Lyon is a city where sport has a very high profile. The city has many stadiums and sports halls and it hosts many international sports events every year. Sport is a way for people in Lyon to come together but it also attracts many people from abroad and the surrounding region. So we can say that sport has an impact on many aspects of the city of Lyon, including its transport, hotels, shops and restaurants.

The Stadium of Gerland was built in 1920 by the French architect Tony Garnier and was renovated in 1984 and 1998. It is in the south of Lyon. This is the main sports stadium in the city of Lyon, and also the fourth largest French stadium, with approximately 43 000 seats. There are football and rugby matches. It’s the stadium of the football team Olympique Lyonnais. Bhe future stadium of the Olympique Lyonnais, called the “Stade des Lumières” and which will be used for the UEFA Euro 2016 in France, will have about 58 000 seats and will be in an eastern suburb of Lyon.

There is also the Rhone Stadium which is used for athletics but there are not many seats and it is in a suburb of Lyon.

The city has many sports halls. In particular there is the “Astroballe” which is a basketball arena built in 1995 with approximately 5 560 seats. The basketball team of Lyon-Villeurbanne plays here. Then there is the Arena which is in a suburb of Lyon. The Arena is not far from the stadium of Gerland in the south of Lyon. Finally there is the “Palais des Sports” which is used for the main indoor sports events in Lyon with 6 500 seats. It is used for tennis, boxing and gymnastics.

Lyon also has many teams of European renown. The best-known is probably Olympique Lyonnais which is a football team for both men and women. It has won a lot a national cups and is one of the best teams in Europe. Created in 1950, the women's team won the UEFA Women’s Champions League in 2011 and 2012.

The ASVEL club in Lyon's sister-city of Villeurbanne was created in 1948. The team has won the French Basketball League 17 times. The famous San Antonio Spurs' star Tony Parker sometimes plays for the team.

LOU is a rugby team in France's second division. It’s not a famous team in Europe because the club is too small, but Sébastien Chabal, a former French international and iconic player, now plays for the club.

Apart from the big clubs already mentioned, Lyon also has a number of clubs that are well-known in their respective sports, including a rowing club, which sails on the Saone River, an ice hockey club, and a volleyball team.

Finally, Lyon hosts a number of top sporting events. For instance, there is the “Run in Lyon” held in October which combines the Lyon City Marathon, the 20 km and the 10 km runs. In 2013, there were 20 000 runners who took part. In addition, there is the “Sainté-Lyon”, a run done at night. There is also the “Lyon open mountain bike race” which is a bike race 21 miles long. In summer 2013, Lyon also hosted the IPC world chanpionships, and Lyon will host part of the UEFA Euro championships in 2016.