Lille was founded as a result of a merger between Olympique Lillois and SC Fives. Both clubs were founding members of the French Division 1 and Lillois was the league’s inaugural champions. Under the Lille emblem, the club has won three league titles in 1946, 1954, and 2011 and six Coupe de France titles, which is tied for fourth-best among clubs. Lille and Red Star F.C. are the only French clubs in the competition’s history to win the Coupe de France in three consecutive seasons. Lille’s most successful period was the decade from 1946 to 1956 when the team was led by managers George Berry and Andre Cheuva.Lille have a long-standing rivalry with its neighbours RC Lens. The two clubs regularly contest the Derby du Nord. Lille is owned and presided over by Gerard Lopez, an entrepreneur-investor and an active Luxembourgish-Spanish businessman who invests in the sports industry.