“We have to catch them!” » On the sidelines of the Olympic torch relay on May 9 in Marseille, Amélie Oudéa-Castéra did not hesitate to use spirited language. Through this urgent invitation, the Minister of Sports and the Olympic and Paralympic Games had sought, with Tony Estanguet, the president of the Paris 2024 Organizing Committee, to raise awareness of the fact that there are still places left for the men’s and women’s tournaments. football at the Olympics this summer. And not just a little! Out of 2.5 million tickets put on sale, one million have not yet found a buyer.
A little over a week later, this call has not (yet) produced any major effect. A rebound was observed in purchases for matches at the Vélodrome in Marseille, according to the public authorities. But, even if football is the discipline where the most Olympic tickets have been sold to date, and if the places at the Parc des Princes, in Paris, are already all gone, sales in the six other cities which will host matches do not take off. It’s not football love.
It is true that “football at the Olympics is not innate”, as an actor from the Games summarizes: football fans are not really waiting for this deadline to rush to the stadiums. The international events that arouse enthusiasm are competitions like the World Cup or the Euro… the next men’s edition of which takes place from mid-June to mid-July; there is also reason to think that it is the latter which will above all capture the attention of the fans.
The men’s Olympic tournament has the particularity of not seeing the main teams (A teams) compete against each other, but those of the Espoirs (under 23s). Which means that most of the football stars should not be present.
Not an unmissable event
Still, some headliners could be there, with the presence of three “jokers” over 23 years old being allowed. For the Bleuets, the French Federation (FFF) does not despair of having big names like Antoine Griezmann or Kylian Mbappé. Especially since Didier Deschamps, the coach of the A, announced on Thursday May 16 that players “could compete in both the Euro and the Games”.
The presence of Kylian Mbappé, the captain of the Blues, would undoubtedly boost ticket purchases somewhat. But it comes up against the aforementioned reality: the Olympics are not an unmissable event… in the eyes of the clubs either. For the majority, there is no question of letting go of their troops after a Euro – just before the resumption of the national championships – even though they are not obliged to do so by FIFA regulations. Some French clubs have already notified the FFF. This is also what prevails abroad.
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