If you love to see big stars having a horrible evening, you have to go to Brest. It doesn't matter if your name is Neymar, Cesc Fabregas or Kylian Mbappé: no one enjoys the storm and rain at the breton coast. We can't wait for Messi's visit.
Stade Brestois 29 is not a club that can boast on a very rich history. Les Pirates haven't even played 15 years on the French top level, and after filing for bankruptcy in 1991 they played non-league football for years. But still, this is the club where elegant players like David Ginola and Franck Ribéry gave their careers a kick start.
Brest is the most western point of Brittany, and therefore also of France. Ligue 1 teams don't really like to come here, because for French standard, it's often quite chilly, wet and windy. Because of the high altitude and the open structure of the Stade Francis-Le Blé, the weather has a free rein at home games of Brest. A while ago, the stars of PSG decided to do their warming-up in the catacombs of the stadium, because they really didn't like it outside.
With just 15.000 places, Stade Francis-Le Blé is one of the smallest stadiums in Ligue, but it truly has a unique character, because of the four totally different stands. A giant main stand, a beautiful side stand oppose it and two smaller stands behind the goals, one of them uncovered. As an away fan, with a little bit of bad luck you'll spend 90 minutes in the storm.
Behind the Tribune Quimper, home to the fanatic fans of Brest, you'll find at the Rue Quimper bar Le Penalty, which obviously is known for its link with the football club. Inside the bar there's a lot of picture from the history of Stade Brestois, and from the terrace you have a good view of the stadium across the street.
It's a quote of one of the most famous born kids of the city. "Brest is not the most beautiful, nor the ugliest city of the world". Brest was, like more French harbour cities, very important for the Germans in World War II. It led to structural bombings from the allies, and the old Brest disappeared almost entirely.
By the way, that quote is from the Argentine top striker Gonzalo Higuaín, remarkably enough born in Brest, where his father was a football player back then. He was born in the hospital at the corner of Avenue Foch, a giant gray building: exemplary for the city.
Near the hospital you'll find the Place de la Liberté, a post-war square and the absolute center of the city. Stade Brestois hasn't won many prizes, but if they do win one, they'll celebrate it here. In 2019 the square became full for the last time, when Brest managed to promote to Ligue 1. In the Rue Jean Jaurès, directly right of the town hall, you'll find a fan store as well.
The formation of Stade Brestois in the 50s can be linked back to the catholic church. There were several smaller, catholic clubs in town, but the biggest football club of all was a secular one, AS Brest. To compete with them, the catholic clubs decided to team up and form Stade Brestois. Fair to say they succeeded, because where Stade Brestois plays in Ligue 1, AS Brest plays not higher than at the seventh level. They play at the Stade Menez Paul, one tram stop further than Stade Brestois from the city.
You can buy tickets at the official website of the club. But due to the low capacity of the stadium there's only a limited number of tickets available for every match. So make sure to be fast, because especially against the top teams, the small Francis-Le Blé will be packed.
It's not easy to park your car around the stadium, so the best thing you can do is take the tram. The only tramline of the city takes you in less than ten minutes to Place de Strasbourg, near Stade Francis-Le Blé.
Beeld: Shutterstock, BSR Agency
