Luzenac Ariège Pyrénées keep the footballing dream alive - just

In April, the football team of Luzenac Ariège Pyrénées (LAP) originally from a village of fewer than 700 inhabitants, did the unthinkable.

It won promotion from the amateur league to join the French second division and, in so doing, became the smallest club ever to qualify to compete at such a level.

It was a football fairy tale come true

The players, management and supporters were on a high, looking forward to the big time - well, relatively speaking.

LAP celebrate after securing promotion to Ligue 2 in April (screenshot i>Télé report)

But as we all know - and as British comedian and political satirist John Oliver so sardonically reminded us in his excellent piece on HBO about the World Cup and Fifa - the so-called "beautiful game" is as much about business as it is about sport.

In fact, some might go as far as to say that, in terms of importance, the financial side has far outstripped the sporting one both on and off the pitch.

And so it has proven for LAP, whose chances of playing this coming season in Ligue 2 remain in the balance even though a tribunal has just ruled in its favour, hours before the August 1 kick off.

Finances - or apparent lack of them - have been at the centre of the club's problems.

Both the professional Football league (Ligue de Football Professionnel, LFP), through its Direction nationale du contrôle de gestion (DNCG) - the body which oversees clubs' finances, and the Le Comité National Olympique et Sportif Français Olympic committee dismissed LAP's right to promotion.

They claimed - through their lawyers of course - that during the 2013-14 seaso, the club's management took a DIY approach to its finances and failed to produce balanced books by the June 30 deadline.

Meanwhile LAP's management maintained, on its official website, that it was very much in the black, had had its books audited properly and had met all the regulatory requirements imposed by the LFP.

A tribunal in Toulouse heard arguments from both sides on Wednesday July 30, finally ruling in the club's favour on Friday August 1 - the very day the new season kicked off for Ligue 2.

But that is far from being the end of the story  - of course.

Because LAP still has yet another hurdle to overcome before it can be allowed to play a match.

The club will have to appear before the DNCG once again, within the next eight days, when a final decision will be taken.

So for the moment, its players and staff will have to wait and watch from the sidelines as the division's other 20 teams begin their campaigns.

Football : l’inquiétude des 650 habitants de Luzenac sur WAT.tv 

A World Cup "dilemma" for François Hollande

All right, so "dilemma" might be a little bit of an exaggeration.

But hey. It's football (and politics). And hyperbole is pretty much par for the course in both domains.

All the same, how about "quandary"?

Yup, "François Hollande's World Cup quandary".

You see, the French president can't have helped but notice the  increasing popularity of Les Bleus during their first three games of the World Cup tournament in Brazil, especially after their convincing wins against Honduras and Switzerland (we'll forget that goalless draw with 10-man Ecuador).

The talk in the French media was about "team spirit" and "the players' pride in representing their country" with the folk back home tuning in by the millions to follow their exploits on telly.

Ah yes. Apparently the French had (and have) falllen in love with their football team once again: to such an extent that some people actually see them as being capable of winning the whole thing.

Meanwhile Hollande watches from the sidelines, or the Elysée palace - just as he did during a soirée he organised; the sumptuous setting and giant-sized screen more "gauche" than "bling bling" and rather spoilt by his constant (caught-on -camera) snacking throughout the game.

Still, "President Normal" and all that.

Anyway, that's all an aside (and a long-winded one at that).

The "quandary" for the French president is when and, indeed even, if he should make an appearance in Brazil, and how that might be interpreted.

Of course, Hollande doesn't have the same sort of PR savvy as the German chancellor Angela Merkel.

She's an "old hand", so to speak, at managing to show how "in touch" she is with what makes a footballing nation tick (during the World Cup) and could be seen in the stands during Germany's opening game, cheering on die Mannschaft as they made mincemeat of Portugal.

Angela Merkel at the World Cup (screenshot Newsloop video YouTube)

And to top it off, Merkel then had a photo op' in the dressing room with the players.

Smart lady - and smart move.

Hollande, in contrast, was last seen with the French squad in Clairefontaine as they prepared for their World Cup campaign.

There was plenty of humour, although it all looked a little awkward at times during the photoshoot with the players which left the president looking rather...er...portly and "buffoonly".

But that's perhaps being unfair as there's nothing wrong with not being quite the right shape. After all, how many of us really are?

Since then, nothing much. Well just that ostentatious "soirée". And no real sign that Hollande is about to fly to Brazil to support Les Bleus.

Yes, he has a packed agenda - most political leaders do. But he could have followed Merkel's example and "played safe" by putting in an appearance during the group stage.

After all, the tournament and the group match schedules were published months ago.

