American Club of Paris

This mixture of nationalities and personalities has forged the Club’s reputation as an ideal forum for Franco-American dialogue by the prominent speakers featured at its regular luncheons at the prestigious Cercle de l’Union Interalliée. Recently, these speakers have included such outstanding figures as: U.S. Ambassador to France Craig Stapleton, Irish President Mary Robinson, U.K. Ambassador to France Sir John Holmes, General Pierre Gallois, French Minister of Foreign Affairs Bernard Kouchner, Saint Gobain CEO Jean-Louis Beffa, author William Pfaff III, AXA CEO Henri de Castries, President of France Televisions Patrick de Carolis, Theater Director Jerôme Savary, French Judge Jean-Louis Bruguière, CEO Pierre Cardin, and Maestro Kurt Mazur.

The Club, however, is not only a forum for serious dialogue. The Presidents’ Day Gala held at the U.S. Ambassador’s Residence, as well as the annual Fourth of July, Halloween, Thanksgiving, and Christmas parties, are truly festive occasions. The Club also offers a wide range of other events: private guided tours of art exhibitions, a monthly networking cocktail party, a winter oyster-tasting party, a wine-tasting evening, special tickets for opera, ballet, theatre, and concerts, as well as day and weekend trips. These events, in a less formal venue, provide members a more convivial and unstructured environment that can foster the development of lasting social and business ties.

The American Club of Paris maintains high standards for new applicants. Two members must sponsor each new member. Without relaxing these standards, we are seeking active new members to guarantee that this unique institution thrives well into the new millennium.

The American Club of Paris, one of the oldest non-diplomatic American institutions in France (and perhaps the world), has always had a dual purpose: to provide Americans living in and around Paris with opportunities to meet, and at the same time, to preserve the special ties that the United States has had with France for more than two centuries.
Over the years, this double role has attracted well-established and influential members from a variety of callings: business, politics, the media, diplomacy, and the arts.
Most of the Club’s members are U.S. citizens, some of them long-time residents, while others are professionals on short-term assignments. The rest are mostly Europeans who seek to preserve business and social contacts made either during visits to the U.S. or through trans-Atlantic professional and social relationships.