2023-10-10 12:34:52
The former international is targeted this Tuesday, October 10 by a preliminary investigation in particular for public insults of a racist nature after being implicated by France Bleu. “They are no more stupid than North Africans,” he said of his players.
French football shaken by new accusations of racism. The coach of the Orléans football club (USO), Bernard Casoni, was suspended by his club after the opening of a preliminary investigation following an article from France Bleupublished this Monday, October 9, which implicates him for racist remarks.
According to public media, five USO players report racist comments made during training or in the locker room. And even at a press conference. A preliminary investigation was opened this Tuesday, October 10 by the Orléans public prosecutor’s office for provoking hatred or racial discrimination and for public insults of a racist nature. The day before, it was the USO which announced the opening of an internal investigation after the revelations of France Bleu.
On September 21, on the eve of a match against Châteauroux, the coach delivered a press conference that was problematic to say the least. “They [les joueurs, ndlr] have things they excel at. But there are things where it’s not enough. This is where you have to be more efficient, where you have to erase that. My role is to tell them, show them and help them solve problems. That’s it that’s all. I did it in all the clubs I went to, I did it with North Africans! They are no more stupid than North Africans, eh… I mean, that’s the role of a coach.”
According to France Bleu, this is not the first time that Bernard Casoni has said this sentence: “You are no more stupid than North Africans.” Several players assure that he uses it regularly. “We hear this sentence about North Africans every two weeks in training,” assures a player to public radio. Another reports another scene: “We were doing an exercise where two teams compete in five against five. My team consisted entirely of players of color. There, the coach says “no need for bibs for them, they are already black”, supposedly in a humorous tone. It shocked me.”
“Seriousness of the facts invoked”
According to a former USO executive, Bernard Casoni also asked the club’s recruitment unit to have the Orléans squad “cleared”. His manager, Matthieu Ligoule, neither confirms nor denies the comments to France Bleu: “Did the coach ask me to clear the squad? I can’t answer you. This sentence should not be taken out of context. We must not destabilize the club.”
“US Orléans has taken note of the accusations reported by France Bleu against Mr. Bernard Casoni,” indicates in a press release the Loiret club which occupies the penultimate place in the National ranking. “In view of the seriousness of the facts cited, the club has decided to launch, without delay, an internal investigation,” adds the club, specifying that it “will not make any further comments on this situation before the result of this investigation.” He also “took the decision to suspend Mr. Bernard Casoni from his position as coach of the professional team for the duration of the internal investigation”.
Bernard Casoni, 62, was named coach of US Orléans in June. As a player, he won the Champions League with Marseille in 1993 and was selected 30 times for the French football team. Converted into a coach, notably at Olympique de Marseille, he also brought Evian Thonon Gaillard up in quick succession from National to Ligue 2, then from Ligue 2 to Ligue 1 between 2010 and 2012.
Contacted by France Bleu, he refutes the accusations of racism. “My statement about the Maghrebs at a press conference is to tell my players that they are as intelligent as the Maghrebs,” replies Bernard Casoni. I worked there for six years and you think I’m racist?” Regarding his request to “clear the squad”, Bernard Casoni refutes having used this expression: “I never asked to whiten the squad, I simply want there to be a balance in the team. A community should not be over-represented. If there are too many Creoles, it’s not good. The same if there are too many Africans or too many whites.” Finally, regarding his sentence about black people in training, the coach assures him: “It’s stupidity! I’m a southern guy [il est né à Cannes], it’s football, it’s just chambering. Today, we can no longer say anything.”
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