Instead Hollande now faces the risk of turning up during the knock out stage when his presence at the country's defeat (should it happen) could well be interpreted as a "jink".

Yes it's (more than) a stretch of the imagination, and there's no way that Hollande's attendance would contribute to the outcome, but that wouldn't stop the more unkindly drawing a link between the two.

Apparently the French president has pencilled in a "surprise (you have to wonder how much of one it will be) visit" should Les Bleus make it through to the quarterfinals after their next match against Nigeria.

The only problem (oh, life can be so cruel sometimes) is that if all goes true to form and planning, France's opponents in the quarterfinal match would be...Germany.

World Cup fever - let's get a grip

What is it with football?

Yes the World Cup - warts (Fifa) and all - is a major sporting event.

There's no doubting that.

But really, does it mean our elected leaders can afford to forget the really important things happening in the world to ride - albeit briefly - the crest of the feelgood wave they hope might somehow benefit them?

Russia reduces its gas supply to Ukraine "raising the possibility of disrupted transit of gas to Europe" and a difficult winter ahead if things aren't sorted.

And what are our illustrious leaders up to?

Well, the German chancellor Angela Merkel hot-footed it over to Brazil to watch "die Mannshaft" make clinical mincemeat of Portugal (with a little help from an imploding Pepe early into the game)

Back in France as the country limps through its economic muddle, now complete with the inevitable industrial ("non") action from SNCF employees and les intermittents du spectacle, how did the president François Hollande spend his time during Les Bleus' opening game?

He ostentatiously invited 200 people (and the cameras) to la salle des fêtes at the Elysée palace to gawp ("with collective passion") at a giant screen as France ran out victorious over mighty Honduras in their first match.

Giant screen at the Elysée palace (screenshot BFM TV)

Oh well. Winter is months away, so why should politicians care about gas supplies right now?

Perhaps the football commentators will help jog their memories by broaching the subject during Russia's first game against South Korea on Tuesday!

Nigeria kicked off its tournament on Monday with a thrilling 0-0 draw against Iran, and in the meantime the 200 or so missing schoolgirls abducted by Boko Haram in April are still being held hostage. They've been located apparently, but still haven't been freed.

Never mind. Who gives a damn anyway?

French TV news reports spend an inordinate amount of time analysing and speculating on the Les Bleus' chances, interviewing individual French players and managers - past and present - wheeling in the "experts" to give their opinions and asking the man and the woman in the street what they think.

And at the same time Sunni Islamist militants have taken control of Iraq's second city Mosul and are now approaching Baghdad.

The world watches - says little and does nothing as the focus of media attention seems to be elsewhere.

And that "elsewhere" of course is Brazil - the host country, profiting from the glory and the money it's not going to make and the prestige the whole tournament will bring as an answer to its social problems.

Just ask South Africa, the host of the 2010 tournament.

Don't get me wrong. I love the so-called beautiful game. But I also care about other things.

And a World Cup which is as much about business and displays of exaggerated patriotism (whatever that might be) as it is sport, surely simply deflects attention away from those other things that really matter.

Friday's French music break - David Serero, "On veut la coupe sur les Champs Élysées"

Nothing could be worse than the Eurovision Song Contest (and epsecially the French entries) when it comes to music, could it?

Think again - and not too hard. Because the answer to a somewhat loaded question (and what would under other circumstances surely be purely rhetorical) comes in the title of this week's Friday's French music break "On veut la coupe sur les Champs Élysées".

(screenshot from YouTube video)

It's the unofficial "anthem" of the French team for this year's World Cup and a timely choice as the whole shebang is set to kick off in São Paulo on June 12 with hosts Brazil taking on Croatia in the first match of the tournament.

To accompany Les Bleus in their attempts to forget the nightmare that was Knysna four years ago in South Africa, French opera and Broadway musical baritone (and all round showman according to his official bio) David Serero has teamed his tonsils with those of "un collectif d'artistes anonymes" to produce a song which is presumably meant to inspire the team's performance on the pitch and drum up enthusiasm among fans back home.

David Serero (screenshot "Autumn leaves - Les feuilles mortes" with Jermaine Jackson)

Quite frankly though, it could well have the opposite effect - prompting the players to run back to their dressing room in embarrassment (should they have the misfortune to hear it in the first place) and leaving supporters in no doubt that the Eurovision result (two points and last place, remember) was not a one-off when it comes to appreciating French music.

It's meant to be a "festive" offering with a sunny Caribbean-South American beat and flavour but the result is just a mess.

The 33-year-old Serero might well have a voice well-suited to opera and popular standards (the latter is a matter of opinion) but when set among the cacophony that is ""On veut la coupe sur les Champs Élysées" he just sounds...well ridiculous and slightly off-key to boot.

