INTERVIEW
Bernard Caïazzo played the tightrope walkers against Lionel Rosso, Sunday evening on Europe 1. Difficult to position himself clearly on the resumption, or not, of the championship of Ligue 1, currently suspended because of the coronavirus pandemic.
Co-president of AS Saint-Etienne, but also boss of the powerful union of professional Premier League clubs, Caïazzo recalled that "the priority of priorities remains health", adding: "It is out of the question to endanger the health of players, we are in a particularly serious situation. Football cannot be more important than health. "
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"Try to reach a conciliation" with the broadcasters
The economic pressure is nevertheless important on professional clubs. In fact, the broadcasters Canal Plus and BeIn Sport informed the Professional Football League that they would not pay the TV rights, more than 152 million euros.
"We voted unanimously at the office of the League and at Premier League to have four presidents (of PSG, of Toulouse, Nice and Marseille, note ) to try to obtain a conciliation," recalls Bernard Caïazzo. Clubs, especially in the middle of the table, depend on TV rights to keep their budget in balance, like the Dijon club for example, which would have a hole of five million euros in its coffers if it did not receive its part of TV rights.
"The camera is suitable for Canal Plus"
On the subject, Bernard Caïazzo recalled that "Canal has been a football companion for 35 years. He deserves to be listened to, to be respected, he will never give up on football". But the president of the union of professional clubs is not fooled: "Now, there is a truth, there is no television broadcaster which will pay for matches which have not been played, that is what it happens in other countries. If it is to resume, replay every two days and finish in 20 days, it's ridiculous. You have to hang up under normal conditions. "
One solution is envisaged and conceivable, namely playing matches without an audience, behind closed doors. Foreign championships like the German Bundesliga think about it. "Canal had already written that the conditions of the closed session suited him, we must let the people who discuss with Canal Plus conduct the negotiations, there are many subjects to take into account", ponders Caïazzo, adding: "We are all in the same boat, here it is not the Marseille players against those of Lyon or Paris, we must be a French team in relation to this situation. "