Union Sportive Monastirienne (), known as US Monastir or simply USM, is a Tunisian football club based in Monastir. The club was founded in 1923, and its colours are blue and white. Their home stadium, Mustapha Ben Jannet Stadium, has a capacity of 20,000 spectators. The club currently competes in the Tunisian Ligue Professionnelle 1. The club has historical ties to Monastirian nationalists, such as Mustapha Ben Jannet. US Monastir have won two major trophies in its history: the Tunisian Cup and the Tunisian Super Cup, both in 2020.
History Foundation and pre-independence (1923–1956)
Union Sportive Monastirienne (USM) was founded on 17 March 1923 with a credit balance of 5,395 Tunisian francs. Following World War II, the club saw a resurgence in interest and enthusiasm for football among the people of Monastir. This led to the club's roster expanding to over one hundred players, with half of them playing for the senior team and the other half competing in the junior categories. Despite this growth, the following years proved to be more difficult for the club.
Post-independence (1956–1979)
Following Tunisia's independence, US Monastir underwent a significant turning point. On the field, the club did not win any titles in the Tunisian Cup or the league during this period. However, USM consistently bounced back; after several relegations, the team managed to return to the first division. It was during the 1961–1962 season that USM reached the national division for the first time, having previously spent two seasons in the third division (1957–1958 and 1958–1959) and one season (1959–1960) in the Honor Division.
Results between rise and fall (1980–2018)
The 1980s marked a significant turning point for US Monastir, as the club became semi-professional, enabling the team to remain in the national division for fourteen consecutive years. During this period, USM also reached the semi-finals of the Tunisian Cup but were defeated 1–0 by Club Africain in Monastir after extra time. With a record of eight wins, eight losses, and ten draws, USM secured a solid fifth-place finish.However, this stability was short-lived.Since 1993–1994 season proved to be extremely challenging, particularly in terms of resources. Four coaches took charge in succession as the team struggled with numerous issues.
In July 2006, Néji Stambouli succeeded Zouhair Chaouch, who had served as president for six years.
On 3 May 2009, after a 3–2 victory against Espérance Sportive de Tunis at Stade El Menzah, USM qualified for their first-ever Tunisian Cup final. The final, held on 24 May at the Hammadi Agrebi Stadium in Radès, saw USM face CS Sfaxien, with CS Sfaxien winning 1–0 in the presence of President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali.
In the following years, USM's league position fluctuated between fifth and tenth place, until 2017.
Following the appointment of coaches Skandar Kasri and Lassaad Dridi, the team delivered solid performances, finishing the 2017/2018 season in sixth place and the 2018/2019 season in seventh place.
Golden generation (2019–)
At the start of the 2019 season, US Monastir signed a contract with coach Lassaad Chabbi. During the 2019–2020 season, the team secured third place in the national league, which qualified them for continental competition for the first time in their history—the 2020–21 CAF Confederation Cup ,then the 2022–23 CAF Champions League , 2022–23 CAF Confederation Cup , the 2024–25 CAF Champions League and the 2025–26 CAF Champions League.
In the Tunisian Cup, renamed the Habib Bourguiba Cup in honor of the 20th anniversary of his passing, USM won the competition for the first time in its history, defeating Espérance de Tunis 2–0 in the final, on 27 September 2020.
After Chabbi's resignation as head coach, Afouène Gharbi took over, leading the team to a tenth-place finish. The club then appointed Mourad Okbi, who led them to their second-ever title by winning the Tunisian Super Cup,on 18 September 2021.
Honours
Tunisian Ligue Professionnelle 1 Runner-up: 2021–22, 2023–24, 2024–25 Third Place: 2019–20 Tunisian Cup Champions: 2019–20 Runner-up: 2008–09 Tunisian Super Cup Champions: 2019–20 Tunisian Ligue Professionnelle 2 Champions: 1975–76, 1979–80,1997–98, 2010–11 Runner-up: 1960–61, 2016–17
Colors
The colors of US Monastir are white and blue. At home, the player wears a blue jersey, blue shorts and white socks. Outside of Monastir, the player wears a white jersey, white shorts and blue socks.
