PARIS, France (Reuters) – The French Football Federation’s National Technical Director Francois Blaquart has been suspended amid a row over an alleged project to enforce racial quotas in youth academies, Sports Minister Chantal Jouanno said yesterday. “Sports Minister Chantal Jouanno and FFF president Fernand Duchaussoy have decided to suspend immediately National Technical Director Francois Blaquart pending the conclusions of an investigation led by the FFF and the IGJS (General Inspection of Youth and Sports),” Jouanno said in a statement.
On Thursday, French investigative website Mediapart, citing sources within the FFF, claimed that Blaquart proposed to enforce racial quotas to limit the number of players of black or Arab origin in youth academies.