Stade François-Blin

Stade François-Blin sits in the industrial belt of Pas-de-Calais. It has been here since 1985. The ground holds its place through a twenty-year convention with RC Lens, who now shoulder the maintenance and security. The agreement ensures the local club keeps priority access, while the reserve team and the women’s squad use the pitch for their own campaigns.

The pitch itself is the most recent addition to the site. The natural surface was replaced in 2023 with a hybrid system. Floodlights illuminate the rectangle, and the absence of an athletics track keeps the focus entirely on the game.

The stands do not reach the heights of the larger venues in the region, but they can fill. The women’s team draws the most consistent crowds. The record attendance belongs to a friendly against Charleroi, when the town packed the terraces for a match with Belgian visitors. The number stands at 5,000. The ground is not a temple of football, nor does it claim to be.