Abandoned ex-Ligue 1 stadium looks post-apocalyptic just two years after club left

A former stadium in France looks like it has entered the apocalypse after being left abandoned two years ago. The Stade des Costieres used to play host to Nimes Olympique matches before the club moved to a new stadium.

A video of the Stade des Costieres has appeared on social media, with the camera panning from one end of the pitch to the other.

There isn't a soul in sight in the footage, despite people talking in the background, with the pitch overgrown and in need of a good cut.

Nimes played their matches at the 18,364-capacity ground from 1989 until 2022. And between 2018 and 2021, the stadium hosted Ligue 1 matches after the club won promotion to the top-flight.

The likes of Kylian Mbappe, Neymar and Thiago Silva played at the stadium for Paris Saint-Germain during Nimes' first season in Ligue 1. The players were unable to visit the ground during the club's second season in the top-flight, however, due to the disrupted fixture list caused by Covid-19.

Nimes stayed in Ligue 1 for a third season but were relegated back to the second tier in 2021 after finishing in 19th position. They now ply their trade in the third division of French football and play their matches at the 8,033-capcity Stade des Antonins.

According to , the Stade des Costieres has been abandoned due to a conflict between the city of Nimes and Nimes Olympique president Rani Assaf.

Assaf had been hoping to demolish and rebuild the stadium and had signed a sales agreement with the city that runs until the end of this year, although funds have not been provided.

The city refused Assaf permission to develop the site in the way he wanted after the national commission rejected his ambitious commercial project. An appeal has been filed but is yet to be examined by the courts.

At the end of the December 31 deadline, the facility could become the property of the city. And the city will be able to bring it back up to standard.

"You know the difficulties we have in communicating with the leader," explained Nimes' first deputy mayor recently.

But former referee Nicolas Rainville, who is the current sports delegate of the Nimes city hall, recently promised: "I tell you and I confirm it, Nimes Olympique will play again in a Costieres stadium renovated to the standards of Ligue 1 level."