French chiefs approve player quotas - report ????

[Toppa]

PARIS — French football chiefs have approved proposals to limit the number of black and Arab players coming through their national training programmes to 30 percent, according to a report.

The influential Mediapart website claimed Thursday top management at the French Football Federation (FFF), including France manager Laurent Blanc, secretly discussed and approved "unofficial discriminatory quotas".

"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," the website 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, where 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."

However the French team's chief press officer Philippe Tournon said Blanc categorically denied the allegations made in the report.

"Laurent Blanc rejects these accusations which run contrary to his whole philosophy," Tournon told AFP.

"Laurent Blanc is outraged that he has been accused in this way, since he rejects any kind of discrimination. He would never agree to such measures."

The report claims that in FFF meetings the problematic issue of players with double nationalities was also discussed.

Tournon added: "One of the problems evoked by Laurent Blanc is the double nationality issue, namely when players who benefit from a three-year stint in a French national training centre then go abroad and play for other teams.

"But to reduce that to an article headlined 'There are too many blacks and Arabs' is simply unbelievable. And it's not going to sit well with Laurent Blanc."

FFF chief Fernand Duchaussoy told AFP: "I've never heard of these proposals and to be honest it would astound me if I did.

"It wouldn't be right, and in any case I wouldn't allow it to happen."

Duchaussoy added: "It's a reality. We have a lot of young players who have double nationality, and some of them go on to choose another country than France when it comes to the national side.

"That is their choice, and we have to accept it. But these kinds of problems haven't been discussed at federal meetings."
http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5hJU7uF7HySVhIpbwTfIfhhnoN-wg?docId=CNG.884a11613242c5f5776f856c69831f72.5c1

[Jah Gol]

French football body to investigate 'race quota' claim
 France's multi-ethnic football teams are a source of pride for many
Continue reading the main story Related StoriesFrance's World Cup 'disaster' prompts soul-searching
France's football federation (FFF) is to hold an internal inquiry into claims its officials backed a secret racial quota for trainees.

Top FFF members are said to have secretly approved limiting the number of black and Arab trainees to 30% from the age of 12-13.

France's Sports Minister, Chantal Jouanno, asked the body to respond to allegations made by journalists.

FFF head Fernand Duchaussoy denied any such quota had been agreed.

Ms Jouanno promised to uphold guarantees of equal opportunities in sport.

"Discrimination has no place in sport, whether it's in the stands or in the training academies," she added.

Race became a sensitive issue in French football again after the dire performance of the national team at last year's World Cup in South Africa.

Controversial accusations circled in some quarters that the team, which had six black players, had mutinied in South Africa because of race.

The South Africa experience was in sharp contrast to 1998, when France fell head over heels in love with its multi-ethnic World Cup-winning team of "Blacks, Blancs, Beurs" - blacks, whites and Arabs.

'Segregation'
 
The French investigative website Mediapart broke the story about a supposed secret quota on Thursday.

Continue reading the main story “Start Quote It's a lie to say that the France coach was involved”
End Quote Laurent Blanc France coach
Quoting "scandalised" sources within the FFF, it said the alleged directive from its National Technical Direction (DTN) had already been sent out to training academies.

Mediapart alleged that senior FFF members including national coach Laurent Blanc had approved the quota.

"The objective declared within the DTN, but undisclosable to the general public, is to limit - by filtering them right from the age of 12-13 - the number of French players of African and North African kind," the website said.

"A genuine segregation applied to football."

Commenting on the allegations, the sports minister said: "I take note of the French Football Federation's denial about the existence of such a policy and I invite it to very quickly shed light on the allegations in the article".

Blanc denial
 
Laurent Blanc strongly denied any plans for an ethnic quota.

"There is no plan to introduce quotas," he said in Bordeaux on Friday. "It's a lie to say that the France coach was involved."

He added that he had attended a meeting with federation officials in November but that the main item on the agenda was to "define a style of play and a training programme aimed at having the best results in five years".

Since he took over from Raymond Domenech after the World Cup, Blanc has often raised the problem of players with dual nationality, who benefit from French training academies before choosing to play for another country, the Associated Press news agency reports.

In Paris, Mr Duchaussoy denied "instructions, orders" about a quota had been given by the FFF.

"But then, in an informal discussion... I cannot be everywhere," he told reporters.

"There will be an investigation. What happened in a meeting, behind a door or in the corridors... I cannot vouch for everyone working at the federation. But I am confident [that there was no wrongdoing]."

