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| Full name | Montpellier Hérault Rugby | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Nickname(s) | Les Cistes (TheRockroses) Les Bleu et Blanc (The Bleu and Whites) | ||
| Founded | 1986; 39 years ago (1986) | ||
| Location | Montpellier, France | ||
| Ground | GGL Stadium (Capacity: 15,697) | ||
| Chairman | Mohed Altrad | ||
| Coach | Joan Caudullo | ||
| Captain(s) | Alexandre Bécognée Yacouba Camara Arthur Vincent | ||
| Most appearances | Fulgence Ouedraogo (340) | ||
| Top scorer | Benoît Paillaugue (1,368) | ||
| Most tries | Timoci Nagusa (92) | ||
| League | Top 14 | ||
| 2024–25 | 9th | ||
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| Official website | |||
| www | |||
Montpellier Hérault Rugby (MHR) (French pronunciation:[mɔ̃pɛljeeʁoʁyɡbiklœb,-pəl-];Occitan:Montpelhièr Erau Rugbi Club) is a French professionalrugby union club, based inMontpellier,Occitanie and named after theHérault department. The club competes in the top level of theFrench league system, theTop 14. They originally played atStade Sabathé (capacity 5,000) but moved in2007 to the Stade Yves-du-Manoir, later known asAltrad Stadium, and since renamed the GGL Stadium. They wear white and blue.
The club was established in 1986 through the merger of two other rugby union clubs, the Stade Montpelliérain and MUC Rugby.
In 1993 the club won the Challenge de l'Espérance.
In 2003 the club became the champion of France's second division national rugby league, the Pro D2. After finishing second in the league table at the end of the 2002–03 season, Montpellier advanced to the playoffs. They defeatedAuch in the semi-finals andTarbes in the finals to win promotion to the Top 14. The following season the club played for theEuropean Shield, and contested the final. Played in May 2004, Montpellier defeated Italian clubViadana 25 points to 19 to win the Shield.
The club barely avoided relegation after the 2006–07 season. Winning only nine games during a 26-game season, Montpellier found itself in a relegation position with only two games left to play. Thanks to a bonus-point victory in week 25, the team finished just four points ahead ofAgen which was relegated to the Pro D2 at the end of the year.
After 2006–07, the club's fortunes began to improve. In June 2007, Fulgence Ouedraogo became the first Montpellier player to play on the French national rugby union team. That same summer the club's new stadium, the Stade Yves-du-Manoir (now GGL Stadium), opened. In 2007–08 Montpellier enjoyed its first winning season in the Top 14. The club made its next step up the table in 2010–11 when it unexpectedly finished sixth by a single point and made the Top 14 playoffs for the first time. The underdog squad defeated both Castres and Racing Métro to make the championship game where they were defeated 15–10 by Toulouse. Since that season, Montpellier has become a consistent playoff contender, finishing fifth in both 2011–12 and 2012–13 and second on the league table in 2013–14.
Thanks to the club's excellent 2010–11 showing, Montpellier was awarded its first spot in the Heineken Cup tournament for 2011–12. The club returned for the 2012–13 tournament and made the quarter-finals before being eliminated byClermont. Montpellier returned for the final edition of the Heineken Cup in 2013–14, and participated in the successor to the Heineken Cup, theEuropean Rugby Champions Cup, in 2014–15.
From 2011 the club has been chaired and funded byMohed Altrad.[1]
| Date | Winners | Score | Runners-up | Venue | Spectators |
| 4 June 2011 | Stade Toulousain | 15–10 | Montpellier Hérault RC | Stade de France,Saint-Denis | 77,000 |
| 2 June 2018 | Castres Olympique | 29–13 | Montpellier Hérault RC | Stade de France,Saint-Denis | 79,441 |
| 24 June 2022 | Montpellier Hérault RC | 29–10 | Castres Olympique | Stade de France,Saint-Denis | 78,245 |
| Date | Winners | Score | Runners-up | Venue | Spectators |
| 13 May 2016 |  Montpellier Hérault RC | 26–19 |  Harlequins | Grand Stade de Lyon,Lyon | 28,556[2] |
| 21 May 2021 | Montpellier Hérault RC | 18–17 | Leicester | Twickenham,London | 10,000 |
| Date | Winners | Score | Runners-up | Venue | Spectators |
| 21 May 2004 | Montpellier Hérault RC | 25–19 |  Viadana | Sergio Lanfranchi,Parma | 2,553 |
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | PF | PA | PD | TF | TA | TB | LB | Pts | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Toulouse | 9 | 6 | 0 | 3 | 334 | 217 | +117 | 32 | 18 | 4 | 1 | 29 | Qualification forplayoff semi-finals andEuropean Rugby Champions Cup |
| 2 | Toulon | 9 | 6 | 0 | 3 | 280 | 223 | +57 | 37 | 24 | 4 | 1 | 29 | |
| 3 | Pau | 9 | 6 | 0 | 3 | 249 | 211 | +38 | 29 | 22 | 3 | 1 | 28 | Qualification forplayoff semi-final qualifiers andEuropean Rugby Champions Cup |
| 4 | Bordeaux Bègles | 9 | 6 | 0 | 3 | 274 | 240 | +34 | 39 | 31 | 3 | 0 | 27 | |
| 5 | Bayonne | 9 | 6 | 0 | 3 | 273 | 260 | +13 | 31 | 34 | 2 | 0 | 26 | |
| 6 | Stade Français | 9 | 5 | 0 | 4 | 252 | 212 | +40 | 31 | 28 | 3 | 2 | 25 | |
| 7 | La Rochelle | 9 | 5 | 0 | 4 | 257 | 193 | +64 | 31 | 23 | 3 | 2 | 25 | Qualification forEuropean Rugby Champions Cup |
| 8 | Clermont | 9 | 5 | 0 | 4 | 321 | 244 | +77 | 41 | 30 | 3 | 0 | 23 | |
| 9 | Racing 92 | 9 | 5 | 0 | 4 | 212 | 243 | −31 | 23 | 31 | 0 | 1 | 21 | Qualification forEuropean Rugby Challenge Cup |
| 10 | Castres | 9 | 4 | 0 | 5 | 208 | 268 | −60 | 24 | 34 | 1 | 3 | 20 | |
| 11 | Montpellier | 9 | 3 | 1 | 5 | 222 | 191 | +31 | 27 | 20 | 3 | 2 | 19 | |
| 12 | Lyon | 9 | 4 | 0 | 5 | 231 | 278 | −47 | 27 | 36 | 2 | 0 | 18 | |
| 13 | Montauban | 9 | 1 | 1 | 7 | 202 | 406 | −204 | 24 | 56 | 0 | 1 | 7 | Qualification forrelegation play-off |
| 14 | Perpignan | 9 | 0 | 0 | 9 | 142 | 271 | −129 | 15 | 31 | 0 | 1 | 1 | Relegation toPro D2 |
The Montpellier squad for the2025–26 season is:[3][4]
Note: Flags indicate national union underWorld Rugby eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-World Rugby nationality.
Note: Flags indicate national union underWorld Rugby eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-World Rugby nationality.
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