While the tension rises between the ultras and the Football League, Virginie Phulpin, our sports editorialist, defends supporters on Monday 26 August.

Virginie Phulpin, our sports editorialist, defends supporters on Monday 26 August. Tension rises between the ultras and the league while the issue of homophobia singing was invited in Ligue 1 this weekend with, for the first time, two brief interruptions of matches in Monaco and Brest. Prohibition of travel, behind closed doors, sale of alcohol ... The world of supporters is currently debating while the Ligue 1 season has resumed for three weeks.

"Yes, I'm tired of the fans being treated as second-class citizens Since the beginning of the season, we have played 27 League 1 matches." And there have been 11 prefectural decrees to ban or severely restrict It's a big ratio: For eight years, the prefects have the power to limit the movement of football fans.First, it concerned only a few matches, high-risk games.Something good, it seems normal. But how did we get to this galloping inflation, did the violence around the football matches explode, it's more like ease, the prefects forbid travel, so they're sure not to problems, but when you see the degree of annoyance provoked, I'm afraid it will lead to an upsurge in violence, fan associations alert and ask for dialogue with the authorities. Le Graet, the president of the French football federation, said on Europe 1 that it could not last and he wanted to be heard. It's not exactly a punk, Christmas Graët! So let's go, let's talk, it will necessarily bring out something better than repression in any case. "

And then the case of alcohol in the stadiums also crystallized quite a bit of rancor

"That too, it falls directly on the fans when they have not asked anything.To increase the sale of alcoholic beverages in the stadiums, it is in a bill of deputies of the majority.This is not a claim football fans The banner displayed by St Etienne supporters last week says a lot: "Beer, we do not care, we are especially hungry for more freedom." Of course, I'm not going to tell you that Ultras are all nice lambs, but they are not all potential delinquents either, and with dialogue you should be able to separate the wheat from the chaff without punishing everyone. is not to fight and to swallow liters of alcohol, go beyond the clichés.So yes, it is necessary to dialogue so that the fans find their freedom of movement, so that one deals with them with the other citizens, and to find fraternity in the stadiums. freedom, equality, fraternity, it also concerns the supporters. "