Formed: 1974
Nicknames: Les Pailladins, Les Héraultais (people from the Hérault area)

UEFA club competition honours (runners-up in brackets)
• UEFA Intertoto Cup: 1999

Domestic honours (most recent triumph in brackets)
• League title: 1 (2012)
• French Cup: 1 (1990)

History
• Montpellier were formed in the mid-1970s by current president Louis Nicollin, who merged Sport Club Montpelliérain and Stade Olympique Montpelliérain, winners of the 1929 Coupe de France and part of the first French professional season three years later.

• Playing at the compact Stade de la Mosson, named after the nearby river, Montpellier reached the top flight in 1980 following three promotions, their cause inspired by the goals of Fleury Di Nallo, who joined in 1975 from Olympique Lyonnais, the club from the city where Nicollin was born.

• The late 1980s heralded something of a golden era for the club. Under Michel Mézy, Pierre Mosca and Aimé Jacquet, players such as Laurent Blanc, Roger Milla and Éric Cantona thrived and the team was rewarded with a French Cup triumph in 1990. The following season, Montpellier defeated PSV Eindhoven and FC Steaua Bucureşti in the UEFA Cup Winners' Cup before succumbing to Manchester United FC in the quarter-finals.

• Les Pailladins, named after the suburb they play in and their famous kop Butte Paillade, spent five seasons in Ligue 2 following relegation in 2004. René Girard replaced Rolland Courbis upon the club's return to the top flight in 2009 and led a young team, inspired by the goals of now departed striker Olivier Giroud, to an unexpected first Ligue 1 title triumph in 2011/12.

Club records Most appearances: Pascal Baills (429)
Most goals: Laurent Blanc (84)
Record victory: Grenoble Abbaye 0-7 Montpellier (French Cup, 20 November 2004), Montpellier 7-0 FC Sète 34 (Ligue 2, 25 April 1987)
Record defeat: FC Nantes 7-0 Montpellier (Ligue 1, 12 December 1981)