Players Current squad
Out on loan
Coaching staff PositionNameHead coach Tarek JarrayaAssistant coach Akrem Maatouk Aymen MoussaGoalkeeping coach Safouane HidriFitness coach Chamseddine Guinoubi Anas NabiTeam doctor Riadh Hizem
Managers
Name Period Hassouna Denguezli 1957–1958 Slaïem Belhaj Ali 1958–1959 Mokhtar Ben Nacef 1959–1961 Rudi Gutendorf 1961–1962 Ahmed Benfoul 1962–1963 Ferenc Locsey 1963–1967 Ameur Hizem 1967–1968 Mustapha Jouili 1968–1970 Miodrag Georgeovic 1970–1972 1972–1973 Khemais Chkir 1973–1974 Mustapha Jouili 1974–1975 Kamel Benzarti 1975–1976 Ameur Hizem 1976–1978 Ammar Hedhili 1978–1979 Faouzi Benzarti 1979–1982 Dieter Schulte 1982–1983 Radojica Radojičić 1983–1984 Hamid Zouba 1984–1985 Lotfi Benzarti 1985–1987 Ameur Dhib 1987–1988 Gerhard Wolfgang 1988–1989 Dominique BathenayJean-Pierre Brucato 1989–1990 Manfred Höner 1990–1991 Faouzi Benzarti 1991–1992
Name Period Bouzid Cheniti 1992–1993 Ameur Hizem 1993–1994 Kamel Chebli 1994 Salah Guedich 1995–1996 Jean-Yves Chay 1996–1997 Lotfi Benzarti 1997–1999 Habib Majeri 1999–2000 Léon Semmeling 2000 Ali Fergani2000–2001 Lotfi Benzarti 2001–2004 2004–2005 Faouzi Benzarti2005–2006 Samir Jouili 2006–2007 Antoine Hey 2007–2008 2008–2009 Henri Depireux 2009–2010 Jalel Kadri 2010–2011 Rachid Belhout 2011 Dragan Cvetković 2011–2012 Chiheb Ellili 2012–2013 Lotfi Benzarti 2013 Mourad Okbi 2013–2015 Samir Jouili 2015 Lotfi Kadri 2015–2016 2016–2017 Skander Kasri 2017–2018
Name Period Lassaad Dridi 2018–2019 Lassaad Chabbi 2019–2021 Afouène Gharbi 2021 Mourad Okbi 2021 Faouzi Benzarti 2021–2022 Darko Nović 2022–2023 Imed Ben Younes 2023 Mohamed Kouki 2023–2024 Lassaad Chabbi 2024 Mohamed Sahli 2024–2025 Faouzi Benzarti 2025 Montasser Louhichi 2025–
Presidents
The first president of the club is the French Joseph Kalfati, followed by four other French: Peteche, Georges Rambi, Renaud and Fenech, while the first Tunisian president is Mohamed Salah Sayadi who takes the head of the club in 1929. Another Tunisian president, Salem B'chir, acceded to the presidency in 1953. We owe him for having established a sporting discipline and for putting an end to the laxity of certain players.
N°NamePeriodN°NamePeriod1Bechir Charnine1955–195616Zouhair Chaouche1996–19992Mohamed Salah Chedly1956–196217Ali Benzarti1999–20023Mahmoud Chaouche1962–196318Zouhair Chaouche2002–20064Allala Laouiti1963–198019Neji Stambouli2006–20085Mohamed El May1980–198120Frej Meddeb2008–20096Abdelwahab Abdallah1981–198221Zouhair Chaouche / Riadh Bhouri2009–20107Hedi Benzarti1982–198322Hedi Benzarti2010–20118Moncef Skhiri1983–198523Ahmed Belli2011–20149Naceur Ktari1985–198824Salem Harzallah / Ali Mzali2014–201510Hedi Benzarti1988–199025Hamed Zenaiti 2015–201611Slaheddine Ferchiou1990–199226Ahmed Belli2016–202312Naceur Ktari1992–199327Amir Hizem2023–202513Abdelkader Aguir1993–199428Sabeur Harzallah / Mohamed Slama2025–14Mohamed El May / Naceur Skandrani1994–199515Habib Allegue1995–1996
Home stadium
US Monastir's home ground is the Mustapha Ben Jannet Stadium, a multi-purpose stadium located in Monastir, Tunisia. It was one of the venues used during the 2004 African Cup of Nations. The stadium has a seating capacity of 20,000 and occasionally serves as a home venue for the Tunisia national football team.
Inaugurated in 1958, the stadium was originally designed by architect Olivier-Clément Cacoub, utilizing the "cantilevered ball joint" technique to create suspended tiers. Initially, it had a capacity of 3,000 seats. Over the years, several expansions took place, increasing its capacity to over 10,000 by the late 1990s. Ahead of the 2004 African Cup of Nations, further renovations expanded the seating to 20,000.
The stadium is part of a larger sports complex in Monastir, situated just a few hundred meters from the city center.
Rivalry The most important rivalry known to US Monastir, is the one against Etoile Sahel in the city of Sousse. The match is called the Sahel Derby, in reference to the Tunisian coastal region (Tunisian Sahel) where both teams are located.
External links (EN) Official website
References