After retiring from racing following the death of his close friend Jo Schlesser, Guy Ligier founded his own team and commissioned engineer Michel Tetu to develop a sports car named the JS1 — the initials chosen in tribute to Schlesser. The Cosworth-powered JS1 won at Albi and Montlhery in 1970 but retired at Le Mans and from the Tour Automobile de France. For 1971 the car was developed into two variants: the JS2, homologated for road use with a Maserati V6 engine, and the JS3, an open sports-prototype powered by a Cosworth DFV V8. The JS3 won at Montlhery in 1971. Ligier later fitted the Cosworth DFV into the JS2 road car, which finished second overall at Le Mans in 1975. Following that result, Guy Ligier redirected his energies to Formula One.
When Ligier arrived at the start of the 1976 season, it ended a three-year absence of French constructors from the Formula One World Championship following the departure of Matra. The team acquired assets from the Matra F1 operation and debuted with a Matra V12-powered car. In 1977, Jacques Laffite took the team's first Formula One victory at the Swedish Grand Prix — widely regarded as the first all-French victory in the championship, involving a French team, French driver, and French engine.
After the Matra engine arrangement ended in 1979, Ligier built the JS11, a Cosworth-powered wing-car. Laffite won the opening two races of the 1979 season in the JS11, though increasing competition from aerodynamically revised cars from Williams and Ferrari checked the team's momentum as the season progressed.
The JS11 and its successors established Ligier as a competitive outfit in the early 1980s. Significant sponsorship from Talbot — the team was officially known as Talbot Ligier in 1981 and 1982 — and backing from French public companies including SEITA, Gitanes, and Francaise des Jeux supported the operation. Competitiveness began to wane around 1982, the same period in which the team tested a Matra V6 turbocharged engine that never reached the grid.
In the mid-1980s, through the political support of French president Francois Mitterrand, Ligier secured a free Renault turbo engine deal. Sponsorship from Loto and Elf Aquitaine supported the team through this period, though it was not consistently a frontrunner. When Renault withdrew from the sport at the end of 1986, Ligier was left without a factory engine supplier. An intended collaboration with Alfa Romeo broke down due to criticism of the engines from driver Rene Arnoux. The team subsequently ran customer Megatron units (rebadged BMW M12 engines), then Judd and Cosworth, before securing works arrangements with Lamborghini, Renault, and Mugen-Honda in succession.
Between 1987 and 1991 the team went through its most difficult period, failing to score championship points in 1988, 1990, and 1991. At the 1988 San Marino Grand Prix, neither Arnoux nor Stefan Johansson qualified for the race — the first time in the team's history that both cars failed to make the grid.
After a disappointing 1992 campaign in which Ligier failed to capitalise on being supplied with the same Renault works engines as the dominant Williams team, Guy Ligier sold the team to Cyril de Rouvre in 1993. Under new management, with aerodynamicist Frank Dernie and engineer Loic Bigois contributing, the team achieved eight podium finishes over the following four seasons — a sharp contrast to the complete absence of top-three results between 1987 and 1992.
In 1994, de Rouvre sold the team to Flavio Briatore and Tom Walkinshaw. Other parties bidding to acquire the team included Alain Prost and a consortium backed by Williams. For 1995, with Briatore in ownership, Renault redirected its engine supply to the defending-champion Benetton team — a move influenced in part by Michael Schumacher having tested a Renault-powered Ligier late in 1994. Ligier's replacement was Mugen-Honda. Despite initial reliability concerns, the 1995 season proved successful: Martin Brundle finished third in Belgium, and Olivier Panis took second in the season-closing race in Australia.
The Mugen-Honda-powered JS43 of 1996 was a well-balanced car. At the Monaco Grand Prix, Panis took a surprise victory in a race of heavy attrition that saw only three cars finish — the first all-French win at Monaco since Rene Dreyfus drove a Bugatti to victory in 1930. It ended a near fifteen-year winless streak for the team.
The Ligier name made its final Formula One appearance at the 1996 Japanese Grand Prix. On 13 February 1997, the team was sold to Alain Prost and relaunched as Prost Grand Prix, with the anticipated Ligier JS45 never racing under the original name.
In 2004, Ligier returned to motorsport by acquiring Automobiles Martini. A Formula 3 chassis designed by Tico Martini was presented at the 2004 Paris Motor Show as the Ligier JS47, but with Dallara firmly dominating the F3 market, the car competed only in the minor Recaro F3 Cup. In 2005, Ligier introduced the JS49, a sports prototype built for the 2000 cc CN class and eligible for the V de V Challenge.