towards the end of the Brest-Metz duopoly in the Women’s League?

Since 2015 and the breakthrough of Fleury Loiret, Metz and Brest have left nothing to competition at the domestic level. The two clubs have amassed all the titles, and only the Covid-19 came to interrupt their hegemony in 2020 by causing the championship to stop. But the ambitious Nantes and Paris 92 could disrupt this hierarchy.

The Nantes women have established themselves among the best formations in the championship in previous seasons, finishing in fifth place in 2022 and 2021, and fourth in 2019. In the preparation matches, the Neptunes beat Paris 92 (26-19) before to draw against Brest (20-20), “which denotes their competence in the short term but also in the sequence of matches“, according to Metz coach Emmanuel Mayonnade. The Messin club has also lost two of its best French players: Olympic champion in Tokyo Méline Nocandy and 2017 world champion Astride N’Gouan, who left to join Paris 92, third last year. The Paris squad also includes Laura Flippes and Jannela Blonbou, two other internationals.

The championship is going to be exciting, in terms of entertainment, it’s going to be fun.

Pablo Morel

“It’s good, the more Metz will have direct competitors, the more it will mean that the championship is gaining momentum.“, welcomes Nodjialem Myaro, president of the Women’s Handball League. “For us, having four clubs that claim a title, it puts suspense at the end of the championship and it shows that the clubs are pulling themselves up.“Pablo Morel, coach of Brest, is also delighted with this”competitionnascent. “The championship is going to be exciting, in terms of entertainment, it’s going to be fun, and I think it’s very good for the championship, for the players, and for the coaches, it’s very attractive. I hope we can be part of this debate!»

A new formula

This densification of the level coincides with a change in the format of the championship: the final in two return matches between the first two of the regular season will give way to a championship without final phase, modeled on the model of the men’s Starligue. “The title can be played in September, when the numbers will not be in place“Blows Emmanuel Mayonnade. “I imagine a French champion with three or four defeats no more, because there is a density which means that everyone can lose everywhere.From this new formula comes more “pressure“For the teams that will aim for the title, explains Coralie Lassource, captain of Brest:”We will have to be good from the start and until the end, so there may be a little more pressure. Now, we know that any team can be champion of France, it’s the one that will be the most regular of the season.»

The program for the first day of the Women’s League:
Friday
Toulon – Besançon (8:30 p.m.)

Saturday
Bourg de Péage – Metz (20h00)
Saint Amand – Map of Cuques
Brest-Dijon (8:30 p.m.)
Chambray–Nantes
Celles-sur-Belle – Nice (8:45 p.m.)

Sunday
Paris 92 – Merignac (4:00 p.m.)