The president of the French soccer federation is teaming up with referees in response to accusations made by Marseille president Pablo Longoria, who claimed the officials were corrupt following his team’s 3-0 defeat to Auxerre in the league.
This marks a significant escalation, as Marseille officials have previously expressed dissatisfaction with refereeing but have not made such severe allegations until now.
Longoria, frustrated after Marseille’s fifth loss in the league, which places them 10 points behind the dominating Paris Saint-Germain, claimed there is “true corruption” and implied that Marseille is a target of a planned conspiracy.
PSG has an opportunity to increase its lead to 13 points over Marseille if they win their match against Lyon later in the day.
Philippe Diallo, the president of the soccer federation, condemned Longoria’s statements, particularly those directed at referee Jérémy Stinat, asserting, “I fully support the referee and condemn the comments from Marseille’s president and officials.”
He emphasized that questioning the integrity of referees is both defamatory and unacceptable, noting the harmful impact such remarks can have on the reputation of the league.
In retaliation, the referee’s union, SAFE, expressed outrage over Longoria’s remarks and announced plans to petition the federation’s ethics committee for an investigation and potential legal action.
The union stated, “We will pursue defamation lawsuits and against those responsible for the hate messages and threats we’ve received following these comments.”
Longoria took issue with the dismissal of player Derek Cornelius for a second yellow card during the match, which occurred while Marseille was down 1-0.
After the sending off, Marseille conceded two goals in the final minutes of the match, including a penalty taken by Brazilian defender Jubal, ending the club’s three-match winning streak in the league.
Earlier this season, Marseille’s director of football, Mehdi Benatia, faced a three-month suspension for his behavior towards Stinat during a previous match.
Although acknowledging his team’s poor performance and accepting that Auxerre deserved the victory, coach Roberto De Zerbi described Cornelius’ red card as “scandalous.”
De Zerbi commented that the referee lacked calmness during the match and speculated whether prior controversies might have affected his judgment.
He expressed concern that the incident would tarnish the image of French soccer on an international level.
Fabrizio Ravanelli, a former Marseille player and current advisor to the club, also voiced his displeasure regarding the officials’ performance, accusing the referee of incompetence.
Ravanelli criticized previous decisions against Marseille captain Leonardo Balerdi, who was ineligible to play against Auxerre.
