While Nasser Al-Khelaïfi, chairman of Paris Saint-Germain and beIN Media Group, is the subject of a forthcoming issue of Complément d’Enquête, extracts have already been broadcast. Including a meeting between the presidents of Ligue 1 and the Ligue de Football Professionnel on July 14, 2024, to decide on the TV rights of Ligue 1. The meeting is marked by tensions with Joseph Oughourlian (RC Lens) and John Textor (Olympique Lyonnais). Jean-Pierre Caillot, president of Stade de Reims, spoke out in Rothen S’enflamme to defend the Parisian president.
Caillot “Systematically, he stood back and didn’t take part in the decision-making process”.
“There have been previous tenders where there were competitors, in other words several potential buyers. Nasser Al-Khelaïfi was already a member of the league’s board of directors. He systematically stood back and didn’t take part in the decision-making process. He doesn’t defend beIN’s steak over anyone else’s.
Caillot “I remind you that he, or beIN, brings in 140 million where no one else does”.
On the contrary, he’s reacting with his words, but he’s shocked that anyone would hold it against him today. Let me remind you that he, or beIN, brings in 140 million where no one else does. He’s not in competition with anyone else!
There are two clans and let’s not be fooled: everyone wants a piece of the pie, the Parisian president first and foremost. The crisis is deep and the revelations won’t help matters. The sling is intense and it’s going to be complicated to close this gaping wound at a time when clubs are in great financial distress.
We want to see a return to calm, but the dialogue seems almost broken. They don’t even respect each other any more, and Caillot, who defends Vincent Labrune, has chosen his side, but that doesn’t mean he’s right. In a conflict, there’s never just one person who’s right and the others wrong. You have to talk to find solutions.
