Éric Roy (footballer)

Éric Roy
Roy in 2018
Personal information
Full name Éric Serge Armand Roy
Date of birth (1967-09-26) 26 September 1967 (age 57)
Place of birth Nice, France
Height 1.88 m (6 ft 2 in)[1]
Position(s) Midfielder
Team information
Current team
Brest (manager)
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1988–1992 Nice 86 (4)
1992–1993 Toulon 34 (2)
1993–1996 Lyon 111 (9)
1996–1999 Marseille 77 (10)
1999–2000 Sunderland 27 (0)
2001 Troyes 6 (0)
2001–2002 Rayo Vallecano 12 (0)
2002–2004 Nice 52 (2)
Total 405 (27)
Managerial career
2010–2011 Nice
2023– Brest
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

Éric Serge Armand Roy (French pronunciation: [eʁik sɛʁʒ aʁmɑ̃ ʁwa]; born 26 September 1967) is a French professional football manager and former player. He is the current manager of Ligue 1 side Brest.[2]

Early life

Éric Serge Armand Roy[3] was born on 26 September 1967 in Nice, Alpes-Maritimes.[4] His father, Serge Roy [fr], was also a footballer.[5]

Playing career

Roy began playing professional football with OGC Nice, before joining Toulon, Lyon, Marseille, followed by playing abroad for Sunderland.[6]

During his spell in England with Sunderland, he scored once, in a 5–0 win over Walsall in the League Cup.[7] He later returned to France to play for Troyes, then joined Spanish side Rayo Vallecano, before ending his career at Nice.[6]

Coaching and management career

Nice

After retiring, in September 2005 Roy was hired as director of marketing, communication and public relations at his last club OGC Nice.[8] In September 2008, he changed position to director of development and public relations. One year later, he was promoted as sporting director. In March 2010, he was appointed manager of Nice, alongside of a coach holding the professional trainer diploma, which Roy did not. In addition to his function as sports director, Roy would receive a salary over 13 months of 17,500 in addition to bonuses.[9] He stepped down from the position in November 2011 by mutual agreement while retaining his duties as sports director.

Sacking and prosecution

After a phone call in May 2012 for a prior interview, he was officially dismissed on 11 June 2012 for serious misconduct. The club through its dismissal letter asserted that Roy made a 12-day trip to Argentina with an unlicensed agent despite opposition from management and without prior preparation.[9] Roy appealed to the Nice Labor Court, and a judgment was issued in June 2013: the dismissal had no real and serious cause and condemned the employer for nonpayment (€22,159 in addition to paid leave relating thereto as a reminder of salary, €97,500 in addition to paid vacation relating thereto as compensation in lieu of notice, €113,750 in severance pay, €37,573 in addition to paid vacation relating to it match and classification bonuses, €90,000 in addition to paid holidays relating thereto as maintenance bonus, €300,000 as damages for unfair dismissal, €3,000 on the basis of the provisions of article 700 of the code of civil procedure besides whole costs).[9]

OGC Nice appealed the decision. First, that Roy should not have received his second remuneration as supervisor from November 2011 to the extent that it was agreed that he would give up, from that date, the daily management of the first team to occupy only its function of sports director. Second, Nice considered that the dismissal was perfectly regular, even in the absence of prior referral to the Legal Commission of the Professional Football League, and this insofar as its employee was not covered by the charter professional football, but the collective agreement for administrative and similar football staff (CCPAAF). Third, the Club considered that Roy's dismissal was perfectly justified in view of his insubordination and his lack of loyalty.

