In December 2011, two-thirds of the club was sold to an investment group led by Russian oligarch and billionaire Dmitry Rybolovlev.

Unlike several other European microstates, Monaco has never organized a domestic league and has never sought separate membership in either UEFA or FIFA.

There are several other expatriated football clubs in operation around Europe, although AS Monaco is unique in that it represents a nation not a member of the international organizations.

Two other microstates in Europe have or had teams playing abroad, Andorra and San Marino, although those clubs are separate from existing domestic league infrastructures.

In 1960, Monaco coach Lucien Leduc led the club to its first professional trophy, the Coupe de France, beating Saint-Étienne 4–2 in extra time.

This initial success was bettered in the following year with the club winning the French Championship for the first time in its history, qualifying for the European Cup.

Upon Leduc's departure in 1963, Monaco endured a barren run, entrenched in the middle half of the league for the best part of the next decade and alternating between the first and second divisions after 1963.

Wenger's reign saw the club enjoy one of its most successful periods, with several inspired signings, including George Weah, Glenn Hoddle, Jürgen Klinsmann, and Youri Djorkaeff.

Youth team policies produced future World Cup winners Emmanuel Petit, Lilian Thuram and Thierry Henry.

[17] The club could have had even greater success in this period, as it emerged in 1993 that bitter rivals Marseille had indulged in match-fixing and numerous improprieties, a view that Wenger had long held.

[19] Whilst this was reduced on appeal to a ban on purchasing players, it was enough to force President Jean-Louis Campora, who had been in charge for 28 years, to step aside.

The team, coached by former France/ national team captain Didier Deschamps and featuring stalwarts such as Fernando Morientes, Ludovic Giuly, Jérôme Rothen and Dado Pršo, finished third in Ligue 1 and enjoyed a remarkable run to the final of the UEFA Champions League, beating Real Madrid and Chelsea along the way.

Under his reign as president, the club brought in players such as Park Chu-young and Freddy Adu, but they did not find much success on the pitch, going through a torrid season and only managing a mid-table finish.

[21] In July 2009 Ricardo Gomes was replaced by former Cannes and Rennes coach Guy Lacombe, inheriting a youthful squad featuring numerous highly lauded youth team prospects, including Cédric Mongongu, Serge Gakpé, Vincent Muratori, Frédéric Nimani, Nicolas N'Koulou, Park Chu-young, Yohan Mollo and Yohann Thuram-Ulien.

He was replaced by former coach Laurent Banide, who was unable to turn around the club's fortunes; Monaco finished the 2010–11 season in 18th, thus becoming relegated to Ligue 2.

The following season, Monaco cut expenses, selling Rodriguez to Real Madrid for €75m and loaning Falcao to Manchester United.

Despite the high-profile departures, Monaco finished in 3rd place in Ligue 1 and made it to the quarter-finals of the Champions League, defeating Arsenal in the Round of 16 before exiting at the hands of Juventus.

[24] This, combined with the sales of Geoffrey Kondogbia, Layvin Kurzawa, Yannick Carrasco, Aymen Abdennour, Lucas Ocampos and others, saw the Monegasque club earn over €180m in the transfer window.

In the 2016–17 UEFA Champions League, Monaco staged a comeback in the Round of 16, losing the first leg 5–3 to Manchester City[26] before beating the English side 3–1 at home to win on away goals.

Moreno was sacked in July, and replaced by former Bayern Munich manager Niko Kovač, who finished the following season in third position with 78 points and winning 24 matches from 38 (63%).

[39][40] The Stade Louis II is noted for its nine iconic arches and has hosted numerous athletic events and European Cup finals.