Lille and Brest Battle for Champions League Spot as Ligue 1 Season Concludes

The fight for direct Champions League qualification between Lille and surprise contender Brest is the primary issue to be resolved in this weekend’s final games of the French Ligue 1 season. Paris Saint-Germain were confirmed as champions for a record-extending 12th time last month with three games to spare.

Monaco have secured second place, confirming their return to the Champions League for the first time since the 2018/19 season.

Behind them, it’s a contest between Lille and Brest for the third automatic berth in Europe’s elite club competition, with the loser having to settle for fourth place.

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The expansion of the Champions League from 32 teams to 36 starting next season, where clubs will play eight games against different opponents in a single pool rather than in groups of four, has benefited France. Ligue 1 will now have three automatic spots in the competition instead of two, while the fourth-placed team will face two preliminary rounds early next season.

Lille sit third before hosting Nice, who are certain to finish fifth and will go into next season’s Europa League.

However, Lille, who reached the Champions League last-16 in 2022, have an extremely narrow lead over Brest – they are ahead only by a difference of two goals, with both clubs having scored the same number of goals.

“Even though we are in third, we know we will have to win our last match against Nice, which will be very, very difficult,” said Lille coach Paulo Fonseca, who has been linked with moves to AC Milan and Marseille, after his team beat Nantes last weekend.

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Brest have never finished above eighth in the top flight before this season, and their guaranteed best-ever performance means they are preparing to play in Europe for the first time. They are currently seeking a venue to host their continental competition matches after UEFA informed them they could only open one stand if they chose to play at their own Stade Francis-Le Ble due to safety reasons.

Brest had been in the top three since late February but slipped to fourth last weekend after winning just once in five games.

The team managed by Eric Roy, who has been named Ligue 1’s coach of the year, finishes the season at Toulouse.

“We will see if we go into the big one, or into the Europa League,” said Roy last week. “But in any case, what we have done already is exceptional.”

Elsewhere, Lens, Lyon, and Marseille will compete to determine who finishes sixth and seventh. Sixth place guarantees a European spot

, but seventh will also qualify, provided PSG win the French Cup final and Lyon, their opponents, do not finish in the top six.

At the bottom, Lorient appear certain to be relegated along with already-demoted Clermont, while Metz are poised to face a play-off against a second-tier team.

Player to Watch: Kylian Mbappe

Mbappe is expected to make his last Ligue 1 appearance for PSG when they play Metz at the Stade Saint-Symphorien, the venue where he debuted for the club as an 18-year-old in September 2017. Assuming he plays—Mbappe did not appear in Wednesday’s 2-1 win at Nice due to a hamstring issue—the France captain is expected to join Real Madrid at the end of the campaign. PSG, having already secured the title, will likely avoid risking Mbappe’s fitness before the French Cup final against Lyon next weekend.

Key Stats

• 7: Lorient stand on the verge of relegation after a run of seven consecutive defeats.
• 43: Lyon have amassed 43 points from their last 19 Ligue 1 games, climbing from bottom in early December to the brink of European qualification. This is three points more than champions PSG over the same period.
• 191: The number of goals scored by Mbappe in 246 career Ligue 1 appearances.