1 Trained at Stade Briochin
He is said (sometimes) to have trained at En Avant Guingamp. But Julien Le Cardinal only spent one season there in the U19 national teams. An experience that he himself interrupted. No, “Cardi” is a pure product of Stade Briochin. He signed his first license there at the age of seven. He participated in the rebirth of the club, from the DSE to the National 2. Among the best memories of him, too, a journey in the Coppa Gambardella with the Grifoni. It was January 2016, the boy was returning from his escapade in Guingampaise and he had entrusted it to us despite this slow career: “I would always like to be a professional footballer”. The sequel proved him right.
2 Revealed to SC Bastia
It was in Corsica, at the Sporting Club de Bastia, from 2019 to 2022, that Julien Le Cardinal fully revealed himself. At the time, however, he had dropped one level, from N2 to N3. But Bastia’s project was terribly ambitious and football then became his only occupation. He also made this trip with another stadiste briochin, now from Guingamp, Stephen Quemper. “When a club that was in Ligue 1 three years ago shows up, we can’t refuse too much”, “Cardi” explained at the time. A wise choice given that Sporting then moved on to Ligue 2. There too, Julien Le Cardinal demonstrated his versatility, sampling the roles of central defender, right winger or piston.
3 Transferred to Paris FC
On June 27, Julien Le Cardinal was therefore transferred from SC Bastia to Paris FC. A contract that should have taken him until June 2025 with the second club in the capital. But the debacle against Metz (1-4), on 12 November, was therefore his last outing in the blue shirt. A real defeat given that Thierry Laurey had installed him every time the Costarmorican was available, i.e. 13 times, systematically in the role of right-back. He also scored a sumptuous goal against Saint-Étienne on 15 October, with a perfect lob in a 2-0 win.
On the third day of Ligue 2, Briochin also managed to draw (0-0) against Guingamp de love her Stephen Quemperafter defeated at Roudourou the previous season with Bastia (3-2).
4 Recruited by Lens
Last summer, Paris FC paid SC Bastia €400,000 to sign Julien Le Cardinal. An operation that also involved Bigouel Alfarela, valued at 300,000 euros. To involve him, RC Lens has spent almost 3 million euros! According to The Squad, 2.3 million euros plus 300,000 in bonuses, to be precise. This says a lot about the boy’s progress, recruited as a wildcard by the Sang et Or club, which sees him as the perfect replacement for Jimmy Cabot, who suffered a ruptured anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee a month ago. Julien Le Cardinal then signed until 2025 with RC Lens.
Expected to resume on November 28, he will mainly discover his teammates in Marbella, Spain, during the internship which will begin on December 5. A nice nod to this trip to Ligue 1: Julien Le Cardinal was injured during the Stade Briochin – Lens lost 1-0, 23 January 2018in the round of 16 of the Coupe de France.
