Dubai: Miffed with the decision to hand Paris Saint-Germain their third successive Ligue 1 crown, Olympique Lyonnais have threatened to appeal the decision and seek compensation from the football’s governing body in France.
The French governing body announced PSG as the Ligue 1 champions and the 2019-20 season as closed on Thursday, which deprives Lyon from a qualifying spot at either of the two competitions conducted by the Uefa for the first time since 1997.
The decision to stop Ligue 1 and 2 came after French Prime Minister Edouard Philippe announced that no football could take place before September. PSG were then awarded a third successive Ligue 1 title while Marseille and Rennes will occupy the other two UEFA Champions League spots for next season.
bLyon’s seventh place meant they would be deprived of any sort of European competitions for the first time in more than 20 years - forcing them to threaten legal action.
“Given the judgment of the French Ligue 1 Championship, decreed by the League, Olympique Lyonnais reserves the right to appeal against this decision and claim damages, in particular under the loss of chance and in light of the jurisprudence of other professional sports which are currently in progress, since the damage for the club amounts to several tens of millions of euros,” a statement from Lyon has claimed.
“This solution shared by other clubs was based on the principle of play-offs and play-downs, a title of champion acquired by PSG, with a calendar limited to three weeks consistent with health constraints, and an innovative formula which normally could have interested broadcasters, currently lacking content, as well as sports betting and all other economic players in the football industry. This solution made it possible very precisely to meet Uefa’s wish to go after national competitions,” the statement added.
Lyon had proposed earlier during the week that the League study an alternative solution, which would allow the Championship to be ended and thus preserve the fairness inherent in any sporting competition.
“The government position did not seem to impose, in a prohibitive way, such a final stop from Ligue 1 and Ligue 2. The Minister of Sports [Roxana Maracineanu] had previously indicated the possibility of playing in August if the evolution of the health situation allowed it,” the statement added.
