what justice reproaches the ex-Nice coach, prosecuted for moral harassment and discrimination

The French coach is expected Friday morning at the Nice criminal court for racist and discriminatory remarks attributed to him and which he denies having made when he coached OGC Nice.

He is back in France, but on the dock. Coach Christophe Galtier, who has led the Qatari Al-Duhail football team since October, is on trial on Friday, December 15, before the Nice criminal court. He is appearing for moral harassment and discrimination, offenses punishable by three years in prison and a fine of 45,000 euros.

The affair broke out in April, when independent journalist Romain Molina, then RMC Sport, revealed the content of an email that Julien Fournier sent, when he was director of OGC Nice, to the sports director of the Ineos company, main shareholder of the Riviera club. In this message, Julien Fournier reports racist remarks that Christophe Galtier, coach of the club during the 2021-2022 season, allegedly made during a meeting on August 9, 2021. As reported by the Nice public prosecutor in a press release , at the end of June, Julien Fournier allegedly claimed that Christophe Galtier asked him to “take into account the reality of ‘the city’ and that in fact, we could not have so many blacks and Muslims on the team”.

Since the start of the affair, Christophe Galtier “contested with the greatest firmness” having made racist remarks towards players when he was officiating in Nice. The coach announced in April that he was filing a defamation complaint against Julien Fournier and two journalists. For its part, the Nice public prosecutor’s office opened, on April 13, on its own initiative, a preliminary investigation, for “discrimination based on an alleged race or belonging to a religion”, entrusted to the Nice judicial police. The next day, searches were carried out in the premises of OGC Nice. Interviews with members of staff and club managers were also carried out.

“His words created a deleterious climate”

Other comments attributed to Christophe Galtier should be mentioned in court. According to information from franceinfo, confirming the revelations of The Teamthe former assistant coach at OGC Nice, Frédéric Gioria, told investigators that he had heard Christophe Galtier say in August 2021 about the player Billal Brahimi: “Another Muslim, I don’t want it, we’ve had enough.” The young winger, an Algerian international, was nevertheless recruited in Nice in the 2022 winter transfer window. Contacted by franceinfo, Frédéric Gioria and his lawyer did not wish to respond. They also did not confirm their presence at Friday’s hearing.

During the investigation, eight OGC Nice players were interviewed. Christophe Galtier was taken into police custody on June 30. At the end of this, he was summoned before the Nice criminal court, on December 15, to be tried for “discrimination by hindering an economic activity based on origin, nationality or religion victims and the offense of moral harassment of a discriminatory nature”. Offenses that Christophe Galtier contested again before investigators.

“He was not exclusively responsible for recruiting players, but in his capacity as coach, his words and actions created a harmful and discriminatory climate” supports, on the contrary, Galina Elbaz, the lawyer for the International League against Racism and Anti-Semitism (Licra), which is becoming a civil party alongside the Professional Football League. “We intervene because Licra plays a monitoring role in the fight against discrimination, particularly based on religion”, explains Galina Elbaz to franceinfo. She intends to claim the sum of 5,000 euros in damages, due to “seriousness of the attack on the interests and principles of equality and non-discrimination” .

“I do not accept that anyone can say that I am racist”

The lawyer insists on the “moral harassment of a discriminatory nature” of which the coach is suspected. Based on the content of the hearings carried out during the preliminary investigation, she maintains that it is “perfectly established”. According to her, some players said they did not respect Ramadan to be able to ensure the possibility of playing. “They felt under pressure because of their religion”underlines the lawyer, who will plead these arguments at the hearing.

Christophe Galtier highlights concerns about sporting performance. “As a coach, I have only one obsession: the health of the players, the performance of my team. My players managed Ramadan as they wanted, and they all played”he declared on September 17 in an interview with Canal+ . “I do not accept that anyone can say that I am racist”he then said, before promising to “explain in December”.

On the eve of his trial, Christophe Galtier’s entourage reminded franceinfo that in Nice, the coach had opened his office for Muslims who wished to pray in peace, and that he exempted players who wished from the obligatory lunch from go to Friday prayers. Contacted by franceinfo, his lawyers stick to the statement made to various media, including The Team and the AFP: “Christophe Galtier is determined. He is finally waiting for this public and contradictory debate where he will demonstrate that he has obviously never discriminated or harassed anyone. His entire professional career and his reputation bear witness to his impeccable personality.”