- published: 26 Oct 2015
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Ligue 1 (French pronunciation: [liɡ œ̃]; League 1, formerly known as Division 1 and sometimes referred to as Le Championnat), is the French professional league for association football clubs. It is the country's primary football competition and serves as the top division of the French football league system. Ligue 1 is one of two divisions making up the Ligue de Football Professionnel, the other being Ligue 2. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with Ligue 2. Seasons run from August to May, with teams playing 38 games each totaling 380 games in the season. Most games are played on Saturdays and Sundays, with a few games played during weekday evenings. Play is regularly suspended the last weekend before Christmas for two weeks before returning in the second week of January. Ligue 1 is one of the top national leagues, currently ranked sixth in Europe behind the English Premier League, Spanish La Liga, the German Bundesliga, the Italian Serie A and the Portuguese Primeira Liga. The league is officially known as Ligue 1 Orange as it is sponsored by French telecommunications company Orange.
The Catholic League of France, sometimes referred to by contemporary (and modern) Roman Catholics as the Holy League, a major player in the French Wars of Religion, was formed by Duke Henry of Guise in 1576. The League intended the eradication of Protestants—also known as Calvinists or Huguenots—out of Catholic France during the Protestant Reformation.
Pope Sixtus V, Philip II of Spain, and the Jesuits were all supporters of this Catholic party.
As Protestantism expanded through parts of Europe, leaders of Catholic nations, in particular Philip II of Spain, and the Pope, felt threatened. In an effort to counter the growing power of Lutherans, Calvinists, and members of the Reformed Church of France, they formed a league to stop the spread of these Protestant factions. The Protestant Calvinists at that time dominated much of the French nobility, leading to active persecution of Catholics in some regions.
The League was spearheaded by Henry, the Duke of Guise, who used it not only to defend the Catholic cause, but also as a political tool in an attempt to usurp the French throne.