Grand Prix Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes: Lyon’s New Indoor Chapter, Past Champions and Breakthrough Stories

The Grand Prix Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes gives top-level men’s tennis a new indoor stage in the Lyon region. Its arrival also raises a deceptively complicated question: which past champions belong to its history?

Lyon has hosted different tournaments, and the new Grand Prix should not be confused with the former clay-court Open Parc simply because both names include Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes. The distinction matters particularly when discussing Arthur Fils and Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard, whose first ATP Tour titles came in Lyon during the earlier clay-court era.

This guide separates the 2026 tournament, the Marseille event relocated to Lyon-Décines and the previous Open Parc. It includes clearly labelled singles champions tables and the breakthrough stories that make the region interesting to tennis followers. Details were checked on October 25, 2026.

What is the Grand Prix Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes?

The Grand Prix Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes is an ATP 250 men’s tournament played on indoor hard courts at LDLC Arena in Lyon-Décines. ATP coverage identifies it as the Marseille ATP 250 event relocated to Lyon for 2026. The main-draw week is October 19–25, while venue publicity includes October 18 as the opening day of the wider event. [1, 2]

It is an indoor autumn event, rather than the outdoor clay-court tournament that previously occupied a spring slot in Lyon. A shared city or regional name does not make the two competitions the same event.

Location: LDLC Arena in Lyon-Décines

The venue is LDLC Arena in Décines-Charpieu, within the Lyon metropolitan area. The Lyon tourist office gives the address as 5 Avenue Simone Veil, 69150 Décines-Charpieu. For visitors, that distinction is practical: this is not a central-Lyon park-court setting. Use the arena’s official transport and access information when planning a trip. [2]

The arena presents the first edition as a collaboration between LDLC Arena, ALL IN GROUP—founded by Jo-Wilfried Tsonga and Thierry Ascione—and the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes Region. [3] The result is a new setting for an established category of French indoor tennis.

For viewers, the change of surface is just as important as the change of venue. The indoor court removes the outdoor wind variable and presents a different tactical setting from the old Open Parc’s clay. Precise court-speed claims, however, need evidence from this particular event rather than an assumption that every indoor court plays identically.

A new event in a city with several tennis histories

The organiser describes 2026 as the first edition of the Grand Prix at LDLC Arena. ATP reporting explains the relocation from Marseille. Those statements are compatible: the event is new to this venue and name, while its tour lineage comes from the former Open 13 Provence. [1, 3]

The city’s clay-court Open Parc Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes Lyon, staged from 2017 to 2024, is a separate chapter. Its own official magazine records the champions and finalists of that period. [4] It supplied memorable French breakthrough victories, but its winners should not be silently presented as previous champions of the new indoor Grand Prix.

Recent champions of the relocated Marseille event

The table below records the final five Marseille singles champions before the relocation. They are former Open 13 Provence champions, not winners at LDLC Arena. ATP final reports and results archives verify these outcomes. [5–9]

Ugo Humbert’s back-to-back titles in 2024 and 2025 are the most recent completed championship sequence in that Marseille chapter. His 2024 final was a 6–4, 6–3 win over Grigor Dimitrov. He retained the trophy by defeating Hamad Medjedovic the following year. [5, 6]

Past winners of Lyon’s separate clay-court Open Parc

These are the seven singles champions of the Open Parc era. The 2020 edition was not held. The table provides historical context for Lyon’s tennis audience; it does not merge the clay event’s record with the Grand Prix. [4, 10–12]

The variety is part of the attraction of this local history: established names won the early editions, while the last two clay-court titles went to French players collecting their first ATP Tour trophies.

Arthur Fils: a genuine breakthrough in 2023

Arthur Fils was 18 when he won his first ATP Tour title at the 2023 Open Parc. He defeated Francisco Cerúndolo 6–3, 7–5 in the final and became the youngest champion in the clay tournament’s history. The ATP also identified him as the youngest tour-level champion of that season at the time. [10]

That is a precise and meaningful use of the word breakthrough: a first tour-level trophy, earned as a teenager on home soil. It is different from saying the tournament created his ability or guaranteed what followed.

For fans watching young players, the week illustrates how an ATP 250 can become a career landmark. A player has to handle several different opponents, recover between rounds and produce a performance with a title immediately at stake. Fils’s Lyon result supplied a concrete achievement beyond the promise already attached to his name.

Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard: a hometown first title in 2024

A year later, Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard delivered another French first-title story. The 20-year-old wild card won the 2024 Open Parc in only his third tour-level event, defeating Tomás Martín Etcheverry 6–4, 1–6, 7–6(7). He saved a championship point in the deciding tie-break. [11]

His victory was particularly striking because a home event can bring expectations as well as encouragement. He had to recover from losing the second set and then survive a final that was close enough to be decided by the narrowest margins.

The useful historical conclusion is straightforward: Lyon’s former clay tournament hosted consecutive maiden ATP champions in Fils and Mpetshi Perricard. Those achievements belong to the Open Parc record. They help explain the region’s enthusiasm for tennis without becoming invented past titles of the 2026 Grand Prix.

A Canadian connection: Félix Auger-Aliassime

Félix Auger-Aliassime appears in both historical tables, as runner-up at the 2019 Open Parc in Lyon and the 2022 Open 13 in Marseille. His Lyon final ended in a 6–4, 6–3 defeat by Benoît Paire. Team Canada’s contemporary account describes it as his second final of 2019, so it should not be mislabelled as his first ATP final. [13]

That distinction is another reason to keep the events and milestones clear. A notable run is worth remembering without turning every final into a first.

What about the inaugural 2026 champion?

Why this tournament is worth following

The Grand Prix brings an autumn indoor event to the Lyon region and gives its audience a fresh venue experience. The wider local history adds another reason to watch: tournaments at this level can put a first-time champion alongside familiar tour names.

Fils and Mpetshi Perricard already show what a breakthrough week in Lyon can look like. The new Grand Prix will build its own record at LDLC Arena. Keeping those histories distinct makes the story more informative—and lets future achievements stand on their own.