Sports
Noel Le Graet, head of the French Football Federation, resigns after an investigation into sexual harassment

Noel Le Graet, the head of the French Football Federation, resigns after an investigation into sexual harassment.
Noel Le Graet, the head of the French Football Federation (FFF), attends a Paris press conference in 2016. – Copyright Photo by AP/Christophe Ena
By: AP
Noel Le Graet, the president of the French Football Federation, resigned on Tuesday after a government-led audit determined that he was no longer qualified to lead due to his behavior toward women and management style.
Le Graet, 81, is being investigated by the court for alleged sexual harassment and moral harassment. He had already stepped down from his duties while the executive committee of the federation reviewed the audit findings.
According to a statement by the federation, he submitted his resignation during a meeting of the executive committee on Tuesday.
The statement said that Le Graet will be replaced by Philippe Diallo, vice president of the company, on an interim basis. This will last until June 2023.
Amelie Oudea-Castera, the French Minister of Sports, ordered an audit in September last year after Le Graet was criticized heavily.
The final report, based upon more than 100 interviews, and the analysis of different documents, concluded that Le Graet acted inappropriately towards women, and also highlighted other dysfunctions within the federation. It also noted that the federation’s policy against gender-based violence and sexual assault is “neither efficient nor effective.”
The federation praised Le Graet for his “remarkable sports and economic results” since he became the head of the soccer organization in 2011. It reiterated that it was “strongly committed against gender-based violence and sexual assault” and tried to distance itself from this audit.
Le Graet had a good relationship with FIFA President Gianni Infantino, and he will still continue to work at the FIFA office in Paris despite his resignation.
Infantino appointed Le Graet as his personal delegate in January 2022 to FIFA’s Paris satellite office, which includes liaising and member federations from Europe and Africa.
Infantino, who announced the appointment last year, said that the French Football Federation was doing a remarkable work. “I often have the chance to speak with Noel Le Graet in order to better understand how this example can be used to support football development projects around the world.”
Le Graet also wants to keep his EUR235,000 per year seat on the FIFA ruling council, which is chosen by UEFA members.
Le Graet, despite the controversy surrounding France’s soccer body, has not publicly withdrawn from his candidacy for a vote on 5 April at the UEFA Congress, Lisbon, Portugal. Fernando Gomes is his scheduled opponent, a UEFA Vice President from Portugal.
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