French football league condemns homophobic chants
Fans of Paris Saint-Germain were heard chanting homophobic slurs during their game against Strasbourg. (Getty)
The French football league has censured Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) fans for homophobic chants during a game between the team and Strasbourg yesterday (October 19).
The chants were directed at Marseille, who are PSG’s rivals, and its midfielder Adrien Rabiot. Rabiot previously played for PSG from 2012 to 2019 but later moved to play for Marseille, which was seen by fans as a betrayal.
The league, known as LFP, said in a statement: “These latest discriminatory chants made by Paris Saint-Germain supporters are unacceptable when, at the same time, the whole of professional soccer has been working to ban homophobic behaviour and chants from stadiums.”
During the game, while the chanting was happening, the stadium announcer at Parc des Princes – home turf for PSG – asked twice for the chants to stop but was jeered by fans.
The LFP said its disciplinary committee would be investigating the chants further. It is unclear what the chants consisted of, only that they contained homophobic slurs.
This is not the first time PSG fans have been condemned for homophobic chants, as a previous match against Marseille last season led to fans shouting slurs as well as some players on the team receiving a one-match suspended sentence by the LFP disciplinary committee last season for offensive chants also aimed at Marseille.
Ousmane Dembélé, Achraf Hakimi, Randal Kolo Muani and Layvin Kurzawa were filmed using insults against Marseille and later apologised for their conduct.
The French government also condemned the chants, with France’s sports minister Gil Avérous saying that he will meet with the LFP’s president next week to discuss next steps and how to prevent this from happening again.
PSG fans were already banned from attending next Sunday’s game against Marseille at Stade Velodrome due to a history of clashes between fans.
It is not just France’s fans who have been the perpetrators of homophobic chants, with Premier League team Tottenham Hotspurs recently warning their supporters not to sing a song that features discriminatory language referencing Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta, Manchester Unite’s Mason Mount, and Spurs player Dominic Solanke.
Spurs season ticket holders recently received an email from the club saying that it would take a “zero-tolerance approach” to discrimination after recent incidents in which “abhorrent homophobic chanting” could be heard at games.
The team said that the language used was “unacceptable, hugely offensive, and no way to show support for the team”.
