Resignation of Le Graët: "It will not solve all the problems" of the FFF, believes Frédéric Thiriez

Jean-Baptiste Sarrazin 8:05 p.m., February 28, 2023

After the official resignation of Noël Le Graët from the presidency of the French Football Federation on Tuesday, Frédéric Thiriez, former president of the Professional Football League (LFP) from 2002 to 2016 and candidate for the presidency of the FFF in March 2021, reacted to this departure in

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After a reign of 11 years and several months of obstinacy which tarnished his balance sheet, Noël Le Graët ended up giving in after multiple pressures for several weeks.

"I'm not going to overwhelm Noel Le Graet, he made the right decision. This must be the start of something," said Frédéric Thiriez at Raphaël Delvolvé's microphone.

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“He was not a good president of the Federation”

"It is not the departure of a man who will solve all the problems of the Federation", however estimated the lawyer, ex-boss of the LFP, after the resignation of the leader, overtaken by accusations of moral harassment and sex and a series of blunders.

“He was a good president of the Professional League (1991-2000). We were quite close at the time because we had the same ideas (…). But I think he was not a good president of the Federation because he was not interested in the core business of the Federation which is amateur football", he then explained.

Despite the notable financial successes of Noël Le Graët, Frédéric Thiriez regretted that the number of licensees, which increased from 1.96 million to 2.13 million during the Breton leader's mandate (2011-2023), did not " not increased".

"It's good to make money but you have to redistribute it, especially in amateur football and that has not been the case," he added.

"But there's no point in overwhelming him. He made a tough decision but now we have to move on."

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"First act of a refoundation"

"This resignation must be the first act of a profound overhaul, not its culmination", also affirmed Frédéric Thiriez.

"Because the departure of a man will not solve all the problems of the FFF, far from it. It is urgent that the Federation get back on track by focusing on its fundamentals, in particular amateur football which is well on its way to punishment, and by transforming its governance which is neither democratic nor transparent."

Frédéric Thiriez, who was an unsuccessful candidate for the presidency of the FFF in 2021 against Noël Le Graët, said he wanted to "participate in the refoundation of the 'Fédé'", "in one way or another".

Pending the new appointments, Philippe Diallo, vice-president, will act as interim president of the FFF until June 10, 2023, the date of the next federal assembly.

"Philippe Diallo is an honest, loyal person, let's give him a chance. My little concern is if he will have the means to make things happen", concluded Frédéric Thiriez in Europe

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