"Many Muslim and Black Players"... PSG Coach Arrested on Racism Charges

Possible up to 3 years imprisonment... The party involved strongly denies it

The coach of Paris Saint-Germain (PSG), a prestigious club in the French professional football league, has been arrested on charges of racial discrimination.

According to reports from the Associated Press and British media outlet The Athletic on the 30th of last month (local time), "PSG coach Christophe Galtier was detained by police to undergo an investigation into discrimination allegations during his tenure as OGC Nice coach."

Galtier was indicted in April this year on charges of making racist and insulting remarks about his players while managing Nice during the 2021-2022 season, along with his son John Balovic. At the time, French media reported allegations that Galtier told the team's sporting director, Julien Fournier, "There are too many Black and Muslim players."

Local media reported, "The Nice prosecutor's office plans to try Galtier on charges of 'moral harassment and discrimination based on ethnicity, nationality, race, or religion or lack thereof,' with a maximum sentence of three years in prison and a fine of 45,000 euros (approximately 64.75 million KRW)."

The police stated, "We will conduct a legal investigation based on discrimination related to race or religion." A police search has already been conducted at the Nice training ground, and it is known that Chairman Jean-Pierre Riv?re and club staff have also been interviewed by the police.

Christophe Galtier, Paris Saint-Germain coach, embroiled in allegations of racist remarks
[Image source=AFP Yonhap News]

The Athletic added, "When these allegations first surfaced, Coach Galtier firmly denied them through a lawyer's statement," and "He announced at a press conference that he would take legal action for defamation."

PSG, Galtier's current club, also issued a statement in April. PSG said, "Serious allegations have been raised in the media, and Coach Galtier has clearly responded by firmly denying them and announcing legal action," adding, "We support him as he faces numerous threats and hope that the truth will be established through justice."

Meanwhile, Nice avoided a direct response regarding the incident, stating, "The club will no longer comment on this matter." Nice explained, "This situation was handled most seriously at the time of the incident, and it now concerns someone who no longer works at Nice."

French-born Galtier began his coaching career in 1999 as an assistant coach at Marseille, later serving as assistant coach and then head coach at AS Saint-?tienne in 2009.

In July last year, he moved to PSG as head coach, leading the team to win the league title in the 2022-2023 season with star players such as Lionel Messi, Neymar, and Kylian Mbapp?. However, it is highly likely that PSG will appoint Luis Enrique as the new head coach next season, signaling a probable parting soon.

PSG is also considered a potential next destination for South Korean national team player Lee Kang-in, who currently plays for Spanish professional club Mallorca.

Meanwhile, despite ongoing efforts by the International Federation of Association Football (FIFA) to eradicate discrimination, racism remains a chronic problem in the football world. Recently, racial abuse directed at Vin?cius J?nior (Real Madrid) by spectators in the Spanish league sparked significant controversy.

In the K League, in June, players from Ulsan Hyundai caused issues by posting racially discriminatory content on social media comparing a teammate to Southeast Asian players. Although the club issued an apology and disciplinary actions were taken through the disciplinary committee, both the apology and sanctions were criticized as merely formalities.