyon)

Originally titled 'OL Land', a name which puts you in mind of a rollercoaster park with Karim Benzema-themed rides, Lyon's shiny new stadium (opened in 2016) was the baby of Jean-Michel Aulas (remember him, Arsenal fans?).

Enormous and imposing, it is also beautifully illuminated at nighttime, decorated by a unique LED lighting system which gives it one of the most stunning facades of any stadium on this list.

Given that Lyon seem to be able to mass produce world-class midfielders at will, don't be surprised if this is the scene of some glory nights in the club's bright future.

2. Stade de France (French National Team)

An absolute footballing cathedral, and the sight of both despair and ecstasy for the French national side - they won the 1998 World Cup on this turf, but were humiliatingly upset by Portugal, and the lowly Eder, in Euro 2016.

Despite being opened in 1995, it has witnessed so much history, but there is one main blot in its copybook, and that is the existence of a running track. France seemingly loves a multi-purpose stadium, and they can chat all they want about retractable pitches, it does undeniably separate the viewer from the action.

Nonetheless, one of the great modern stadiums, and a (near) perfect accomplishment.

1. Stade Vélodrome (Marseille)

This one really does tick all the boxes.

Historic with a modern twist, hosts a legion of super-passionate supporters every week, panoramic and the home of an iconic club side. Most importantly, it was a multi-purpose stadium and then chairman Bernard Tapie very sensibly decided to get rid of most of that rubbish and make it primarily a football stadium (he was also accused of fixing Marseille's European Cup victory but nobody's perfect).

Perhaps the key factor is that it has undergone plenty of renovations since first being built in 1935, and in doing so has kept pace with the times pretty well - I'm sure there's a valuable lesson about perseverance there somewhere.