ASEC Mimosas
Full nameAssociation Sportive des Employés de Commerce
Nickname(s)Les Mimos (The Mimos)[1]
Les Jaunes et Noirs (The Yellow and Blacks)
Founded29 April 1948 (1948-04-29)
GroundStade Robert Champroux
Capacity10,000
ChairmanCédric Kouamé
ManagerJulien Chevalier
LeagueLigue 1
2022–23Ligue 1, 1st of 16 (champions)
WebsiteClub website

The Association Sportive des Employés de Commerce Mimosas, literally Mimosas Commerce Employees' Sporting Association, is an Ivorian professional football club based in Abidjan. The club is also known as ASEC Mimosas Abidjan and ASEC Abidjan, especially in international club competitions. Founded in 1948, they are the most successful side in Ivorian football, having won the Ivorian Premier Division 29 times and the 1998 CAF Champions League. In addition, ASEC's Académie MimoSifcom has produced a number of famous players predominantly based in top foreign leagues, including Bonaventure Kalou, Didier Zokora, Emmanuel Eboué, Bakari Koné, Gervinho, Salomon Kalou, Romaric, Boubacar Barry, Didier Ya Konan, Kolo Touré, Yaya Touré and Odilon Kossounou, all of whom have played internationally.

History

ASEC Mimosas was founded on 29 April 1948 by a group of businessmen from Western Africa, Lebanon and France. The club originates from a place called Sol-béni (French for Holy Ground) in Abidjan-M'pouto, which today is the name of their training complex.[2] In the following years, ASEC competed in the Championship of Abidjan together with their eternal rival Africa Sports, with their first professional coach being Frenchman Guy Fabre in 1954. Fabre also shaped the club's philosophy of que les enfants s'amusent... en jouant au football (may the children have fun... by playing football).[3]

After Independence in 1960, ASEC won its first title in the newly found Premier Division in 1963. In the early 1970s, ASEC rose to power by winning the league title 5 out of 6 possible times from 1970 to 1975. This was the era of players as Laurent Pokou and Eustache Manglé. In the next years, it was Africa Sports who dominated the league, with ASEC winning only once in 1980.

On 19 November 1989, advocate Roger Ouégnin was elected as club president. In his wish to professionalize the club, he introduced Philippe Troussier as coach from 1989 until 1992. This was the time for ASEC to return to old strength, winning the championship six consecutive times between 1990 and 1995. ASEC also provided the backbone of the national team that won the 1992 African Cup of Nations, including key members of the side such as Ben Badi, Donald-Olivier Sié and Basile Aka Kouamé. After having qualified for the semi-finals already five times before, ASEC finally won the CAF Champions League in 1998. For some players, this was the chance to sign for a European club, for example team captain Tchiressoua Guel, who joined Olympique de Marseille afterwards. A few years later, ASEC beat their own record by winning the league seven consecutive times between 2000 and 2006.

In 1993, former French national player Jean-Marc Guillou joined the club staff as director, manager and financier. Together with chairman Roger Ouégnin, he founded the Académie MimoSifcom at Sol Béni. In the following weeks, they started to scout amongst thousands of young kids to form the first promotions to receive coaching and education. In 1999, following ASECs success in the 1998 Champions League, ASEC faced Espérance Sportive de Tunis in the CAF Super Cup. But most of the old players were aged, had left the club or at least wanted to. So Guillou and Ouégnin decided to replace the old squad with the first products of the academy, most of them only aged around 17/18 years. The owners protested against this measure and Espérance's president Slim Chiboub called it a "scandal to be playing against children". However, the young ASEC squad surprisingly beat their opponents by 3 to 1 goals and brought in the second big international title for their club.[4] Amongst others, Boubacar 'Copa' Barry, Kolo Touré, Didier Zokora, Gilles Yapi Yapo, Siaka Tiéné, Abdoulaye Djire, Venance Zézé, and Aruna Dindane were part of that squad.

