Racing Club de Lens was established around 1906 in the northern French city of Lens, in the Pas-de-Calais department — a region shaped for generations by the coal-mining industry. The club's identity is inseparable from that heritage: the iconic red-and-gold colours, adopted in 1924 and earning the side the nickname Les Sang et Or (The Blood and Gold), are said to draw symbolism from the blood of the miners and the precious coal they extracted from the earth beneath the region.
The club turned professional in 1934 with the backing of the local mining company, and spent much of the mid-twentieth century oscillating between the top two divisions of French football. A defining high point came in the 1997–98 season, when Lens claimed their only Division 1 title under coach Daniel Leclercq. That same period brought a Coupe de la Ligue triumph in 1999 and a memorable run in the UEFA Champions League — a campaign remembered in part for Lens becoming the only club to defeat Arsenal at the old Wembley Stadium.
The following decades brought financial turbulence and spells in Ligue 2, but the club's passionate support base never wavered. Home attendances during Ligue 2 seasons routinely led the second division, reflecting a bond between club and community that goes far beyond results. Lens returned to Ligue 1 for the 2020–21 season and quickly re-established themselves as a serious top-flight force, finishing as Ligue 1 runners-up in 2022–23.
The club's fiercest rivalry is the Derby du Nord against neighbouring Lille OSC, one of the most intensely felt derbies in French football.