The French football federation president, Philippe Diallo, has condemned José Luis Chilavert after the former Paraguay goalkeeper said Les Bleus are “a squad from Africa”.
“I condemn in the strongest possible terms the racist remarks made by José Luis Chilavert against the French national team, which undermine the values of respect, fraternity, and diversity in our football,” Diallo wrote in a social media post on Saturday. “If he was once a great goalkeeper, this man has now fallen into disgrace.”
Chilavert, one of Paraguay’s most famous footballers, made the remarks in the run-up to his country’s last-16 clash with France on Saturday. The 60-year-old posted a screenshot on social media of comments he attributed to former France forward Christophe Dugarry saying Paraguay did not stand a chance in the match.
“Christophe, you’re right. In 1998 we faced the French and now PY will face a squad from Africa,” Chilavert wrote.
The French team is known for its diversity and many of its players, such as Kylian Mbappé and Ousmane Dembélé, are the children of immigrants from Africa.
Dugarry was part of the France team that won the 1998 World Cup, beating Chilavert’s Paraguay 1-0 in the last 16.
France won Saturday’s match by the same score.
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