Former Chelsea and Hull City boss Liam Rosenior has been named as the new head coach of Paris FC, the French Ligue 1 team bearing the name of Bahrain Victorious on its shirts.
He has signed a two-year contract, which is understood to include the option for a further season, as he replaces Antoine Kombouare.
Rosenior is back in management, having been sacked by Chelsea after just over three months at Stamford Bridge.
He is taking on his third head coach role in the space of a year as he returns to Ligue 1, with Paris FC looking to build on last season’s 11th-place finish following their promotion.
“Liam Rosenior possesses all the qualities we were looking for,” sporting director Marco Neppe said. “He is a modern, demanding coach, renowned for his ability to develop both individual players and the team as a whole. Beyond his tactical skills, we were particularly impressed by his management abilities and his capacity to unite a group around a clear vision.
“I am convinced he has all the qualities to succeed at Paris FC, and I wish him every success in this new chapter of his career.”
Rosenior has previously managed in Ligue 1, taking charge of Strasbourg between July 2024 and January 2026, when he left to succeed Enzo Maresca at Chelsea.
With Strasbourg, he finished seventh in the 2024-25 season, qualifying for the Conference League with the youngest squad across Europe’s top five leagues.
He joined the French outfit after being sacked by Hull City for narrowly missing out on a play-off spot. Incidentally, the East Yorkshire club have returned to the English Premiership after winning last season’s Play-off Final at Wembley.
His Chelsea team started well but went on a dire run of form, with Rosenior losing 10 of his 23 games in charge in all competitions. He lost his final five Premier League games, with the team failing to score a single goal, with that form marking the Blues’ worst run since 1912.
Paris FC finished the 2025-26 Ligue 1 season strong thanks to Kombouare, who started in February to help them avoid relegation – they lost just two of their final 11 matches of the season (W6 D3) to ensure they retain their top-flight status.
The club was once part-owned by Mumtalakat, Bahrain’s sovereign wealth fund, before it was snapped up by the Arnault family’s holding company, Agache (holding a 52.4 per cent majority stake) and Red Bull GmbH (holding 10.6pc).
In February 2025, Paris FC reached a landmark agreement with Stade Français to move into the Stade Jean-Bouin starting in the 2025–26 season. Located in the 16th arrondissement across the street from the Parc des Princes, Jean-Bouin offers an more enclosed and football-friendly environment. The move was strongly supported by Red Bull’s Head of Global Soccer Jürgen Klop, the former Liverpool boss.
Paris FC have a rivalry with the more famous European football powerhouse and fellow Parisian side Paris Saint-Germain.
Rosenior’s first Ligue 1 match in charge will come against Troyes on August 22.
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