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-13236864

[Andre]

leh we look at most of their greats:

most caps
Lilian Thuram (carribbean roots)

top goalscorer
thierry henry (carribbean roots)

memorable names
Just Fontaine (moroccan)
michle platini (italian parents)
zidane (algerian parents)

so this supposed policy is to create a shit side?

[Tenorsaw]

leh we look at most of their greats:

most caps
Lilian Thuram (carribbean roots)

top goalscorer
thierry henry (carribbean roots)

memorable names
Just Fontaine (moroccan)
michle platini (italian parents)
zidane (algerian parents)

so this supposed policy is to create a shit side?

That new Frenc generation of players that have come through the pipeline over the last 15 years is mostly the children of immigrants.  The team that won in 1998 was mostly the children of immigrants and it became a news issue back then.  If that was even discussed around a meeting table, it is indeed disappointing. 

[giggsy11]

I wouldn't be surprise if this is true. There have been past rummblings about people in French football not being happy pertaining to the racial make up of the French side.

[Andre]

whether is racial or they eh want to train other people players debatable i suppose.

it have a graph in circulation about how many junior players could play for other country. i suppose if we had a setta youth in we u-20 and below programs who could improve from T&T training program and  then bust and play for guyana or other, we go be vex too.

http://www.mediapart.fr/journal/france/060511/revealed-how-french-football-feds-ethnic-graph-created-new-division

[Mose]

Fact of the matter is that French football has profited from these players and even the ones of dual nationality. And also, our experience has been that the ones of dual nationality are more likely to want to play for the land that they live and are training in and they only leave if they see that they don't have much chance (in other words there's other better options).

So me eh know what de ass dey kicking a big fuss over!!!

[elan]

Fact of the matter is that French football has profited from these players and even the ones of dual nationality. And also, our experience has been that the ones of dual nationality are more likely to want to play for the land that they live and are training in and they only leave if they see that they don't have much chance (in other words there's other better options).

So me eh know what de ass dey kicking a big fuss over!!!

They don't want black players representing them, just like Italy.

Remember they say the debacle from last world cup was because they had to many black ghetto players on the team.

[sammy]

Fact of the matter is that French football has profited from these players and even the ones of dual nationality. And also, our experience has been that the ones of dual nationality are more likely to want to play for the land that they live and are training in and they only leave if they see that they don't have much chance (in other words there's other better options).

So me eh know what de ass dey kicking a big fuss over!!!

They don't want black players representing them, just like Italy.

Remember they say the debacle from last world cup was because they had to many black ghetto players on the team.

dey eh wha no blacks and no muzlims playing for them

[NYtriniwhiteboy..]

seems like it has to do with the high number of dual nationals in the lower age groups..they claiming that they scared that they could end up training talent to be taken by another team...but as the article i read about it also says, is that who would choose a lower team if u are good enough to make the french team!
waiting to see what happens with the "investigation"

[Mose]

seems like it has to do with the high number of dual nationals in the lower age groups..they claiming that they scared that they could end up training talent to be taken by another team...but as the article i read about it also says, is that who would choose a lower team if u are good enough to make the french team!
waiting to see what happens with the "investigation"

Same thing I saying!!

[Mose]

Fact of the matter is that French football has profited from these players and even the ones of dual nationality. And also, our experience has been that the ones of dual nationality are more likely to want to play for the land that they live and are training in and they only leave if they see that they don't have much chance (in other words there's other better options).

So me eh know what de ass dey kicking a big fuss over!!!

They don't want black players representing them, just like Italy.

Remember they say the debacle from last world cup was because they had to many black ghetto players on the team.

dey eh wha no blacks and no muzlims playing for them

Dat is a ridiculous attitude to have considering who win dem de world cup and de Euro!!

[Jayerson]

There are a number of youth players that are eligible to play for other EU countries such as Spain, Italy, Poland. They never really mentioned those players. Just Black and North African (Muslims). And as someone else pointed out, only the players that generally don't make the grade for the French national team, are the ones that end up playing for these African teams.

I could understand if you were limiting the number of foreign born (who will have strong allegiances to the place of their birth), but these kids, many of them will be French born.

[Savannah boy]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adel_Taarabt
The man lived 9 months of his life in Morocco. The French developed him and he put on ah red seniour shirt for Morocco well before he is ready and good enough to play for the French Men's National Team.  Dey damn right to be pissed.   

[Blue]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adel_Taarabt
The man lived 9 months of his life in Morocco. The French developed him and he put on ah red seniour shirt for Morocco well before he is ready and good enough to play for the French Men's National Team.  Dey damn right to be pissed.   

Ditto Marouane Chamakh, Seb Bassong, Benoit Assou-Ekotto, Frederic Kanoute and dozens of other