Paris (AFP)
Promised for months, the future sports law carried by the LREM majority and examined on Wednesday includes consensual measures on federations or the fight against illegal streaming, but it is considered very modest by deputies worried about the survival of amateur clubs put in the spotlight. carpet by the crisis.
It was to be a great law on sport and society, already promised by the former Minister of Sports Laura Flessel, and intended to encourage the practice of sport.
Objective also: to have 3 million additional practitioners by 2024 when Paris will host the Olympic Games.
The Covid has been there.
And in the end, it is a modest text, examined in the context of the health crisis which is hurting professional sport but especially amateur sport.
While many parliamentarians are worried about the situation of amateur clubs: fall of licensees, flight of volunteers, inability to practice in particular for all indoor sports, the Minister in charge of Sports, Roxana Maracineanu, assured them that the State "will continue to support associations".
"French sport is in danger today. The stake is the pure and simple survival of thousands of sports associations", argued the Génération.s deputy Régis Juanico. "Nothing on the financing of the associations which are today 'hui in great suffering ", protested for his part LR MP Maxime Minot." Anger and disarray over the lack of ambition of this text, "protested Elsa Faucillon (PCF).
"These are the first steps, let's take them", tempered Maud Petit (MoDem).
Faced with the lack of ambition criticized on all sides, Jean-Michel Blanquer, Minister of Education and Sports replied: "Of course this law does not solve everything".
"This proposal must be placed in the context of what has been done since 2017, also insisting on the" importance "of" the union of the two ministries ".
During the last reshuffle in July 2020, Mr. Blanquer took over the Sports portfolio, until then held by Minister Roxana Maracineau, who became Minister Delegate.
A certain number of actors believe that this supervision of Education weakens the Ministry of Sports.
This text will be "a very important milestone", praised Mr. Blanquer, advocating "the educational alliance" between "society and school", also citing Jean Zay.
The text essentially includes measures on the governance of sports federations: full parity, limitation to three of the number of mandates for a president, extended transparency obligation.
It enshrines in law the already existing platform intended to fight against rigged bets, and also contains a device intended to fight against illegal streaming in sport, which has exploded in recent years.
Initially, a measure was provided for in the audiovisual bill, which is currently dormant.
On the form, in rare unanimity, both the PCF deputies and members of the majority such as Laure Amadou or François Cormier-Bouligeon (LREM), protested in front of the number of their amendments declared inadmissible, considering themselves deprived of debate.
In committee, the deputies had specified that the supervisors henceforth subject to the control of integrity, in the same way as the sports educators, also included the sports judges, the referees and the lifeguards.
- Illegal streaming -
This integrity check is also being extended to volunteers, whereas for the past year cases of sexual violence, sometimes going back years, have accumulated in unprecedented ways.
Another amendment aborted in committee, that of the LREM rapporteur Cédric Roussel, on the possibility of creating a commercial company by the professional leagues for the marketing and management of audiovisual exploitation rights, as strongly desired by the Professional Football League (LFP) .
The amendment was withdrawn but the debate could return to a public session.
Mr. Roussel also defended the measure intended to fight against illegal streaming with a legal procedure providing for "blocking, removal or delisting of sites illegally retransmitting a sports competition broadcast live".
"To watch football matches before it's 30 euros, now it's 80 euros what is there to regulate that, nothing!", Criticized the deputy François Ruffin (LFI).
The text also facilitates access to school equipment for clubs when these are sometimes unused, and which will concern the first and second degree.
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