When the Women’s World Cup trophy offers a Parisian tour

In 59 days, the kick-off of the 9th edition of women’s world cup (20 July – 20 August) will be given at Eden Park in Auckland. This Sunday, the trophy which will be awarded to the winning team made a stopover in Paris, two days after its visit to the Netherlands. For the occasion, the Cup benefited from a prestigious escort with retired internationals Lilian Thuram, Laura Georges, Louisa Necib-Cadamuro and Aline Riera, who accompanied it to the four corners of the capital.

From 10 a.m., the delegation went to the Robert-Debré hospital where it spent more than an hour with about ten children from the child psychiatric unit aged 7 to 14 years. If they were able to be impressed with the arrival of the former footballer and the ex-players, the girls and teenagers present for the most part quickly relaxed.

After discovering the trophy and posing with the ambadors of the day, they did not hesitate to ask all their questions. “How much do you earn? “What is your diet?” “How did you deal with your mental health in the face of pressure? » No subject was evaded and the answers were quite frank. “Don’t forget that it’s a game and that we can make mistakes, we have the right”, thus answered Thuram concerning the management of the pressure during the matches.

Aline Riera, Louisa Necib-Cadamuro, Lilian Thuram and Laura Georges with the children from Robert-Debré hospital. (J.-M. Hervio/The Team)

After this moving first stage, the trophy and its companions joined the Champ de Mars for a sunny photo shoot in front of the Eiffel Tower. Lilian Thuram, monument of French football, obviously caught the eye of onlookers, very happy to be able to meet the 1998 world champion and immortalize this moment. The former defender also exchanged a few balls with Aline Riera, who admitted that technique was not necessarily his strong point during his career, before leaving for a new stage.

The ambadors for a day of the World Cup Trophy on the Champ de Mars. (JM Hervio/The Team)

The morning ended at the Hôtel de la Marine, the Paris headquarters of FIFA, where Fatma Samoura, FIFA Secretary General, Philippe Diallo, the interim President of the French Football Federation, had gathered, but also Michèle Monier, the first captain of the France team during the first match of Les Bleues in 1971 or the former referees Nelly Viennot and Ghislaine Peron-Labbé.

Fatma Samoura took the opportunity to ensure that “Australian and New Zealand hotels, stadiums, base camps and fans were ready to welcome the world”. On the other hand, the objective of 1.5 million tickets sold has not yet been reached since 904,000 tickets have so far found takers.

Warm hug between Michèle Monier, first captain of the French women’s team, and Lilian Thuram. (J.-M. Hervio/The Team)

A walkabout for Hervé Renard

Philippe Diallo again made a new appeal to the broadcasters when the competition has still not found any in France. “Women’s football is attractive to everyone”slipped the leader, recalling the excellent audiences for the 2019 World Cup. He also mentioned the ambitions of the France team during this World Cup and made an appointment on August 20. “The conditions for success are now met, affirmed the French leader. We have changed everything in the environment of the France team but our ambition remains the same, to win if possible. »

At the end of the afternoon, a few hours before the kick-off of PSG-OL (to follow live commented on our site), at the Parc des Princes, the forecourt of the Jean-Bouin stadium, just opposite, has been transformed into a giant pitch. Hervé Renard, the coach of Les Bleues joined the party in the company of his istant Laurent Bonadéi and then unveiled the trophy once again with Fatma Samoura.

Without ever losing his smile, Renard posed for countless photos at the request of the women’s teams gathered to play small futsal matches, but also of the fifty former French internationals present for the occasion. This Sunday evening, he will be in the stands of the Park to attend the decisive meeting for the awarding of the title in D1 while the trophy will continue its tour in the bays of the PSG stadium.

Hervé Renard (on the left, in the third row) with the former internationals of the France team.

The World Cup will leave France on Monday and continue its European journey in Spain before heading to Portugal. By the start of the competition, it will have covered the 32 qualified countries before reaching Auckland where the opening match will take place on July 20 between New Zealand and Norway.