On January 11, a bomb exploded inside the French Football Federation (FFF) because its president, Noel Le Graet, was provisionally removed from office due to an accusation of sexual abuse against him. A month later, the audit delivered to the Minister of Sports, Amelie Oudea-Casterahad crude definitions against the boss, in the middle of a scenario where FIFA tried to intercede between both parties through a letter.
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The inspectors’ conclusions made it clear that this 81-year-old executive “it no longer has the necessary legitimacy to manage and represent French football” because it has been verified “inappropriate behavior in front of different women”. After having access to the written material, the French media RMC Sport disclosed that the exhaustive analysis of the testimonies yielded “comments and SMS emanating from Mr. Le Graët, ambiguous for some and clearly sexual in nature to others”. This totally contradicts his version stated on the radio network of that country. RMC last november: “I didn’t send SMS. I don’t even know how to write them.”.
The evidence presented against him points to “the delay in the delivery schedule, its repetitive nature and the nature of the recipients – women placed under his authority and/or in a relationship of dependency.” They then outline a hypothesis about the origin of these treatments: “The inappropriate and insulting nature of Mr. Le Graët’s statements can be accentuated by the excessive alcohol consumption”. In this sense, they specify that “this behavior cannot be considered as respectful of the dignity of these people and it does not comply with the obligation of exemplarity that is expected of a president of a sports federation.”
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These reprehensible attitudes of the FFF’s disciplinary regulations are added to an exercise of power “very centralized, which delegates little, favors interpersonal relationships without depending on statutory government structures and manages crises from a distance.” All of this led reviewers to make a sweeping plea for Le Graët’s political future and invited federal authorities to “examine this situation in application of the legal provisions”.
It should be remembered that the start of this investigation occurred hours after a controversial phrase against Zinedine Zidanea few days after having agreed the continuity of Didier Deschamps as DT of the French team: “Zidane in Brazil? I don’t give a damn, let him go where he wants! He can go wherever he wants, to a club… I don’t know, I’d be surprised. He does what he wants, it’s none of my business. I have never seen him, we have never thought of parting ways with Deschamps”. The report does not mention this particular appointment, but it does add that the problematic statements of this person were another of the causes that prompted the request for his definitive removal from the European organization.
Mindful of the terms used against his client, the defense of Le Graet opted to make a striking discharge relating this ruling to the times of the Soviet Union: “It is an extravagance that the officials of a government of the French Republic act in the same way as the Soviet prosecutors.”
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For her part, the minister of the sports portfolio, Oudéa-Castéra, issued her response at a press conference: “As for President Le Graët, I can only endorse the conclusion of the report: he no longer has the necessary legitimacy to manage French football. I know that he is a man of decision, so I hope that in the days to come he will make the right decisions ”.
The official clarified that she was not going to comment on “any of the institutional ways that can allow a way out of this crisis”, but that “they are provided for in the statutes”. In this way, she sought to focus her gaze on the next meeting of the Executive Committee (COMEX), which would be held next week with a date to be confirmed. Despite her departure, the leader will return to his position to discuss his situation before COMEX and the big question is whether there are enough votes to sentence his final departure. “There are different ways to resolve this crisis and allow this rebound in the management of this Federation”said Oudéa-Castera.
In turn, FIFA recently sent a letter, since it views with great concern the interference of politics in the decisions of a federation of this sport. There, they highlight their desire to remember that the “FIFA member associations, including the FFF” have the “obligation” to treat their affairs with “total independence” and full guarantee that no third party interferes unduly.
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