French sports minister says PSG v Marseille should have been stopped due to homophobic chants

French sports minister Amélie Oudéa-Castéra said to Canal+ that last Sunday’s Classique between Paris Saint-Germain and Olympique de Marseille should have been stopped due to the homophobic chants heard in the Parc des Princes stands.

Video footage showed offensive and homophobic chants aimed at Les Phocéens and Marseille folks in general. Olivier Klein, French interministerial delegate in the fight against racism, antisemitism and anti-LGBT hate, called for an investigation, saying that he was “very shocked” by the “unacceptable” chants. Klein was backed by Oudéa-Castéra, who also denounced the chants. “Whatever the rivalry, whatever is at stake, they must be relentlessly fought against by supporters, those competing, and the authorities and public authorities.”

Très choqué par les insupportables chants homophobes entendus au Parc des Princes lors du #PSGOM
Avec la #DILCRAH, je vais saisir le club @PSG_inside et la ligue @LFPfr afin que des sanctions soient prises.
Nous étudierons aussi les possibilités de saisir la justice ! pic.twitter.com/fHoejuMLW1

— Olivier Klein (@OlivierKlein93) September 25, 2023

On Thursday, Oudéa-Castéra doubled down on her previous comments and said to Canal+ that the game should have been stopped. “Those protocols for stopping games in the event of homophobic chants or incitement to hatred are necessary.” French sports minister mentioned that several Ligue 1 clubs were already interrupted because of homophobic chanting several years ago. Oudéa-Castéra adds she will meet on Monday with several fan groups to call for their help in the fight against homophobia. “We will continue to review together everything that we need to enhance in our action plans, so that these situations do not happen again.”

Four PSG players, namely Ousmane Dembélé, Randal Kolo Muani, Layvin Kurzawa and Achraf Hakimi, have been summoned by the League’s Disciplinary committee for taking part in anti-Marseille chants.

GFFN | Bastien Cheval