Football stadium
To honour France’s most popular sport, Biot recently built a large sports complex with a top-notch football stadium. The town’s club, US Biot, and other players can now train and play matches in the very best conditions.
Pierre Operto sports complex
Inaugurated in September 2013, the Pierre Operto sports complex is open to the people of Biot, local associations, business and students. Pierre Bel Stadium boasts a football pitch with artificial grass, covered stands and locker rooms. The Paul Gilardi community centre has a capacity of 315 seated (430 standing) and can fully adapt for all kinds of floor sports. There are also offices for the town’s Youth and Sports department as well as Biot’s Union Sportive association. During the construction of the complex, 2 courts were also added to the town’s tennis school, for a total of 6 tennis municipal tennis courts.
The complex is named after Pierre Operto (1935-2011), mayor of Biot from 1989 to 2001 and member of the City Council under the 2 previous mayors. He was responsible for several public facilities including the Arts and Culture Centre and two schools, Moulin Neuf and Eugène Olivari. Pierre Operto “dedicated 30 years of his life to Biot and its citizens,” declared his son. The community centre is named after Paul Gilardi, an excellent football player and winner of the Coupe Gambardella with AS Cannes. He was also heavily invested in Biot’s associations as president of the hunting club, the festivities committee and of course the US Biot football club, from 1973 to 2000. “With these new facilities, we want to take back the village spirit like my father used to say, who always strived to make US Biot a big family.”
Pierre Bel stadium
The French Football Federation classified Pierre Bel stadium as category 5 (in the Promotion d’Honneur A district). The facilities aim to provide a link between the town and the associations, to work together towards educating and supporting Biot’s youth.
The stadium kept its original name, Pierre Bel, baptised in the middle of the 1990s to honour two Pierre Bels from the same family in Biot. Both grandfather and grandson had ties to the site. The elder Pierre Bel (1902-1968) owned the land where the sports complex stands today, and the younger Pierre Bel (1962-1993) was one of US Biot’s most faithful and hard-working players, before passing away at a young age.