The representatives ofabout fifteen amateur football clubs in Moselle have an appointment this Thursday at the premises of Crédit Agricole in Metz. They will be given back the “Laurels of fair play” awarded by the district of Moselle to reward them for their exemplarity throughout the season, and even beyond. “These are clubs which, over several seasons, have behaved better than the others” Explain Christophe Sollner, District President. “There is obviously behavior on the field, among young people and seniors. These are also clubs that participate in all the actions that the district organizes to make people aware of these good behaviors, on and off the field.”
Valuing good behavior
This promotion of the most deserving clubs also makes it possible to carry out prevention, in amateur football which still sometimes makes headlines for its outbursts. The district also spoke to its licensees on May 13, to point out “an upsurge in incivility on the pitch towards our referees, whether they are officials or volunteers, but also towards opposing teams” while recalling the risks of sanctions and recalling that the clubs “are responsible for policing the pitch, and therefore the behavior of their respective supporters.” “This year, what we are experiencing the most are problems around the handrails” observes Christophe Sollner, “less on the pitch with the players, referees or officials.” Incidents, more numerous at the end of the season when the stakes are tensebut which nevertheless concern only one small minority pitches on which hundreds of matches, boards and tournaments are played every weekend.
A district of attack
The district of Moselle can also boast ofexcellent dynamics, after two years of crisis and football practice disrupted by the Covid-19 epidemic. Christophe Sollner thus salutes the work of Moselle leaders and educators. “There were lots of things, a little different football, new practices which made it possible to keep a good part of the licensees.” So much so that the department found at the end of the season a number of licensees equivalent to that of 2019, i.e. more than 45,000.