All right. If your ears are up to it, here's the song.

How many seconds will you be able to endure?

Let's just hope that Benzema, Giroud, Ribéry and co prove more effective on the pitch than Serero and others did in the studio.

Courage!

Raymond Domenech breaks his silence and admits his "mea culpa"

It has been quite a while since the former coach of the French national football team, Raymond Domenech, has given an interview of any sort.

He has remained discreet and refused to go into any details over the disastrous performance of Les Bleus at last year's World Cup finals in South Africa, the players' infamous strike, the disappointing Euro 2008 showing or his post-managerial plans after being fired in September 2010.


But in this week's edition of the French news magazine L'Express, published on Wednesday, Domenech breaks his silence.

Responding to some of the questions that others have been answering in his place over the past couple of months is, says Domenech, "an attempt to restore the truth and show that I'm not the moron I've been described as being."

And the 59-year-old doesn't mince his words.

"With hindsight I see them as a bunch of irresponsible brats," he says of the players who, in that now "legendary" non-footballing moment, returned to their bus and refused to get off for the training session before the team's final match against the hosts South Africa.

He admits that he didn't want to read out the players' statement but had little choice in the matter.

"There were hundreds of kids waiting on the sidelines and all the cameras were trained on the bus," he says.

"We were the laughing stock of the world. Somebody had to take responsibility and stop the charade."

Legal reasons prevent Domenech from speaking of the incident that sparked of the players' strike - the alleged altercation with Nicolas Anelka during the half time interval in the match against Mexico and the subsequent sending home of the striker.

But the former coach says quite simply that he did his job as trainer.

He has harsh words for the then-sports minister, Roselyne Bachelot, who was also in South Africa during the debacle and said that she had given the players a pep talk and believed that some of them had "tears in their eyes."

"The players were close to tears? Maybe of laughter," he retorts.

"I never got involved in the vaccination campaign (against H1N1 flu, for which Bachelot was also responsible as health minister) and when I'm not competent (in a matter) I hold my tongue."

The interview is far from being one in which Domenech passes the buck and blames others.

Far from it. He admits he made mistakes; from choosing the wrong players and not explaining himself sufficiently well to failing to step down from the job after the Euro 2008 campaign when France went home with just one point and one goal after the group stage.

"I've asked myself why I didn't resign then," he reveals.

"More than that, I wonder why I wasn't asked to step down."

But for all the admission of mistakes made Domenech doesn't take criticism well, and it's a trait which perhaps gives him an air of arrogance.

"If others have the impression that I have no regrets, then perhaps that's because I'm a bad communicator," he says.

"Let's be clear; I made mistakes in not choosing the right players or finding the right words," he continues.

"I don't accept the criticism of politicians or former players who are now journalists but that doesn't stop me from drawing my own conclusion over my record as a manager."

You can read the full interview on the website of L'Express.

Lilian Thuram quits French Football Federation

A sad day for French football after one of its most eloquent and frank spokesmen quits the sport's governing body here, la Fédération Française de Football (the French Football Federation, FFF).

Lilian Thuram (screenshot from TF1 after France's World Cup debacle)

The FFF's interim president Fernand Duchaussoy confirmed on Wednesday that Lilian Thuram had handed in his resignation after just two years as a council member saying that the former international hadn't felt particularly happy in a purely administrative role.

"He has wanted to leave the council for a couple of months now," Duchaussoy told RTL national radio

"He told me he still wanted to work with the FFF but in an area in which he excels and enjoys, namely in a 'social role'."

Although he hasn't yet spoken publicly about the reasons for his departure, the writing has been on the proverbial wall since France's World Cup fiasco in South Africa.

Of that now infamous strike he said that it had "awakened the underlying racism in society" and said the then-captain, Patrice Evra, should never play for France again.

He warned at the time that, "If there are no sanctions, I shall resign."

And he hasn't shied away from criticising some of the decisions made by the recently-appointed coach of the national side, Laurent Blanc.

Thuram is France's most-capped international player and was of course a member, along with Blanc, of the 1998 World Cup and Euro 2000 winning sides.

The 38-year-old played at the highest club level in France, Italy and Spain, before being forced to "hang up his boots" two years ago after a health scare.

He has long been politically and socially active particularly in campaigning against racism in football and became a member of France's Haut Conseil à l'intégration (High Council for Integration) while still a top defender.

Among his many activities he currently serves on the board of the L'Institut de relations internationales et stratégiques. and in October was appointed as a Unicef ambassador to Haïti

Most famously perhaps back in November 2005 in response to the then-interior minister Nicolas Sarkozy's description of youngsters after they burned cars and attacked police and public buildings in two weeks of rioting in various parts of France Thuram said, "If they are scum, then so am I."

