Stade de Gerland
Lyon (Gerland), Rhône-Alpes, France
Stade de Gerland, Lyon (Gerland), France — opened Officially opened 23 May 1926 (construction begun 1914, halted by WWI); rugby league use recorded here from 1935, 18 rugby league games hosted, home of Not a rugby league club's regular home ground — used as a major neutral/international venue, including for the 1972 Rugby League World Cup Final; Lyon Villeurbanne XIII, the local club, played its own home league matches at the separate Stade Georges Lyvet instead.
Sourcing caveat: Only 9 of this site's own recorded 18 matches at this venue were individually confirmed via direct verification; the remainder (likely further French Test/European fixtures, possibly including 1954 World Cup matches) are not individually confirmed and are not asserted as fact.
Ground facts
| Opened | Officially opened 23 May 1926 (construction begun 1914, halted by WWI); rugby league use recorded here from 1935 (A direct WebFetch check of this site's own primary match-record source recovered the complete list of 9 confirmed tour matches, whose top attendance (18,000, the 30 Jan 1938 match) matches this site's own directory top-crowd figure for the venue exactly; the remaining matches making up this site's own recorded 18-game total are not individually confirmed.) |
| Home club | Not a rugby league club's regular home ground — used as a major neutral/international venue, including for the 1972 Rugby League World Cup Final; Lyon Villeurbanne XIII, the local club, played its own home league matches at the separate Stade Georges Lyvet instead |
| Games hosted (rugby league, on record) | 18 |
| Top recorded crowd | 18,000 |
| Test matches hosted | 3 |
| Years used | 1935–1990 |
| Location | Lyon (Gerland), Rhône-Alpes |
Name history
- Stade de Gerland — 1926-present, now also known as Matmut Stadium de Gerland under a naming-rights deal
Rugby league history
One of French rugby league's grandest occasional venues, hosting Kangaroos and Kiwis touring-side Tests across more than five decades and the drawn 1972 World Cup Final between Australia and Great Britain, but never serving as a club's regular home. Far better known today as Olympique Lyonnais's football home for 65 years (1950-2015) and, since 2017, Lyon OU's rugby union stadium, having also hosted UEFA Euro 1984, the 1998 FIFA World Cup and the 2003 FIFA Confederations Cup.
Primarily football (Olympique Lyonnais, 1950-2015) and, since 2017, rugby union (Lyon OU); also a major international football and athletics venue historically.
Historic Test matches, Cup & Grand Finals hosted
- 30 Jan 1938 — South East France 8-25 Australia, Kangaroos tour, attendance 18,000, this site's own recorded top crowd for the venue
- 11 Nov 1972 — Australia 10-10 Great Britain, 1972 Rugby League World Cup Final (after extra time), attendance 4,231
- 25 Jan 1953 — France 13-5 Australia, attendance 17,454
Pre-dates the site's structured match-by-match records for these competitions, so listed here as sourced facts rather than linked match pages.
Notable games played here
| Date | Competition | Result |
|---|---|---|
| Final, 11 Nov 1972 | 1972 Rugby League World Cup | Great Britain 10-10 Australia |
| World Cup Table, 31 Oct 1954 | 1954 Rugby League World Cup | Australia 13-28 Great Britain |
Only matches we have full, sourced records for are listed here — other historic games mentioned above may not have a dedicated match page built yet (World Cup coverage in particular is still expanding tournament by tournament).
Sources
Data last verified: 11 August 2026.
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