It was to be a tournament like there are dozens in France every week. This 47th edition of the Mondial de la Saint-Pierre (organized each year in Nantes), which ended with a final victory for Angers, nevertheless took an unexpected turn Friday evening after the exclusion of the U15s from the association of PSG (the players are therefore not in pre-training at PSG).
In question, the alleged insults of the players and managers of the capital club towards the referees during the semi-final against Troyes. “ Following the incidents at Troyes – Paris Saint-Germain, the Saint-Pierre club and the organizing committee of the U15 World Cup support the referees who felt unsafe. It was decided, in agreement with the refereeing body, to exclude Paris-Saint-Germain from the tournament. stated the official tournament website.
“I did not directly witness the scene but the report mentions threats from PSG”
Julien Boye, president of Saint-Pierre de Nantes
What precisely pushed the committee to exclude the Parisian U15s? “ There is total incomprehension regarding the reasons for this decision. Our young people behaved well”, we explain, this Sunday, at PSG. In the final minutes of this match between PSG and Troyes, the referees felt that they had been insulted and therefore asked that the capital club be excluded.
“ All the facts have already been reported and recorded in the referees’ report. I did not directly witness the scene but the report mentions threats from PSG, explains this Sunday Julien Boye, the president of Saint-Pierre de Nantes, organizer of the tournament. But I would like to point out, contrary to what I read here and there on social networks, that no fight involving PSG players and staff members took place during the tournament. »
“The match against Troyes was marked by many rather gross refereeing errors, it was sometimes tense but the PSG coaches, like the players, were not insulting”
Hervé Rahard, World Cup volunteer
This exclusion may have surprised some witnesses: “ I accompanied the PSG young people and the staff for four days and they were exemplary, explains Hervé Rahard, World Cup volunteer who followed the Parisian delegation. And I would like to point out that I am not a PSG supporter. The match against Troyes was marked by numerous rather gross refereeing errors, it was sometimes tense but the PSG coaches, like the players, were not insulting. At the end, the kids were even crying with disappointment. The two coaches greeted each other. The referees returned to the locker room quickly. The league delegate, responsible for young referees, asked that PSG be excluded. The organizing committee, if it wanted the tournament to continue, was perhaps obliged to comply with this decision…”. “ We made this decision collectively, in agreement with the arbitration body,” concludes Julien Boye.
