French authorities urged to support community ownership of clubs
An open letter has been sent to Noël le Graët (president of the Fédération Française de Football) and Frédéric Thiriez (president of the Ligue de Football Professionnel) by elected representatives from the European Parliament, French Sénat, and Assemblée Nationale.
The signatories are drawn from six different political parties, reflecting the uniting power of the issue.*
The letter highlights the praise given by European (the European Commission with its support for Supporters Direct Europe and Parliament with its Fisas Report), national (the recent Humbert and Braillard reports) and football governing institutions (UEFA general secretary Gianni Infantino’s recent statements backing supporter ownership) to groups such as A la Nantaise; and urges French football’s two governing bodies to participate in the current debates going on in the country.
A Government Expert Group with similar scope to the UK’s Culture, Media and Sport Select Committee inquiry into Football Governance is due to meet for the first time later this month.
* The letter is available here on the website of A la Nantaise, l’Association des Amoreux du FC Nantes (the democratic supporters’ trust at FC Nantes, and French partner in the recently-concluded ‘Improving Football Governance through Supporter Involvement and Community Ownership’ project),
MORE INFORMATION:
Ben Shave
Development Officer, Supporters Direct Europe
t: (+44) 20 7273 1937
m: (+44) 79 8562 8215
e: ben.shave@supporters-
a: 3rd Floor, Victoria House, Bloomsbury Square,London, WC1B 4SE
Supporters Direct Europe is an organisation that assists democratic supporters’ groups in achieving formal, structured involvement in the ownership and decision-making processes at their clubs. Currently, we are active in over 20 European countries. For more information, please contact Ben Shave: ben.shave@supporters-