Ambassadeur De L'Unicef: Lilian Thuram - Funny blooper videos are here

Raymond Domenech's new job

He's back! The former manager of the national football team, Raymond Domenech, has returned to the Beautiful Game.


Ah how he has been missed since the Fédération française de football (French football federation, FFF) fired him in September for "gross misconduct".

Mind you his latest job is a world removed from the one he held for six years and no way as lucrative. Quite the opposite really as Domenech is lending his indubitable expertise on a voluntary basis to the L'Athletic Club de Boulogne-Billancourt (ACBB) in the suburbs of Paris.

And what will the man who won nothing while coaching Les Bleus, managed just one title (Division 2 champions with Olympique lyonnais in 1989) during his eight years as a club manager and of course was such a shining example of leadership, humility and respectful behaviour (in refusing to shake the hand of South Africa's manager Carlos Alberto Parreira at the end of the France-South Africa match) at the fiasco that was France's World Cup campaign this Summer?

You might well ask.

The 58-year-old will be in charge of ACBB's under-11s.


"It's part of a long-term commitment he has made," Jacques Migaud, the president of ACBB's football section said.

"He'll be training the kids every Wednesday in an advisory role," he continued.

"And he's agreed to do it to get back to basics and simple enjoy being with children. It's entirely voluntary."

Quite.

With the tidy sum of around €5,600 in unemployment benefit rolling in every month and a claim of €2.9 million in compensation from the FFF currently being reviewed by an industrial tribunal, Domenech can more than afford his mastery of football with others - for free.

His first match in charge of ACBB's under-11s will be on Saturday against neighbouring Suresnes.

France's World Cup footballers want their bonus...for a good cause

If you thought you had heard the last of the debacle that accompanied France's participation at the last World Cup in South Africa, take a deep breath and prepare yourself for the latest twist.

The players who took part in the shambles now appear to want the bonuses they had previously said they would waive.

Or more accurately, they're refusing to put pen to paper and sign the document giving up their claim to a share of sponsorship money to which they're entitled.

On Tuesday the sports daily L'Equipe revealed that the players seemed to be going back on a promise made by the former captain Patrice Evra just after the team ignominiously crashed out of the competition that, "They would be waiving all bonuses" and "wouldn't accept a centime of sponsorship money."

But that was four months ago, as the paper pointed out.

And although the Fédération Française de Football (French Football Federation, FFF) wouldn't be offering compensation, to which the players were ineligible after their first-round exit, there was still the matter of €2 million linked to sponsorship deals.

That's a figure, says the national daily Le Parisien, based on the number of international matches played in one season, and has nothing to do with the World Cup per se.

Just about now you might be thinking that those hard done by millionaires imagine they have a right to the dosh no matter how disgraceful their behaviour was on an off the pitch in South Africa.

Or perhaps you're wondering whether last week's decision by their coach during the fiasco, Raymond Domenech, to claim €2.9 million in compensation from the FFF played a part in appearing to renege on their earlier promise.

Alou Diarra, speaking during a press conference at the 2010 World Cup (snaphot from YouTube video)

But wait. There's apparently another perspective on the news, if the current captain Alou Diarra is to be believed.

He admitted later in the day during an interview with RMC radio that the players wanted to get their mitts on the dosh, in a manner of speaking because, "Contractually the FFF was obliged to hand it over. and we want to know what's going to happen to it."

But it's not for the indecent or insolent reasons implied in L'Equipe's report.

"It's a time of year when a lot of people find it hard to make ends meet," he said.

"We would like to see the money go to good causes, charities that really need it," he continued.

"It's not an action by the FFF or anyone else, but a decision taken at the initiative of the players."

Raymond Domenech's 2.9 million euros counter attack

In spite of what you might think of the man's managerial skills, you have to admire Raymond Domenech's audacity - or do you?

The former coach of the national football team, Les Bleus, is claiming €2.9 million in compensation from the French Football Federation (FFF).


Domenech was fired for "gross misconduct" after France's disastrous (putting it mildy) World Cup campaign in South Africa this year.

As far as the FFF was concerned, the grounds for his dismissal in September were three-fold.

Domenech's failure to mention the insults striker Nicolas Anelka made to him during that infamous half time incident in the game between France and Mexico, his reading out of a letter when the players refused to train and "went on strike", and his refusal to shake the hand of South Africa's coach Carlos Alberto Parreira at the end of the final group match.

And it's that term "gross misconduct" which Domenech is contesting because it meant that the FFF was able to terminate his contract without severance pay.

