Stéphane Lannoy, technical director of refereeing delegated to the professional sector, was dismissed by the French Football Federation (FFF), reports L’Equipe, Wednesday March 13, information confirmed to Agence France-Presse (AFP) by a source close to the case. Mr. Lannoy, a former international referee, was summoned on March 4 by the FFF for an interview prior to a sanction, before his fate was sent to him by mail on Friday March 8.
The refereeing body criticized him for being too close to the presidents of Ligue 1 clubs, as well as “the technical inadequacy of the content of the courses offered” and a blurred line on VAR, a Federation executive had previously clarified with the AFP. An incident in the Montpellier-Lille match (0-0) on January 28, revealed by L’Equipe, was “the straw” that broke the camel’s back, this FFF source explained to AFP.
That day, Mr. Lannoy responded in the middle of the match to a message from the president of LOSC, Olivier Létang, by recognizing a refereeing error on the signaling of an offside while the Northerner Nicolas Rodrigues could have obtained a scoring opportunity. The Lille manager went to challenge the decision which he considered contentious, with a message from Mr. Lannoy in support, in the game directors’ locker room at half-time. “The referees felt let down,” said the same source.
Antony Gautier, interim manager
Sébastien Moreira, manager of video assistance for refereeing within the body, was also fired by the FFF. Until the end of the season, it is Antony Gautier, the technical director of refereeing, who will act in the interim, holding three hats: that of boss of French referees, that of manager of professional referees and that of manager of the VAR. Mr. Gautier was already acting as MM. Lannoy and Moreira, both on sick leave, until March 21 and March 26 respectively.
The “refereeing” group within the executive committee of the Federation will have to find successors for the coming season. It should take into account the opinion of the Ligue 1 college, representing the elite clubs, which wishes to have a say in the choice of the person responsible for the game directors of their matches and recently called for better coordination with the arbitration authorities via the liaison committee. This committee has actually existed since November 2022 but has not been able to meet.
The name of Ruddy Buquet, 47, is being circulated to replace Mr. Lannoy, but it is not certain that he wants to end his refereeing career.
