[5] He quickly devoted himself to sports, excelling in several of them, such as running, shooting, athletic competitions, swimming, cycling, Basque pelota, and especially football, becoming a member of Red Star FC in 1903, aged 16.

[6] At the time, Red Star played in the second division of the USFSA Paris championship [fr], but his growing fame had earned him requests from several first division clubs, which attempting to attract him in exchange for benefits (in kind or in cash), the beginnings of a professionalism already developed in England, but still rejected with horror in France, so when Camard's hesitation became public knowledge, he was briefly criticized of selling his services to the highest bidder by Ernest Weber, the star football journalist of L'Auto (the future L'Équipe).

[2][1] Camard helped AS Française win the 1908 Coupe Manier, which was awarded to the team composed of at least eight French players with the highest ranking in the USFSA Paris championship.

[1][6] His playing style as a winger was often praised by the French press, stating "his runs, always finished with very judiciously placed crosses, made him worthy of the attention of the center-forward at all times".

[6] When the First World War broke out, Sergeant René Camard joined the 329th Regiment, and on 28 August 1914, during the Great Retreat of the 1st Army, he was wounded by a shrapnel bullet in the shoulder in Guise,[1][6] before being fatally injured in combat on 16 March 1915, in the Carnoy sector.