"We're seeking compensation for the salary to which he would have been entitled during his notice period," Domenech's lawyer, Jean-Yves Connesson, told RTL national radio on Wednesday.

"As well as that, there's severance pay due and damages for the personal harm, all of which amounts to €2.9 million," he continued.

"His dismissal on grounds of 'gross misconduct' (and therefore without compensation) made one man the scapegoat in a collective sinking and although the split was as amicable as possible it was one based on political and legal grounds."

Responding to the news the acting president of the FFF Fernand Duchaussoy issued a statement saying the amount sought by Domenech was "outrageous and provocative".

The claim will first go to the Prud'hommes (industrial tribunal) for conciliation, but if no agreement is reached, Domenech could pursue his case through the courts.

Domenech may well be within his rights - legally speaking - but the 58-year-old is unlikely to make many friends within the footballing world or the general public.

Nothing new there!

Jean-Pierre Escalettes to resign

The president of the French Football Federation (FFF) Jean-Pierre Escalettes, has announced he's standing down. In a statement on the Federation's website Escalettes said he would officially present his resignation at an FFF council meeting on Friday.



His decision comes follows mounting criticism of his presidency after France's World Cup campaign which saw Les Bleus eliminated after the group stage with just one goal and one point from three matches.

The team also hit the headlines after striker Nicolas Anelka was sent home for allegedly insulting coach Raymond Domenech and the players "went on strike" by refusing to attend a training session.

In a short statement released on the Federation's website on Monday, Escalettes said he had spent the past couple of days thinking about his future and took his share of the responsibility for what had happened.

"After a weekend of reflection during which I consulted my colleagues, staff and my family, I consider it my duty to resign," he wrote.

"I accept my share of responsibility," he continued. "It's a decision taken mainly by my wish to preserve and help the evolution of the institution I've served with passion for several decades."

Escalettes has been president of the FFF since 2005 and was seen as instrumental in solving its financial problems and leading France's successful bid to host Euro 2016.

But he also faced criticism for leaving Domenech in charge after France failed to make it past the group stage of the Euro 2008 finals and later struggled to qualify for the World Cup in South Africa.

The 75-year-old's tenure as FFF president had been due to run until 2012.

Last week after what she called the "disaster" of France's World campaign, the French sports minister Roselyne Bachelot said in an interview on national radio that although she didn't want Escalettes to resign she considered in an "unavoidable consequence."

Last week after what she called the "disaster" of France's World campaign, the French sports minister Roselyne Bachelot said in an interview on national radio that although she didn't want Escalettes to resign she considered it "unavoidable."

Thierry Henry talks - and says nothing

Thierry Henry gives his first interview since France's lacklustre performance both on and off the pitch during the country's short-lived campaign at the World Cup in South Africa.



In a pre-recorded interview broadcast on the early evening news programme Le Grand Journal on Canal +, Henry answered questions about the exclusion of striker Nicolas Anelka, the refusal of the team to train, the feeling within the squad, claims of bullying and his meeting on Thursday with the French president, Nicolas Sarkozy.

If the viewing public and the French as a whole had been hoping for an explanation of what exactly went on within the team, then they were in for a disappointment as Henry remained circumspect throughout the interview.

"The first reason for the 'fiasco' was that the team didn't play well," he said.

"When a side wins anything can happen but when there are setbacks, doubts occur, stories are invented and the rest is history."

Even though pressed on the whether coach Raymond Domenech had really been up to the job, Henry remained loyal saying that Domenech "had been there taking decisions and he had to be respected."

But he also admitted to having felt somewhat "isolated" from the rest of the group, although he refused outright to lay the blame with anyone or name names.

"I don't want to go into detail," he said. "I could have been like a big brother to the rest of the team, but it was difficult as I didn't really have any credibility."

Let's not forget that Henry, a member of France's 1998 World Cup winning team and the side that went on to lift the European Football championship in 2000, is probably the most respected player in France.

Domenech included Henry in the squad but kept him sidelined for much of the competition, bringing him in the second half of the final match against South Africa.

Of the now infamous insult allegedly hurled by Nicolas Anelka at Domenech and which led to the striker's exclusion, Henry remained guarded.

"I didn't hear exactly what was said but when you make that the headline of an article which appears in a newspaper, you have to be completely certain that you've got the correct wording."

Henry said he hadn't witnessed any of the reported fighting between players, nor had he seen pressure put on anyone.

But he also admitted that he didn't know what had gone on among the other players when he returned to his room.

He also insisted that the players' decision not to train as a protest against the French Football Federation's handling of Anelka had been a "unanimous one."

