Seventeen Ligue 1 clubs demanded this Friday in a press release the departure of Technical Director of Refereeing (DTA) Antony Gautier, believing that “dialogue and trust were definitively broken”.
“Our Ligue 1 refereeing today does not seem to be up to the level of (…) the challenges, as illustrated by the numerous errors and controversies, every weekend, on almost all Ligue 1 pitches. Images provided by the VAR and available to the referees make them even more incomprehensible, even less acceptable (…) The clubs are demanding the change of Mr. Antony Gautier, the current director of refereeing of the French Football Federation (FFF), with whom dialogue and trust are definitively broken,” indicate the Ligue 1 clubs.
The residents of L1 also demand “the dissemination of the audit carried out by Mrs. Dominique Laurent and transmitted to the FFF Comex, as well as the proposed measures which could serve as a basis for reflection, discussion and development between all parties concerned and in particular a reorganization and a redefinition of the very ambiguous role of the Federal Commission of Referees (CFA).
»
This press release comes at a time when French refereeing is going through a very serious crisis, between controversies over the decisions of officials, use of VAR and a battle of egos.
This situation led to the dismissal by the FFF of Stéphane Lannoy, technical director of arbitration delegated to the professional sector, reputed to be close to the leaders of the professional clubs, but contested by some of the referees and at odds with Antony Gautier.
Until the end of the season, Antony Gautier will act as interim manager, holding three hats, that of boss of French referees, that of manager of professional referees and that of manager of VAR.