After appeals to vote from several French national team players, comes the response from Jordan Bardella, president of the Rassemblement National, a far-right party and big favorite in the legislative elections on 30 June. “If they launch appeals to vote against extremists, I don’t feel called into question,” Bardella said in an interview with CNews. His is a response to the words of Marcus Thuram, who invited the French to “fight so that the Rassemblement National does not pass”, and to those of Kylian Mbappé, who launched an appeal to vote “against the extremists”. A slightly more generic statement than the previous one, but which many have interpreted as a reference to the party of Marine Le Pen and Jordan Bardella.
Bardella’s reply
“I have a lot of respect and admiration for Thuram and Mbappé, but the vote of the French must be respected,” replied the aspiring prime minister. «When someone is a millionaire – added Bardella – and is lucky enough to travel around on a private plane, it bothers me a bit that he then gives lessons to people who earn 1,400 euros and don’t make it to the end of the month, who don’t he is lucky to live in super-protected neighborhoods.” And then again: “It’s a bit of a shame and I’m not sure these moral lessons are appreciated.”
The position of the French Football Federation
Philippe Diallo, president of the French Football Federation, also turns up his nose at the political positions taken by the national team players: «I have always said that I guarantee them freedom of expression, but the associative principles of the Federation imply that the players avoid debates of political and religious character and guarantee a principle of neutrality”. Some players, Diallo added, “went further in their positions.” From the base camp of Les Bleus, engaged in the European Championships in Germany, the number one of the French Football Federation added: «The institution cannot have the same freedom of speech as its players. The French team belongs to all the French, I don’t want it to be exploited.”
On the cover: Jordan Bardella at a Rassemblement National election event in Paris, June 9, 2024 (EPA/Andre Pain)
