The World Cup is in France!
No, we have not made a leap into the past of almost a quarter of a century, when the country, decked out in its finest finery, welcomed the world of football and won the World Cup in 1998. We are only talking here the famous trophy awarded to the winner.
Usually exhibited at the football museum in Zurich, headquarters of Fifa, the original in 18-carat gold and malachite (36.5 cm high for 6.175 kg) is presented, from this Friday, October 7, in Paris.
And not just anywhere!
He has taken up residence in the entrails of an old iron lady laden with symbols.
Under the aegis of Coca Cola, official sponsor of Fifa since 1978, it sits majestically in a salon of the Eiffel Tower.
At his side, like two guardians of the temple, Marcel Desailly and Blaise Matuidi.
The first brandished it in Saint-Denis on July 12, 1998. The second imitated his elder on July 15, 2018 in Moscow.
The two French world champions are, in their capacity as former winners, the few who can touch the object of all desires designed by the Italian Silvio Gazzaniga.
“We are talking about magical moments that will be engraved forever,” says Matuidi.
“It is in us for eternity.
You have to assume and take advantage of it, ”responds, echoing, Desailly.
Touch, a privilege reserved for victors or heads of state
Parisian fans of this round ball, with sometimes so capricious rebounds, will not have this tactile privilege also devolved to heads of state.
They will, all the same, be a few hundred, holders of a golden ticket to be able to approach the statuette, representing two silhouettes which hold a globe above their heads, this Friday, then Saturday.
They had previously met at Port de Suffren in order to try to win the precious sesame to gain access, then, to the 1st floor of the Eiffel Tower.
Many activities are also offered.
On the barge Gustave, gaming stations and a museum of the French team, rich in different jerseys of the Blues, await, thus, the luckiest.
On Sunday, the Trophy will be visible all day at the Pierre-de-Coubertin gymnasium, where a futsal tournament organized by the French Football Federation (FFF) is scheduled.
To reserve your place for free, go to weezevent.com.
"Fans have 4 days to vibrate and celebrate their love of sport", welcomes Page Guillot, president of Coca-Cola France.
Read alsoOlympic Games 2024: how Coca-Cola will sponsor the Olympic flame route
All these trips are under surveillance.
As soon as it arrived in Paris on Thursday, the mythical trophy was placed under very high protection in a large hotel in the capital, near the Trocadero.
The services of the police headquarters are also mobilized during this stay.
According to information from Europe 1, they fear protest actions by associations calling for a boycott of this very controversial World Cup in Qatar (November 20-December 18).
In recent weeks, the mobilization against this sporting event, in the name of the non-respect of human rights in the Emirate or its ecological and energy cost, has indeed increased.
The visit to the World Cup is part of the "Trophy Tour" organized by FIFA since 2006, allowing a stopover in each of the 32 countries qualified for the competition.
The tour that started on May 12, 2022 in Dubai will obviously end in Doha where the French team will seek its own succession.