Paris (AFP)
The Prime Minister's announcements are worrying in the Top 14: with the maintenance of the gauge at 5,000 people in the stadiums, "our clubs are in danger", deplores the president of the National Rugby League Paul Goze in an interview with AFP.
According to the calculations of the LNR, the thirty French professional clubs could lose between 30 and 35 million euros during the first two months of the championship.
Q: In what state of mind are you ten days before rugby is back?
A: "We are extremely mobilized and determined to do everything so that the matches can start again but also worried about the health crisis. We know that this season will not be quite like the previous ones. There is a strong desire to resume afterwards. six months without rugby. We are very focused on all the measures to be taken so that the matches can take place in the best possible conditions, in the safety of the players and the public. "
Q: The protocol, validated on Tuesday, favors postponement rather than a fixed price ...
A: "Our main idea is that the matches are played. At this stage, there is no need to cancel matches, to make irreversible decisions. We assume that the matches can be played. . There is no reason to penalize a team which could not play because of infected players. To lose the match to a team in this case, would be to admit that it is at fault. If after a month We should have noticed that postponements are piling up and that there is a traffic jam in the championship, at that point, we will make a decision that may be more restrictive, but this is not on the agenda. "
Q: Can it go up to a package?
A: "When the matches cannot be played, solutions must be found. If we are no longer in the postponement, we will have to look at the regulations: it goes for a draw, as at the World Cup in Japan (due to of a typhoon, editor's note), to a lost match ... It is a device that we must study but which is premature today. A succession of postponements would have to embolize our championship. "
Q: How do you react to the government announcements this morning?
A: "Until October 30, the stadiums will be limited to 5,000 spectators, except by dispensation from the prefects. We hope to be able to obtain, in areas a little less affected, dispensations which allow us to have a larger gauge. will adapt but we are working with the public authorities to obtain massive support because the gauge brings financial difficulties. If we do not want to have clubs which have to stop for financial problems, the government must take action. "
Q: What is the impact of a 5,000-person gauge?
A: "Over the first two months, that is to say the first six matches, this financial loss for all the Top 14 and Pro D2 clubs was estimated at between 30 and 35 million euros. It is a significant sum. clubs are in danger, we must prevent them from not being able to continue, after a few months, if the gauge was maintained. "
Q: What did you ask the state?
A: "An exemption from charges between June and November, which would correspond to the 30 to 35 million mentioned. The file is progressing little by little. We hope that it will come to an end quickly to reassure the clubs and ensure that the championship takes place in a Certain serenity. Let’s imagine that on November 1, the situation gets better, we will then have another discussion. If it is worse, we will ask the public authorities for support for the following period. "
Q: Are you confident?
A: "The gauge is a financial handicap for the clubs. None will be able to resist it for several months. Without help, there could be the disappearance of clubs and the professional championship. I do not think that the government is in this state of disrepair. spirit at three years of the World Cup in France. We can not imagine that it takes place in a country where half of the professional clubs have disappeared after the pandemic. "
Interview by Nicholas Mc ANALLY
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