FGG member FSGL has issued a press release on possible institutional racism in the French football federation, stating in particular:
If these accusations prove true, this would constitute a grave attack on the principles of equality proclaimed by French football, and French sport in general. For more than 20 years, the FSGL has fought all forms of discrimination, whether for sexual orientation, ethnicity, nationality, religion, or any form of discrimination. One of the major issues outstanding is the fight against racism and homophobia in football, a sport that remains stained by too many cases of racism and homophobia.
For more info, here's a story from the Bangkok Post:
France manager Laurent Blanc has denied any knowledge of a controversial alleged proposal by the French Football Federation (FFF) to limit the number of black and arab players by introducing discriminatory quotas. Reports that French football chiefs, including Blanc, had discussed and approved a ceiling on non-whites emerged Thursday via Mediapart. The influential website claimed: "For the top brass in French football, the issue is settled: there are too many blacks, too many Arabs and not enough white players in French football.
Speaking at a press conference here Friday Blanc categorically dismissed Mediapart's accusations, the 1998 French World Cup winning defender denying that such a policy existed. Raymond Domenech's successor, speaking publicly for the first time since the report surfaced, said he had "never heard mention of such a project".
He added: "Since around 15 years the playing policy has been discriminatory for a certain number of players, athletic and physical criteria being essential. "Today, small players are penalised, that's discrimination," he explained, in a reference to youngsters coming through football training centres.
"What upsets me most is to add 'colour' to this. When one accuses me of this type of discimination, that annoys me. Diversity exists, on the street as in football," Blanc said.
The FFF has also denied the Mediapart report, and has launched an internal inquiry into the affair. FFF president Fernand Duchaussoy, appearing at a hastily arranged news conference at its Paris headquarters, said: "People have spoken to me about a secret meeting, I can't know everything that goes on. I heard about this on Thursday with a great deal of surprise, I was taken aback. I thought it was a joke in bad taste. These are terrible accusations."
Francois Blaquart, the FFF's technical director, also denied that any of France's football training centres had been ordered to adopt discriminatory quotas. He commented: "Our only problem is to do with dual nationality (those players developed in France who then go on to play for different national teams). This involves players of all origins, it's got nothing to do with skin colour."
Marseille coach Didier Deschamps, Blanc's former France captain, considered it "impossible" that the national coach and the FFF had implemented racial quotas. "I know Laurent Blanc well, and I can't believe there were these meetings and decisions."
Mediapart has accused Marseille of using racial quotas in its youth acedemy, but Deschamps dismissed that out of hand. "They accuse Marseille, but just look at our team. Our players come from north Africa, from black Africa, from South America... Sport is universal, there is no question of discrimination."
On Thursday a report by Mediapart claimed: "Some top officials at the French football federation's National Development Programme (DTN), including national team coach Laurent Blanc, secretly approved at the start of 2011 the principle of unofficial discriminatory quotas in training centres and schools around the country."
Mediapart added that following a meeting in January, when those involved were told to keep the proposals secret, directives to apply the measures were sent to the numerous training centres around the country. "According to internal sources at the FFF, who have been shocked by the proposals, instructions were sent to the different managers of training schools, notably the National French Institute at Clairefontaine," added the report. "The figure of 30 percent was even evoked by the Technical Director during a DTN meeting on January 18, 2011."
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