"We decided against training when we were in the bus and nobody was forced into the action," he said.

"With hindsight and in view of the consequences some might have regretted it, but at the time we were united."

Finally of his meeting with Sarkozy on Thursday, Henry said nothing more than it had "gone very well" even when pressed to reveal what the two men had discussed.

Henry's interview, along with those of his club team mate at Barcelona Eric Abidal and the Manchester United player Patrick Evra both of whom also gave interviews on Friday, have left many commentators in France wondering whether the players had agreed on a strategy for dealing with questions following their return home.

Say as little as possible in the short term and wait until later before going into detail as to what really happened.

Thierry Henry and Nicolas Sarkozy meet - but why?

Mystery surrounds the meeting between the French president, Nicolas Sarkozy, and international striker Thierry Henry on Thursday with nobody certain as to who requested the talks let alone what the two men discussed.

Sarkozy's office insists it was the French striker who asked to speak to the president, and a report in the national daily le Monde even quotes a spokesman for Sarkozy as saying that indeed "Thierry Henry had rung from South Africa requesting a meeting when he returned to France."

But national radio RTL reports the story the other way round insisting that it was Sarkozy who rang Henry to set up the meeting.

One thing's for certain though, when France's most capped player (122 appearances) and leading international scorer (51 goals) arrived back from South Africa on Thursday with the rest of the team, a car was waiting to whisk him away to president's official residence, the Elysée palace.

Thierry Henry (source Wikipedia, photo Shay)

Although journalists were waiting at the main entrance to pose their questions before and after the meeting, Henry discreetly entered and left through a side gate and without saying a thing, and there have been no leaks as to what the two men discussed.

They certainly had plenty to talk about after the French team's disastrous performance in South Africa, and Henry, a former captain of Les Bleus and a member of the 1998 World Cup winning team and the side that went on to lift the European Football championship in 2000 is a man with a glittering football pedigree.

But the meeting between the two men received short shrift from Jean-Louis Vielajus, the president of Coordination Sud.

He and other environmental non-governmental organisations had been scheduled to see Sarkozy ahead of the G20 summit in Toronto, but as he said on the federation's website, as far as the French president was concerned, football took priority.

"For Nicolas Sarkozy, holding a meeting with a footballer is more important than the situation of three billion poor people in developing countries," Vielajus said.

"It sends out a bad signal as far as the political co-operation of France is concerned."

Domenech refuses to shake hands with Parreira

It was surely the final humiliation in France's catastrophic World Cup campaign.

The sight of the manager, Raymond Domenech, not only refusing to shake hands with Carlos Alberto Parreira at the end of the match which had seen South Africa beat France 2-1, but also his arrogant behaviour in front of journalists from around the world at the press conference afterwards.

Raymond Domenech refuses to shake hands with Carlos Alberto Parreira (screenshot Canal +)

When one journalist asked him why he hadn't shaken hands with Parreira and whether he had been ashamed at the behaviour of his players during the tournament, Domenech said he had understood but had already answered the question.

"I don't have the intention of replying," he replied. "Is there another question?"

There was that audible silence in the room (apart from the sound of those omnipresent vuvuzelas in the background), the sort you would probably expect from those clearly nonplussed by the response.

But it didn't stop another journalist trying a slightly different approach.

"Sorry, it os the same question," he said.

"Why is it you don't want to answer why you didn't shake the hand of Mr Parreira?" he asked.

To which Domenech in all his glorious arrogance replied, "Is there another question?"

You can see the exchange here at 39:32 in the second segment of the morning news magazine La Matinale on Canal +.

Over the past week there has of course been much talk in the domestic and international media about the lack of respect shown by the French players towards fans, especially in light of their refusal to train last weekend, and the failure of the French Football Federation to put its house in order and sending home striker Nicolas Anelka for allegedly verbally insulting Domenech at halftime during a 2-0 defeat to Mexico last Thursday.

But should any of us really be surprised when the man at the helm proves himself to be equally lacking in humility and manners

By the way, the likely explanation for Domenech's refusal to shake hands was his displeasure over Parreira's remark after the World Cup draw last year when he said that France owed their qualification to that infamous play-off goal created by Thierry Henry’s handball.

Is the French team's World Cup hotel too Bling Bling?

Rama Yade (photo from Wikipedia, Marie-Lan Nguyen)

With less than a week to go before the World Cup finals kick off in South Africa, the French junior minister for sport, Rama Yade, has caused a controversy by lashing out at the amount of money being spent on the accommodation for the French football team.

In a radio interview on Sunday morning Yade suggested that the French Football Federation's choice of the luxury five-star Pezula Resort Hotel & Spa in Knysna, Western Cape Province as the base camp for Les Bleus hadn't been appropriate at a time when everyone else was being encouraged to tighten their belts.



