FFF executive board meeting ends in tears for Noël Le Graët – Get French Football News

RMC Sport have published an account of this morning’s FFF executive board meeting, at the end of which Noël Le Graët withdrew from the presidency and director-general Florence Hardouin dismissed.

The board had increasingly turned against Le Graët in the wake of his recent dismissive comments on Zinédine Zidane, allegations of seuxal harassment, as well as his lone decision to renew Didier Deschamps for another three and a half years without informing the committee.

One participant told RMC that no voices were raised during the meeting, which lasted nearly three hours, with Le Graët starting off by apologising for his remarks on Zinédine Zidane. He then went through the process behind Deschamps’ contract extension, at the end of which the renewal was approved by the rest of the board. The members would then, one by one, explain that the situation for Le Graët was untenable, and that he had to accept that the writing was on the wall. Lyon owner Jean-Michel Aulas then proposed that he withdraw from his role (but not resign).

 Le Graët the insisted that the ongoing government audit into the FFF – called following a So Foot investigation into sexual harassment at the organisation – would clear his name, and that he had done nothing wrong. He would go on to lay out his sporting and financial achievements at the head of the FFF, with one participant at the meeting telling him that they were not relevant to the issue at hand. Eventually, Le Graët accepted a withdrawal, along with the promise that he would outright resign if the audit conclusions at the end of the month forced him to do so. The long-time president would end the meeting in tears, while Philippe Diallo takes up interim control for the time being.

GFFN | Raphaël Jucobin