Jean-Michel Roussier, director of the short-lived Téléfoot channel, which shut down on February 7, 2021. -

BERTRAND GUAY / AFP

Less than 48 hours after the shutdown of the Téléfoot channel, Jean-Michel Roussier is torn between “great pride” and “a feeling of waste”.

The director of the channel mounted by Mediapro, which did not even last a season, gave his feeling in an interview with Le

Parisien on

Tuesday.

He does not regret having embarked on this adventure, even if he feels, of course, "a feeling of responsibility" vis-à-vis all those he has recruited.

“I have trouble and I will have a long time to digest this mess.

I remain convinced that there was an alternative, ”he says.

Roures "hurt" by this issue

If he does not know all the ins and outs of the strategy of Jaume Roures, the boss of Mediapro, whose desire to renegotiate the contract with the LFP led to the crisis of TV rights and ultimately the premature termination of chain, Roussier assures not to have felt “fooled”.

“It made me ch… yes.

But I don't think for a moment that Roures started the chain knowing that three or four months later he was going to lower the curtain, ”he wants to believe.

In reality, this outcome unfortunately seemed inevitable to him because of Canal + 's strategy.

"I think that if, and I insist on the if, on the evening of May 29, 2018, when Mediapro won the rights of L1, Vincent Bolloré and Maxime Saada, who were not really delighted with the turn of events, are promised that whatever happens they would never distribute Mediapro, it was done in advance, ”is convinced Roussier, who thinks Roures“ hurt ”by this issue.

Soon a channel attached to the commercial company of the LFP?

The former leader of OM and Nancy also returned to the offer he submitted to the LFP during the call for tenders - and which was not retained.

He had proposed (with the agreement of Roures) to take over the assets of the Téléfoot channel and to share the revenues generated with the League via the recently created commercial company.

"The idea was to cover the costs of creation and operation, and we would have donated 85% of the amount of revenue to the LFP", he explains.

If Canal won everything until the end of the season, Roussier has not completely abandoned this idea for the future.

Some presidents would not be indifferent to his proposal.

"Most are convinced that depending on an operator, regardless of its quality, which is publisher and distributor, is a major risk for the future," he says.

This would allow them to have the production and distribution tool, and thus to give value to the future commercial company.

I am convinced that it is a real alternative.

"

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