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LOSC, as it is known, has often lived in the shadow of local rival RC Lens in matters of both performances and local prestige. The deep rivalry between the two clubs stems from the different social and economical backgrounds of the two cities. Lille OSC is considered the club of the large "bourgeois" city of Lille. RC Lens comes from the more modest medium sized miners' town of Lens, a place where football may be the only getaway for many of the club's supporters.

The team recently returned to the French Ligue 1 in 2000, after 3 seasons in Ligue 2, and their results have usually obscured their local rivals’ accomplishments. They have obtained two Champions League participations in 2002 and 2005 and succeeded in the Intertoto Cup in 2004.

During the 2004/05 Ligue 1 season, Lille amazed many by finishing second place in the table by the end of the season, ahead of teams like AS Monaco, Olympique Marseille and of course their local rivals, Lens.

They played for a title challenge against Olympique Lyon but it was to be a brief one despite beating them in their home game. Lille automatically qualified for the UEFA Champions League group stages, and hoped to make a good impression in Europe by progressing through the groups.

Lille recorded one of the greatest results in their history by defeating former champions and heavy favorites Manchester United in the Champions League group phase on November 2, 2005.

Bodog.com has Lille OSC at 110 to 1 to win the UEFA Champions League

After that win Lille was only able to pick up one point in their last two matches. They dropped off the UEFA Cup finishing third in their Group leaving Manchester United behind in an unsettling fourth place. Lille's UEFA cup run finished in the Round of 16, their adversary and eventual winners of the competition FC Sevilla after going through a 2-1 on aggregate.

In 2006 Lille OSC qualified for the knockout stages of the UEFA Champions League for the first time in by beating Italian powerhouse AC Milan 2-0 at home, in an epic match for them.

For the 2005/06 Ligue 1 campaign, Lille established their recovery finishing third, behind Lyon (who they beat home (4-0) and away (1-3)) and Bordeaux. The rival Lens club finished behind in 4th place. Third place qualified Lille for the Champions League final qualifying round. They defeated FK Rabotnički 4-0 on aggregate and qualified for the third time in six years for the Group Stage of the UEFA Champions League an amazing feat for a club that doesn’t have a proper stadium.

Their acting coach, Claude Puel, acquired the French league title with Monaco in 2000 before joining Lille in 2002. Due to his successes with the club, Puel has earned offering by FC Porto to take over after José Mourinho and by Olympique Lyon to replace Paul Le Guen. He has also been repeatedly approached by his former club AS Monaco where he played for 17 years.

Lille acquired Peter Obemwingie in 2004 in order to revamp their attack. A physical forward with two good feet and exceptional speed, Peter Odemwingie can play out wide or in the centre.

He played junior football for PFC CSKA Moskva but emigrated from his birth place Uzbekistan in Russia. He moved to Nigeria when he turned 18, and was soon turning out for Bendel Insurance FC.

After three years Odemwingie returned to Europe and signed with Belgian side RAA Louviéroise in 2002. He scored twice in 14 matches in 2002/03 and helped the club win the Belgian Cup with a 3-1 victory against K. Sint-Truidense VV in the final.

The next season he scored goals in five occasions playing in 27 league matches and also got his team's goal in the 2-1 aggregate win over SL Benfica in the UEFA Cup first round. He also made an impact for Nigeria by inspiring them to the last four of the 2004 African Cup of Nations.

He signed with LOSC Lille Métropole in August 2004, getting a four year contract. The remarkable form of Matt Moussilou restricted Odemwingie to 20 appearances but he scored four goals and showed plenty of promise. He featured in six UEFA Cup matches as the French side reached the last 16. The next season he struck 14 times in Ligue 1 - second only to Pauleta including three in two wins against champions Olympique Lyonnais.

Peter was born in Uzbekistan and has a Russian mother with a Nigerian father, Odemwingie opted to represent the African nation because he admires the Super Eagles' colorful style of play.

UEFA Club Competition Honors

UEFA Intertoto Cup 2004

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