When Guillou became manager of Belgian side K.S.K. Beveren in 2001, many of the academy's players joined him. As a result, the Belgian team consisted mainly out of Ivorian players for several years. These could use Beveren as a chance to show their talent to top European clubs. Players as Yaya Touré, Arthur Boka, Emmanuel Eboué, Gervinho, Romaric and Copa all had their time in Beveren. This lasted until 2006, when Guillou and Beveren broke up with ASEC Mimosas. ASEC then linked up with Charlton Athletic.[5]

Satellite clubs

The following clubs are affiliated with ASEC:

Académie MimoSifcom

ASECs youth academy has been described as the crown jewel of African football. The academy started by Roger Ouégnin and Jean-Marc Guillou in 1993 at ASEC's training complex has since produced many international stars. The student-athletes are given an education, for which they take classes in math, history, geography, physics, French, English, and Spanish. The students live in dorms during the week and have two training sessions a day. They play matches on Saturday and get health care and tutoring.

Current squad

As of 30 December 2022[8]

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player
1 GK Ivory Coast CIV Amine Diakite
3 DF Ivory Coast CIV Fofana Halassane
4 DF Ivory Coast CIV Wonlo Coulibaly
5 DF Ivory Coast CIV Kouassi Attohoula Yao
6 MF Ivory Coast CIV Mohamed Zougrana
7 MF Ivory Coast CIV Bakare Kone
8 FW Ivory Coast CIV Sankara Karamoko
9 FW Ivory Coast CIV Trésor Mofosse
10 MF Ivory Coast CIV Benoît Koffi
11 MF Ivory Coast CIV Josphat Arthur Bada
12 MF Ivory Coast CIV Joseph Kouassi
13 DF Ivory Coast CIV Bi Anthony Tra
14 FW Ivory Coast CIV Alain Anicet Oura
15 DF Ivory Coast CIV Souleymane Coulibaly
16 GK Ivory Coast CIV Ruben Levy Yelo
17 FW Ivory Coast CIV Amede Tidiane Diomande
19 MF Ivory Coast CIV Essis Aka
20 MF Ivory Coast CIV Pacôme Zouzoua
No. Pos. Nation Player
21 GK Ivory Coast CIV Charles Folly Ayayi
22 MF Ivory Coast CIV Gnoleba Sery
23 FW Ivory Coast CIV N'Guessan Serge Pokou
24 DF Ivory Coast CIV Romeo Kouame
25 MF Ivory Coast CIV Kouamé Aubin Kramo
26 DF Ivory Coast CIV Franck Carlos Zouzou
27 FW Ivory Coast CIV Thierry Kassi
30 DF Ivory Coast CIV Salif Coulibaly
31 DF Ivory Coast CIV Bazoumana Toure
32 DF Ivory Coast CIV Bi Kader Yameogo
33 MF Ivory Coast CIV Abdoul Fatahou Ouattara
34 MF Ivory Coast CIV Tidiane Malick Siaka
35 MF Ivory Coast CIV Malick Yalcouye
36 FW Ivory Coast CIV Moise Elohim Kabore
37 DF Ivory Coast CIV Bi Vroh Evra Dje
38 MF Ivory Coast CIV Awaka Franck Djoro

Technical staff

France Julien Chevalier Manager
Ivory Coast Felix Kouadjo Assistant coach
Ivory Coast Fabrice Jocelyn N'Guessan Assistant coach
Ivory Coast Alama Bada Soumahoro Assistant coach
Ivory Coast Akassou Koutouan Recuitment Cell
Ivory Coast Dr. Yves Kouamé Senior Physician
Ivory Coast Randriatsiderana Zaka Physiotherapist
Ivory Coast Christian Boua Gbizie Physiotherapist
Ivory Coast Patrick Martial Adou Physiotherapist
Ivory Coast Kore Stone Logbo Caregiver
Ivory Coast Patrice Volibi Masseur
Ivory Coast Samake Siaka General Steward

Club life

The club's colours are yellow and black; the badge displays a Mimosa. Together with their biggest rival Africa Sports National, they contest the most important ivorian football derby. These two are also the only clubs allowed to play their home games in Stade Félix Houphouët-Boigny.

ASEC has, after own declarations,[9] more than 8,000,000 fans in Ivory Coast and 15,000,000 in the whole region. The fans are called the Actionnaires. They are organised in the CNACO (Comité National d`Action et de Coordination, = National Committee for Action and Coordination), which has 40,000 members and consists out of 350 commissions.