The case ended with Nice paying Roy nearly €300,000 for a wrongful dismissal.[10]

Lens

On 30 September 2017, he was appointed sporting director of RC Lens.[11] He left the position in April 2019.[12]

Watford

In December 2019, Roy took the role of sporting director at Premier League club Watford.[13]

Brest

On 3 January 2023, Roy became the manager of Ligue 1 side Brest.[14] In the 2023–24 season, he led the club to secure their first ever participation in European competitions, by finishing third in the league which qualified them to the UEFA Champions League.[15]

TV

In 2012, he became a consultant for the sports channel beIN Sports where he was a consultant in the program Le Club from Monday to Thursday at 7 p.m. and Friday during the pre-match and the post-match of the Ligue 1 games with Florian Genton. He left the position in 2017.[16]

From 2019, he became a consultant for France Télévisions. He was a commentator on the matches of the Coupe de France and the Coupe de la Ligue with Kader Boudaoud (until December 2019) and later Fabien Lévêque.[16]

Managerial statistics

As of match played 21 December 2024
Managerial record by team and tenure
Team From To Record
G W D L GF GA GD Win %
Nice 9 March 2010 15 November 2011 70 22 25 23 69 83 −14 031.43
Brest 3 January 2023 Present 82 39 19 24 121 95 +26 047.56
Total 152 61 44 47 190 178 +12 040.13

Honours

Player

Lyon

Marseille

Manager

Individual

References

  1. ^ "Eric Roy: Overview". Premier League. Retrieved 4 July 2022.
  2. ^ "Official: Ligue 1 Side Nice Sack Coach Didier Olle-Nicolle – Goal.com". Archived from the original on 30 September 2018. Retrieved 10 March 2010.
  3. ^ "ESR Consulting". Verif.com (in French). Retrieved 4 July 2022.
    "Eric Roy". Verif.com (in French). Retrieved 4 July 2022.
  4. ^ "Eric Roy". L'Équipe (in French). Paris. Retrieved 4 July 2022.
  5. ^ "Stade Brestois : les multiples vies d'Éric Roy à Nice" (in French). Foot Amateur Bretagne. 3 February 2024.
  6. ^ a b "Éric Roy : " Quand on est joueur, on ne ressort pas indemne d'une aventure avec Marseille "" (in French). Foot Amateur Bretagne. 17 February 2024.
  7. ^ "Walsall 0 Sunderland 5 (Agg: 8-2)". Sporting Life. 21 September 1999. Archived from the original on 30 March 2020. Retrieved 5 November 2009.
  8. ^ Eric Roy quitte l'OGC Nice, france3-regions.francetvinfo.fr, 15 June 2012
  9. ^ a b c Le licenciement de l'ancien directeur sportif de l'OGC Nice était abusif, avosports.fr, 16 June 2014
  10. ^ L1 : Nice condamné à verser 689 000 euros à Eric Roy, son ex-entraîneur, lemonde.fr, 18 June 2013
  11. ^ RC LENS Éric Roy nommé manager sportif de Lens, lavoixdunord.fr, 30 September 2017
  12. ^ OFFICIEL - Eric Roy quitte le RC Lens, goal.com, 10 April 2019
  13. ^ "News: Sporting Director Appointment Confirmed". WatfordFC. Retrieved 12 December 2019.
  14. ^ "Eric Roy nouvel entraîneur de Brest (officiel)" [Eric Roy new coach of Brest (official)] (in French). L'Équipe. 3 January 2023. Retrieved 3 January 2023.
  15. ^ "Brest Clinch Automatic UCL Spot After Win Over Toulouse". Ligue 1. 19 May 2024.
  16. ^ a b "Éric Roy nouveau consultant de France Télévisions" (in French). L'Équipe. 2 October 2019.
  17. ^ "FC Metz v. Olympique Lyonnais" (in French). 6 April 1996. Archived from the original on 10 June 2010. Retrieved 28 June 2024.
  18. ^ "Parma v. Marseille". Union of European Football Associations. 12 May 1999. Retrieved 28 June 2024.
  19. ^ "Éric Roy (Brest) élu meilleur entraîneur de Ligue 1 aux Trophées UNFP". L'Équipe (in French). 13 May 2024. Retrieved 14 May 2024.
  20. ^ "Le détail des votes des jurés de l'entraîneur français « France Football » de la saison 2023-2024". L'Équipe (in French). 15 December 2024. Retrieved 15 December 2024.