Ligue 1 President Vincent Labrune targeted by legal complaint over alleged homophobic post | OneFootball

According to a report from L’Équipe and Agence France Presse, the head of French football’s governing body Vincent Labrune is the subject of a legal complaint made by charity Stop Homophobie. The complaint accuses Labrune of public homophobic insult in his capacity as editor-in-chief of the LFP’s official Instagram account, which had shared a video containing a homophobic chant from Saint-Étienne supporters.The video, which has since been deleted, was published as part of the LFP’s promotional content ahead of the derby between AS Saint-Étienne and Olympique Lyonnais. In the clip, fans can be heard chanting “Oh Lyonnais, bande de p…” — a slur considered explicitly homophobic by the complainants.Stop Homophobie also denounced the repetition of the chant inside the Geoffroy-Guichard stadium during the match the following day, noting a lack of response from match organizers.

Their lawyer, Étienne Deshoulières, said the decision to broadcast the chant for promotional purposes reflects “the normalization of homophobia in football,” particularly on social media platforms where visibility is high.

In a statement to AFP, the LFP said it was “surprised” by the complaint, which followed what it called “the unfortunate broadcast of a video extract containing discriminatory remarks made by supporters.”

The league stressed that the video was promptly removed once the nature of the chant was recognized. It offered sincere apologies to “all those who may have been shocked or affected by the content,” and reaffirmed its long-standing commitment to fighting all forms of discrimination, including homophobia.

A source close to the LFP went further when speaking with AFP, calling the complaint “harassment” against a body that is, according to them, “virtually the only sports authority actively committed to combating homophobia.” The same source accused some associations of seeking “publicity over progress.”GFFN | Freddie Aston