Stade Jean-Laffon
Perpignan, Languedoc-Roussillon, France
Stade Jean-Laffon, Perpignan, France — opened 1908, originally known as the Route de Thuir stadium; renamed for Jean Laffon (1884-1916), a USA Perpignan vice-president killed in the First World War, along with seven club players also killed in the war, 18 rugby league games hosted, home of XIII Catalan, 1934-1962 (28 seasons), before the club moved to the newly built Stade Gilbert Brutus; USA Perpignan (rugby union) also played here 1908-1940, before relocating to Stade Aimé Giral.
Sourcing caveat: The reported record attendance for the 1950 French Championship Final (18,000 vs 20,000 across different sources) is not resolved and exceeds this site's own recorded top-crowd figure for the venue (12,254); both figures are noted rather than one being asserted as definitive.
Ground facts
| Opened | 1908, originally known as the Route de Thuir stadium; renamed for Jean Laffon (1884-1916), a USA Perpignan vice-president killed in the First World War, along with seven club players also killed in the war (XIII Catalan took over the ground as their rugby league home from 1934 after the rugby union club USA Perpignan initially blocked them from hiring a stadium elsewhere, forcing club volunteers to demolish a house and build their own pitch and stand here.) |
| Home club | XIII Catalan, 1934-1962 (28 seasons), before the club moved to the newly built Stade Gilbert Brutus; USA Perpignan (rugby union) also played here 1908-1940, before relocating to Stade Aimé Giral |
| Games hosted (rugby league, on record) | 18 |
| Top recorded crowd | 12,254 |
| Capacity | 7,050 (1,281 seated) |
| Test matches hosted | 1 |
| Years used | 1935–2006 |
| Location | Perpignan, Languedoc-Roussillon |
Name history
- Route de Thuir stadium — 1908-onward, original name
- Stade Jean-Laffon — renamed in honour of Jean Laffon and seven USA Perpignan players killed in WWI
Rugby league history
XIII Catalan's long-time home, and the site of a much-cited but imprecisely sourced 1950 French Championship Final that reportedly drew a record crowd (variously reported as 18,000 or 20,000 across different sources, a discrepancy not resolved here); this site's own recorded top crowd for the venue is a more modest 12,254. XIII Catalan later merged in 2000 with AS Saint-Esteve to form Union Treiziste Catalane, which became Catalans Dragons; the original XIII Catalan identity continues at amateur/youth level, still playing at Stade Jean-Laffon today.
Football (Perpignan FC in the 1980s, then amateur club OC Perpignan since 2008) and, in its early decades, rugby union (USA Perpignan, 1908-1940).
Historic Test matches, Cup & Grand Finals hosted
- 19 Nov 1961 — France 2-23 New Zealand, this venue's only confirmed official rugby league Test
Pre-dates the site's structured match-by-match records for these competitions, so listed here as sourced facts rather than linked match pages.
Sources
Data last verified: 11 August 2026.
← Rugby League · Champions list · All-time records · Grand Final results · World Cup · All competitions · Teams · Players