Bangkok’s Rajamangala National Stadium has been announced as host venue for the 2023 Trophée des Champions, with France’s Professional Football League (LFP) taking steps to address environmental concerns over staging its event overseas.
The annual meeting between the Ligue 1 champion and winner of the Coupe de France will take place at the 51,550-seat stadium in the Thai capital on August 5.
The LFP is partnering with Thai promoter Fresh Air Festival (FAF) to stage the game. FAF also promoted July’s prestigious pre-season friendly between English Premier League clubs Liverpool and Manchester United at Rajamangala National Stadium.
As part of the Bangkok announcement, the LFP set out sustainability measures concerning the Trophée des Champions. As part of its CSR strategy, and in addition to the efforts to reduce the carbon footprint that are carried out as part of the organisation of the Trophée des Champions, the LFP has decided to contribute to France’s climate commitments aimed at carbon neutrality.
The LFP will participate in the financing of a project entitled ‘Label Bas Carbone’ by the Ministry of Ecological Transition, targeting the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions in France.
Last year’s Trophée des Champions was held at Tel Aviv’s Bloomfield Stadium for the second year running, with Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) defeating Nantes 4-0 on July 31. The event relaunched in its current incarnation in 1995, being held in France through to 2009. That year, the game was staged at Stade Olympique in Montreal, Canada.
This triggered a run of Trophée des Champions outside of France, but COVID-19 led to the 2020-21 fixture being played at Stade Bollaert-Delelis, home of Ligue 1 club RC Lens.
The LFP has taken the Trophée des Champions to a number of countries in recent years. The 2019 and 2018 matches were staged at the Shenzhen Universiade Sports Centre, with China also playing host in 2014 with the Workers’ Stadium in Beijing. Montreal has staged the event twice at the Stade Olympique and Stade Saputo, respectively, in 2009 and 2015.
The Trophée des Champions has also been taken to the Stade de Tanger in Morocco twice, in 2011 and 2017. Stade de l’Amitié in Libreville, Gabon, played host in 2013, while Africa was also the destination in 2010 with the Hamadi Agrebi Stadium in Tunis, Tunisia.
In 2012, the Trophée des Champions headed to the United States with Red Bull Arena in New Jersey, while its 2016 edition was held at the Wörthersee Stadion in Klagenfurt, Austria.
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