After a complicated period, marked by three defeats and only one success in eight matches, all competitions combined, Paris FC (PFC) returned to victory on Saturday January 11. At home, the capital’s football club beat Amiens, 1-0, in the 18e day of Ligue 2. But the attraction of the day was more to be found on the stands of the Charléty stadium than on the pitch. Enough to make coach Stéphane Gilli smile, surprised by the number of journalists present for the press conference after a mid-season meeting: “What are all these people? Is it for the stands? »
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The question is obviously rhetorical. Because this Saturday, the PFC played under the eyes of a distinguished spectator, whose presence had been announced for several days: Jürgen Klopp, the former Liverpool coach, now global director of football at Red Bull – the firm has 11 % of the club’s shares since the fall of 2024, the Arnault family holds 52% and Alter Paris, the structure of Pierre Ferracci, its current president, 30%, and a fourth shareholder, the Anglo-Sri Lankan BRI Sports Holdings retains 7%.
The German, who conquered the Champions League with the Reds in 2019, attending a meeting of the French second division championship, Porte de Gentilly in the 13e Parisian district? The image makes you smile. But the technician, who also officiated at Borussia Dortmund, willingly took part in the selfie game, under the amused gaze of Pierre Ferracci, Antoine Arnault and Rai, former glory of Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) , today advisor and ambassador of the PFC.
A press conference Tuesday
The list of “celebrities” does not stop there since the former president of PSG, Michel Denisot, who sits on the new board of directors of Paris FC, and the former German striker Mario Gomez, technical director at Red Bull and who serves as contact between the energy drink group and the club, were also there.
If Paris FC has relaunched in the race to climb Ligue 1 and temporarily takes the lead in Ligue 2 with one point ahead of Lorient (2e), which receives Metz (4e) at the start of the evening, Jürgen Klopp will undoubtedly have some wise advice to give to Stéphane Gilli.
The two men are due to meet again on Sunday at the club’s training center in Orly, in Val-de-Marne. The German will speak on Tuesday January 14 for the first time since taking up his post at Red Bull headquarters near Salzburg, Austria. The opportunity, perhaps, to debrief his time at Charléty.
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