Records

ASEC holds the world record for unbeaten league games, racking up 108 league and domestic cup games without loss between 1989 and 1994 before they were eventually beaten by SO Armee; four more than the unbeaten run of Steaua București in the late 1980s.[10]

Honours

Domestic

1963, 1970, 1972, 1973, 1974, 1975, 1980, 1990, 1991, 1992, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1997, 1998, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2009, 2010, 2017, 2018, 2021, 2022, 2023
1957, 1962, 1967, 1968, 1969, 1970, 1972, 1973, 1983, 1990, 1995, 1997, 1999, 2003, 2005, 2007, 2008, 2011, 2013, 2014, 2018, 2023
1975, 1980, 1983, 1990, 1994, 1995, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2004, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2011, 2017.

International

1998
1999
1990
2001[11]

Performance in CAF competitions

1983 – Semi-finals
1984 – Quarter-finals
1987 – Second round
2000 – First round

Former managers

  • Ivory Coast Tronnou Seho (1947–50)
  • Ivory Coast Domingo Koffi (1950–53)
  • France Guy Fabre (1954–59)
  • Ivory Coast Bakary Touré (1960–62)
  • Ivory Coast Koffi Faustin (1962–65)
  • Ivory Coast Ignace Wognin (1966–69)
  • Ivory Coast André Sokoury (1969–70)
  • Ivory Coast Gérard Gabo (1970–71)
  • Ivory Coast Orlando (1971–72)
  • Ivory Coast Jean-Baptiste Anzian (1972–75)
  • Ivory Coast Yobouët Konan (1975–76)
    

Former presidents

  • Ivory Coast Joseph Kouamelan (1948–50)
  • Ivory Coast Tronnou Seho (1950–51)
  • Ivory Coast Lucien Dogbo (1951–53)
  • Ivory Coast François Logon (1953–54)
  • Ivory Coast Louis Boah (1954–56)
  • Ivory Coast François Ouégnin (1958–60)
  • Ivory Coast Blé Kouadio M'Bahia (1960–64)
  • Ivory Coast Kata François Kamano (1964–68)
  • Ivory Coast Mamadou Kouyaté (1968–70)
  
  • Ivory Coast Lanzéni Coulibaly (1970–75)
  • Ivory Coast Emile Dervain (1975–77)
  • Ivory Coast Bogui Bégnana (1977–79)
  • Ivory Coast Mamadou Touré (1979–80)
  • Ivory Coast Victor Ekra (1980–81)
  • Ivory Coast Claude Andoh (1981–83)
  • Ivory Coast Mamadou Touré (1983–87)
  • Ivory Coast Kangah Michel Ahoua (1987–89)
  • Ivory Coast Roger Ouégnin (1989–)

References

  1. ↑ "#438 – ASEC Mimosas : les Mimos" (in French). Footnickname. Archived from the original on 18 November 2022. Retrieved 18 November 2022.
  2. ↑ "Asec Mimosas (Club sportif) – Abidjan.net Qui est qui ?". Abidjan.net. 21 September 1960. Archived from the original on 12 June 2018. Retrieved 19 May 2010.
  3. ↑ "L'Express de Madagascar : Actualités en direct, politiques, économies, sports, cultures, madagascar, afrique, monde". Lexpressmada.com. Archived from the original on 15 December 2013. Retrieved 19 May 2010.
  4. ↑ "The Times & The Sunday Times". The Times. London. Archived from the original on 2 November 2009. Retrieved 9 February 2018.
  5. ↑ Ornstein, David (15 February 2008). "BBC SPORT | Football | My Club | Charlton Athletic | Charlton focus on Ivorian future". BBC News. Archived from the original on 2 August 2018. Retrieved 19 May 2010.
  6. ↑ "FIFA.com – Charlton knüpft weltweites Netzwerk". De.fifa.com. Archived from the original on 2 April 2008.
  7. ↑ "Stage de préparation au Ghana". Retrieved 20 December 2010.
  8. ↑ "ASEC Mimosas - Equipe première". Asec.ci (in French). Archived from the original on 30 December 2022. Retrieved 30 December 2022.
  9. ↑ Archived 29 April 2010 at the Wayback Machine
  10. ↑ Copnall, James (24 October 2004). "BBC SPORT | Football | African | Asec's amazing run". BBC News. Archived from the original on 14 July 2018. Retrieved 19 May 2010.
  11. ↑ The report about ASEC Abidjan win in 2001 tournament that was held in Rome is here: https://www.rsssf.org/tabless/shalom-roma.html Archived 18 July 2022 at the Wayback Machine
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