Bernard Gonzales, Stade de Reims Football club’s doctor has committed suicide. He left a letter explaining that he was a victim of the coronavirus. More than a doctor, Bernard Gonzales was an emblematic figure of the historic Reims club, which had seen a rebirth in the past years. His demise deeply shocked the French football league, which now seems completely disoriented.
For French football leaders, the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA’s) threats to exclude from European competitions all nations that do not finish their national championship has fallen on deaf ears. In France, fear and stupor now dominate.
At the end of March, French club leaders had nevertheless agreed on the need to resume the championship at all costs to avoid losing TV rights. Bernard Le Saint, president of Brest, firmly opposed; and was the only one at the time. This is no longer the case. The biggest defenders of the league’s recovery like Jean-Michel Aulas, president of Olympique Lyonnais, and Bernard Caïzzo, co-president of AS St-Etienne and boss of the powerful “Premier League”, have now changed their narrative. (Text and photo courtesy Guardian)