Stade Rochelais | |||
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Nickname | Les Maritimes (The Maritimes) | ||
Leagues | Pro A | ||
Founded | 1932 | ||
History | Rupella (1932–1996) La Rochelle Basket 17 (1996–2000) Rupella Basket (2000-2012) Union Basket La Rochelle (2012-2015) Rupella Basket(2015-2018) Stade Rochelais Rupella (2018-2023) Stade Rochelais (2023–present) | ||
Arena | Salle Gaston-Neveur | ||
Capacity | 1,994 | ||
Location | La Rochelle, France | ||
Team colors | Yellow, Black and Grey | ||
Head coach | Julien Cortey | ||
Championships | 1 French Second League | ||
Website | basket.staderochelais.com | ||
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Stade Rochelais basket is a French professional basketball team based in La Rochelle. The team plays in the Pro A, having been promoted from the LNB Pro B in the 2023–24 season.[1][2]
Founded in 1932 as Ruppela, the team promoted to the Pro B, the second level league, for the first time in 1988. The Rochelais remained in the league for eight years, and had several former Pro A players on its team throughout the years, including Don Collins and Freddy Hufnagel.
In 1996, the club relegated back to the sixth level Nationale Masculine 4 (NM4). They returned to the third level Nationale Masculine 1 (NM1) in 2012, under coach Gregory Thiélin.
The club merged with the rugby union club Stade Rochelais in 2017, adopting the rugby club's traditional team colors of yellow and black. The basketball section became part of the omnisport club named Stade Rochelais Omnisports. In April 2020, former France national team player Aymeric Jeanneau became the director of the club and expressed the goal of bringing the team to the highest level Pro A. After a promotion to the Pro B in 2021 and a championship in 2024, they will make their debut in the LNB Élite (formerly the Pro A) in the 2024–25 season.