"I wouldn't have chosen this particular hotel," she said, noting that Spain, one of the favourites for the tournament, had opted for a university campus.

"Should France do well in the World Cup, then the choice of a site offering the best training conditions might well turn out to be a wise one," she continued.

"But if the team underperforms then there'll be some explaining to be done (on the choice of the hotel and its cost) by those in charge," she added.

"I hope that the French team will dazzle us more with their results rather than flashy hotels and I had called on the FFF to show some decency in these times of (economic) crisis."

http://www.lepoint.fr/actualites/2010-06-06/mondial-rama-yade-juge-indecent-l-hotel-des-bleus/1037/0/463507

Later in the day, Yade's immediate boss, Roselyne Bachelot, the minister for health and sport, while not openly criticising her junior minister's comments, didn't exactly back her up either.

And she refused to be drawn into what she called an "unnecessary controversy" over the national team's accommodation in South Africa.

http://www.rtl.fr/fiche/5942169500/roselyne-bachelot-invitee-du-grand-jury-rtl.html

"As far as I'm concerned, now is not the time to create a polemic over our team," she said when being interviewed on RTL national radio's Le Grand Jury, with Yade looking on in the audience.

"The team needs our support, and both Rama and I will be present during the World Cup," she continued.

"The French Football Federation has made its choice, and they're the ones responsible," she added.

"It won't cost the taxpayer anything and now it's time to say 'stop' and get behind the team."

When interviewed by the news agency Agence France-Presse over his reactions to Yade's comments, Jean-Pierre Escalettes, the president of the FFF refused to be drawn into the debate. was interviewed by the news agency

"What do you want me to say?" he's quoted as responding.

"If the junior minister speaks, she speaks. I'm not going to make any comments about a hotel I don't yet know myself. It's not my role," he added.

http://www.leparisien.fr/coupe-du-monde-2010-football/hotel-des-bleus-roselyne-bachelot-recadre-rama-yade-06-06-2010-952841.php

A "holy game" of football

The club football season might be over in Europe and supporters of the so-called "beautiful game" preparing to follow the World Cup which kicks off in a couple of weeks time, but one important match remained to be played last weekend - the Clericus Cup final

As Agence France Presse (AFP) news agency reports, the match was in a sense the Catholic Church's very own version of the event to be hosted next month in South Africa and one in which "both teams could claim to have God on their side."

Players in prayer at the end of the match, Agence France Presse TV screen shot

The Clericus Cup is a tournament which has been contested annually since 2007 and is made up of teams whose players are all priests or seminarists from around the world attending the Vatican City's Papal colleges.

Saturday's final (there are no tournament games on a Sunday) was a repeat of last year's with holders Redemptoris Mater taking on rivals Pontifical North American College; the Italians once again running out the winners with the only goal of the game.

While the president of the Cup, Monsignor Claudio Paganini admitted that there had been several on-the pitch incidents and that perhaps not all the players had always "behaved entirely correctly" the competition had shown another side of the Catholic Church - away from the scandals that have dominated recent news stories.

http://www.france24.com/fr/20100530-football-avant-le-mondial-leglise-catholique-a-deja-son-champion

"At a time when the Church is being attacked over issues of paedophilia we're showing here how games and the body are values and not limitations," he told AFPTV.

"The human body should be used to give glory to God, not for acts of deviance."

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PlDslMckFCg

Redemptoris Mater have appeared in each of the four finals that have taken place since the Cup began in 2007.

The only time they have failed to lift the trophy was in 2008 when they lost out to Mater Ecclesiae.

Jessy Matador is Oslo-bound for France

It's official.

This year's French entry at the annual musical jamboree, the Eurovision Song Contest, will be sung by Jessy Matador.

Who?

You might well ask!

Probably unknown to many in this country, the choice was immediately seen by those "in the know" as a sure-fire way of France not winning the annual music shindig.

Instead it's apparently a clever marketing ploy to create a buzz for Matador and France Television ahead of the World Cup finals in South Africa.

Confused? Then read on.



First up though, for those of you out there who haven't got a clue what the Eurovision Song Contest is, here's the very briefest of summaries.

It's an annual competition which many music aficionados dread but the viewing public seems to love (to hate perhaps).

It began back in 1956 when just seven countries entered and has under the auspices of the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) grown and become something of an institution with millions tuning in to watch the very best and worst of what Europe has to offer - musically speaking.

This year it'll be coming from Oslo as Norway won the competition last time around and with it the honours to play host.

If you're really intent on finding out more about it, here's a more exhaustive (exhausting?) explanation.

