It is a very heavy sanction pronounced by the Disciplinary Committee of the LFP, responsible for settling this last disciplinary file of a stormy 2021-2022 season from start to finish in the stands and on the lawns of Ligue 1.

In a press release, the Saint-Etienne club said it would "not appeal the decision".

After having already inflicted withdrawals of points, certainly more limited in Nice or Lyon, the Commission this time struck hard against ASSE after the scenes of chaos at the Geoffroy-Guichard stadium at the end of May during the shoot-out loss against Auxerre: invasion of the lawn by angry Greens supporters, then throwing smoke bombs towards the stands and general jostling.

In addition to this withdrawal of points which risks complicating the objective of an immediate recovery in L1, the club is also sanctioned with six matches behind closed doors, two of which are suspended, which will penalize the club's finances, already very fragile, by depriving it ticket office.

ASSE will therefore start at home without an audience on the weekend of August 6 against Nîmes during the 2nd day of L2.

And the Saint-Etienne team will remain all season under the threat of three additional points withdrawn in the event of new excesses from its supporters, therefore starting the 2022-2023 financial year with a total of negative points.

According to the scale in force, the applicable sanctions could go as far as disqualification and even demotion.

The Stéphanois already playing behind closed doors against Reims in Geoffroy-Guichard, May 14, 2022 JEFF PACHOUD AFP / Archives

The past months have shown that the Disciplinary Committee, chaired by Sébastien Deneux, no longer hesitates to pronounce very heavy sanctions in the event of serious incidents, such as the withdrawal of points in the classification.

The one inflicted on AS Saint-Etienne could put a strain on their season, while only the first two of L2 will go up to L1 in May 2023, a handicap that may be crippling for the ambitions of the Saint-Etienne club... but also for the interest loaned to the American businessman David Blitzer, candidate according to L'Equipe for the acquisition of the Greens.

© 2022 AFP