From bankruptcy to 'people's team' - Bordeaux's rise

Image source, Getty ImagesImage caption, Thousands of Bordeaux Begles supporters packed the streets during their parade of the Investec Champions Cup trophy last year Saturday, 21 May 2011: Leinster produce the greatest comeback in European Cup final history to defeat Northampton Saints in Cardiff. Sunday, 22 May 2011: Bordeaux Begles defeat Albi 21-14 to win promotion to France's Top 14. Less than 24 hours separated history-defining games for Saturday's Investec Champions Cup finalists. Leinster boss Leo Cullen captained his home province to back-to-back Heineken Cups - now known as the Champions Cup - in 2011 and 2012, while Bordeaux won promotion and then finished eighth in France's top flight. Roll on 14 years and Bordeaux are favourites for the final, looking to emulate the Irish province by retaining the Champions Cup. It has been a remarkable rise for the French club that formed only in 2006 after the merger of Pro D2 side Stade Bordelais and Club Athletique Bordeaux Begles Gironde who, because of a pool-stage draw with Cardiff, agonisingly missed out on a semi-final place in the inaugural Heineken Cup in 1995-96. After 90 years in France's top flight, financial struggles meant CA Bordeaux Begles Gironde were relegated to the third tier in 2003, before the club declared bankruptcy a year later. Two years on, Union Stade Bordelais-Club Athletique Bordeaux-Begles Gironde was formed after the two Bordeaux-based clubs joined forces. That mouthful was shortened to Union Bordeaux Begles (UBB) in 2008 - and their side now contains France stars Louis Bielle-Biarrey, Damian Penaud and Matthieu Jalibert. Listen on SoundsListen on BBC Sounds with live text on BBC Sport app & website Australian back Blair Connor, aged 21 at the time, got in touch with his agent to look at clubs overseas after struggling to break through as a regular at Queensland Reds. When second division Bordeaux Begles came up as an option for the 2010-11 campaign, a quick Google search of the coastline was enough to persuade the keen surfer. "I knew nothing. I looked on the map and saw it was not far from the beach. I love surfing, so I thought, 'Sweet, I can surf once or twice a week.' That is about how much I knew," Connor told BBC Sport. "The club was super small and had about four people in the office. You had to rely on the other players to help you out. It was a real family vibe." UBB president Laurent Marti, who is still in charge of recruitment, devised a three-year plan ending in Top 14 promotion. A team full of "misfits" who were "a bit underdeveloped but had potential" started the season playing in front of around 1,000 supporters, but ended it by packing out their 10,000-capacity Stade Andre Moga stadium for the final home league game. Image source, Getty ImagesImage caption, Connor - offloading the ball here - made over 200 appearances for Bordeaux from 2010 to 2020 A surprise semi-final away win over second-placed Grenoble in the promotion play-offs of that season meant Bordeaux, who had finished fifth in the second tier, reached an unexpected final. Connor started on the wing and Bordeaux won the final to earn a Top 14 spot, getting the better of Albi. Connor recalled elderly supporters crying. What is now a juggernaut of European rugby had begun to roll. "Part of the reward for promotion was to play a couple of games at [the 34,462-capacity] Stade Chaban-Delmas, which was owned by the council and shared with the football team. We shared that for the first three games and the expectation was we would get a good crowd, but not a full crowd," Connor recalled. "First game, we packed it out. Second game, we packed it out. We just kept doing that. The more games we played and won in the Top 14, people started to recognise the players. "In that first year, we became the people's team because we were a bunch of underdogs. We just kept winning and every game was like a final. I think our budget was the lowest in the league." Leinster's complicated history with Champions Cup Published1 day ago'No surprise' McNamara has thrived in Bordeaux Published1 day agoNew generation 'took the club where it needed to go'The financial demise of the city's football team, who were relegated to the fourth tier in 2024, has helped rugby become the city's main sporting attraction. Stade Chaban-Delmas became UBB's permanent home in 2011 and the club regularly play in front of near-capacity crowds - making them the best-supported club in Europe. Consolidation in the top flight was followed by a first Champions Cup appearance in 2015-16, thanks to Pierre Bernard's late drop-goal against Gloucester in a qualification play-off - a game Connor started. Back-to-back Champions Cup appearances began to take a toll on Bordeaux's league form as they struggled to compete on two fronts, finishing 11th, 10th and 10th. "During that period [2016-2019], we started taking steps backwards. The budget was getting bigger and we were signing bigg

From bankruptcy to 'people's team' - Bordeaux's rise

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