Le Stadium

Stade Francis-Le-Basser sits in Laval, France, and the name is not so much a greeting as an acknowledgement of a local figure, Francis Le Basser, the mayor of Laval who served until March 1971. The ground opened in August 1971 under a different name, Parc municipal , before the change, a shift that followed the club’s promotion to Ligue 1 and a renovation in 1978.

First the running track was removed between 2001 and 2002 to make way for the new North Tribune, then the steelwork itself was replaced in 2012-2013 due to corrosion. The capacity shrank as a result, settling at 11,107 spectators, of whom 10,107 are seated. The pitch is natural grass.

There is no need to dwell on the history of every seat. The night game is where the place shifts. Floodlights cut through the dark, and the stands fill, though the crowd never reaches the heights of August 1979, when 20,849 people watched Stade Lavallois take on AS Saint-Étienne. That match remains the record, but the ground rarely sees such numbers now. Stade Lavallois Mayenne Football Club plays in the French league system, and the stadium sits on Avenue Pierre-de-Coubertin. It is a quiet corner of Laval, with the rest of the city rising behind it.