🇲🇱 Jeanne d’Arc du Soudan (Mali)

Jeanne d’Arc du Soudan (Mali)

Jeanne d’Arc du Soudan (also known as Jeanne d’Arc de Bamako) was a historic football club based in Bamako in what was then French Sudan (now Mali). It existed from 1938 until 1960, when it ceased to exist after a merger.

The club was founded in 1938 by the missionary Reverend Father Georges Bouvier (of the White Fathers order). Its colors were white, reflecting the order’s traditions. It was one of the early organized African clubs in the region during the colonial period and competed in local leagues as well as the broader French West African competitions.

Jeanne d’Arc du Soudan was successful in the colonial era. It won the Coupe d’Afrique-Occidentale française (French West African Cup) twice, in 1953 and 1956. These titles marked it as one of the stronger sides from the Soudan Français in inter-territorial competition.

At Mali’s independence in 1960, the new government reorganized football structures. Jeanne d’Arc du Soudan merged with another Bamako club, Espérance de Medina-Coura (founded around 1958), to form Stade Malien de Bamako. This merger created one of modern Mali’s two dominant clubs (alongside Djoliba AC, itself formed from a similar fusion of Foyer du Soudan and Africa Sport). As a result, Jeanne d’Arc du Soudan effectively disappeared as an independent entity.

A later club called Jeanne d’Arc FC was founded in 2007 by supporters who broke away from Stade Malien and revived the historic name; it is a separate entity and has competed in the Malian Première Division at times.

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