Bakary Diawara: Ivorian-Malian defender joins LB Chateauroux on free transfer from Auda

Ivorian-Malian centre-back Bakary Diawara has joined French club LB Chateauroux on a free transfer from Latvian side Auda.

The 22-year-old defender, who stands at 1.95m and is left-footed, moves into the French National 1 set-up after leaving the Virsliga, where he had been on the books at Auda. The deal sees Chateauroux add height and a naturally left-sided option to the heart of their back line ahead of the new campaign.

Diawara arrives in central France after a two-and-a-half-year spell in Latvia, where he alternated between Auda and Riga. He first moved to Riga in July 2023 from Danish club Nordsjælland’s under-19 set-up, before joining Auda on loan later that month. That move was made permanent at the start of 2024 when he returned to Auda on a free transfer.

Before heading to Scandinavia and then the Baltics, Diawara had been part of the Right to Dream structure, earning a switch to Nordsjælland’s youth ranks in 2022. His progression through those systems has now led to a first opportunity in the French professional pyramid with Chateauroux.

Diawara’s most recent campaign included involvement in a squad preparing for UEFA Conference League qualifying, underlining the European experience he now brings with him to National 1 – Group C.

The move, finalised on 29 July 2026, confirms Diawara’s permanent switch to LB Chateauroux after his contract at Auda ended as a free transfer.