So back to France and the decision to send a relative unknown - even within this country - to Oslo.

There is apparently more at stake than winning Eurovision, at least as far as France Television is concerned according to Gaëlle Placek, a journalist for the weekly television and entertainment magazine, Télé Loisirs.

http://www.jeanmarcmorandini.com/article-36150-exclu-eurovision-jessy-matador-pour-representer-la-france.html

She insists that the decision is a mainly commercial one, with any tune Matador might sing standing little chance of winning and instead France Television banking on promoting the song to become its summer hit.

Such thinking doesn't require the leap of imagination as might at first appear.

Matador, who originally comes from the Democratic Republic of Congo, has a style of music that combines African and Caribbean influences and has already had a summer hit ("Décalé Gwada") in this country.

Just as importantly the Eurovision Song Contest takes place just a couple of weeks before the guaranteed money-spinning (for television stations among others) World Cup kicks off In South Africa.




And of course France Television will be one of the channels broadcasting matches throughout the competition.

Indeed the whole theory of a marketing ploy seemed to be more or less confirmed by Nicolas Pernikoff, the head of entertainment for France Television, in revealing the choice of Matador to represent the country in Oslo.

He said that the singer would be going into the studio shortly to record the French entry and that it would also serve as the summer hit for France 2 television.

Some French fans of Eurovision - yes apparently they do exist - might be upset that a more popular artist hasn't been chosen to represent France, and that the move goes against the spirit of the contest.

After all along with Germany, the United Kingdom and Spain, France is one of the so-called Big Four, financial contributors without which the contest would have difficulty being staged.

But since last winning Eurovision back in 1977 with Marie Myriam's "L'oiseau Et L'enfant", France has had a pretty dismal record.

Not even the presence in Moscow last year of a big gun in the form of Patricia Kaas could guarantee the country victory. She managed a disappointing eighth place.

So perhaps the choice of Matador makes sound business sense, spares (French) viewers the seemingly interminable process of choosing a representative favoured by many other countries such as Germany, which is currently holding a weekly televised knock-out show of Eurovision wannabees warbling their hearts out in "Unser Star für Oslo".

And it cuts down on the suspense at the end of May when the whole Eurovision delight hits French TV screens for several hours as nobody here will really expect France to win anyway.

Raymond Domenech's World Cup pay off

In spite of his denials, Raymond Domenech, rakes in a tidy sum for getting Les Bleus to the World Cup finals

It should be interesting to see how the manager of the French national football team, Raymond Domenech, reacts to the news of how much he has earned for helping the side reach the finals of the World Cup in South Africa next year.

After the French controversially qualified last month thanks to that now infamous "hand of Henry" in their match against the Republic of Ireland, speculation in the French media was widespread over just how much Domenech and his players had made.



More than €820,000 in total for Domenech alone, was the figure bandied about, and one which the 57-year-old was quick to dismiss.

"If I had earned that much I would be extremely happy," said an astonished Domenech when questioned about the amount on national radio.

"But it's far from being the case and I'm not even going to try to contradict something that appears to follow the usual editorial line," he continued, referring to the constant criticism over his management style that he has received from many quarters of the media during his five years in charge.

"It's a complete lie."

Except it wasn't if figures the national daily, Le Monde, has managed to get hold of from the French Football Federation (FFF, a pretty good source) are to believed.

They reveal that in fact Domenech earned €826,222.

Now of course we're all used to hearing about the elevated salaries of the world's top players.

And there's unquestionably room for debate over whether they're merited, the true "value" of those at the top of the beautiful game and the morality behind splashing out such vast sums.

Similarly it has to be admitted that Domenech's earnings pale somewhat in comparison with some of his international counterparts such as the England manager, Fabio Capello, whose annual salary is £6.5 million (€7.2 million).

But the confirmation coming just a couple of weeks after that denial from the French manager doesn't exactly put him in a good light, which is perhaps the reason Jean-Louis Valentin, the deputy director of the FFF has so readily leapt to his defence.

"He didn't lie," insisted Valentin, explaining that the total was broken down into several elements over a number of years.

"When you look at the salaries earned by politicians or film stars, you would never think about calculating them on a period covering two or three years," he continued.

"And Raymond Domenech could never have imagined (when asked the question) that the media would do exactly that in working out his salary."

So that's all cleared up then, and we can be rest assured that Domenech didn't in fact fall into the same trap of telling a lie - the very accusation he made of those French media reports.

Instead we can now happily hope that he breaks his habit of managing to produce less than the best from a squad of some of the world's most talented players and concentrate on him might actually win something in South Africa.

That would be a first in his managerial career.