Coupe de la Ligue

The Coupe de la Ligue known outside France as the French League Cup, is a knockout cup competition in French football organized by the Ligue de Football Professionnel. The tournament was established in 1994 and, unlike the Coupe de France, is only open to professional clubs in France which play in country's top three football divisions, though only four professional clubs currently play in the Championnat National.

Paris Saint-Germain are the current champions, having defeated Monaco 4–1 for a record seventh title in the 2016-2017 competition.

Precursors
Competitions similar to the Coupe de la Ligue had been previously held in France. The Coupe Charles Drago was held from 1953 to 1965; it involved teams eliminated from the Coupe de France. The winner of the first Coupe Charles Drago final was decided by a coin-toss when Sochaux and Toulouse tied 3–3 after extra time. Another competition named Coupe de la Ligue existed from 1963 to 1965; this was run alongside the Coupe Charles Drago for two years until they both ceased. In 1982, a Coupe d'Eté (Summer cup) was held before the start of the French league season; the cup was won by Stade Laval. This tournament continued under the name of Coupe de la Ligue, until 1994, before the beginning of the French season.

History
The tournament in its current format started in 1994 and was initiated by the professional teams because of their displeasure with the Coupe de France, thanks to its built-in home advantage for teams playing in the lower leagues. Entrance to the UEFA Cup, now called the UEFA Europa League, is offered to the winning team. Its first winner was Paris Saint-Germain, after their 2–0 victory over Bastia. The first final decided by a penalty shootout was in 1996 when Metz beat Lyon. The first three finals were held at Parc des Princes; from 1998 edition until 2015, the finals have been held at the Stade de France. Strasbourg and Paris Saint-Germain have won the competition at both stadiums. Gueugnon became the first team below the top division of France to win the cup after beating Paris Saint-Germain in the 2000 final. Overall, there have been 14 winners of the competition since its inception. The current holders of the cup are Paris Saint-Germain, who beat AS Monaco in the 2017 final to win the cup for a record seventh time, fourth in a row.

Records

 * Most tournament wins (team): seven, Paris Saint-Germain.
 * Most final appearances (team): eight, Paris Saint-Germain.
 * Highest goalscorer (career): Pauleta, 15 goals.
 * Most goals scored in a season (player): Stéphane Guivarc'h, seven goals in 1997–98.

Media coverage
In France, the Coupe de la Ligue is broadcast by France Television until the 2008–09 season and will continue to do so until at least the 2015–16 season.

In Spain, the Coupe de la Ligue is broadcast by beIN Sports (Spain).

In Australia the Coupe de la Ligue is broadcast by Setanta Sports Australia.

In many parts of the world the game is broadcast live on TV5Monde.