Ligue 1: “This severity raises questions…”, after the suspension of Olivier Létang, Losc steps up to the plate and points the finger at the FFF

Le Losc emerges from the silence. The president of the Lille club Olivier Létang was suspended for four months by the appeals committee of the French Football Federation this Thursday for his comments targeting the refereeing body after Lille-Paris SG, AFP learned from a spokesperson for the Lille club.

In a press release addressed to the press, Losc wanted to react. “Olivier Létang takes note of the decision of the higher appeal committee of the French Football Federation and deplores it. Doubly sanctioned, he intends to assert his rights and will pursue all necessary avenues of appeal,” the northern club first wrote.

And to continue: “The French Football Federation was absent during this commission and did not take any submissions. The decision was issued in a very short time, suggesting that the sanction was already prepared.”

The current runner-up of Paris Saint-Germain goes further: “In a completely unprecedented manner against a leader of French football who in this case neither threatened, nor assaulted, nor insulted members of the refereeing body, the Federation, a third party in the case, appealed a decision rendered by the LFP. Olivier Létang recalls that the alleged facts only relate to private exchanges. He also recalls that he had never been sanctioned for private correspondence by e-mail, which makes this decision equally unprecedented, contrary to what the FFF has said.

“The FFF closes the door to dialogue”

A “severity” which “questions” for Lille “the real motivation for this sanction. In other recent, more serious cases, which concerned acts of violence or very harsh public positions, the Federation neither sanctioned nor appealed. It’s hard not to see double standards.” “This decision sets a worrying precedent for football. The FFF closes the door to dialogue. Without dialogue and transparency, arbitration will not be able to progress, and it is all clubs that will end up suffering the sporting and economic consequences. Collective awareness is essential.”

Le Losc concludes: “Beyond the file itself, this sanction raises a broader question. Sanctioning a president who demands greater standards and transparency from the refereeing department sends a worrying signal to all those who want to advance French football. Olivier Létang is not sanctioned for threats or insults, since there were none. He is for asking questions and refusing the status quo. He will continue to do so.”