Olympique Marseille head coach Roberto Di Zerbi has dismissed the ‘farmers league’ tag on the French Ligue 1, describing it as a ‘real championship’.
The Italian coach was quizzed by Sports Talk Florida in Marseille on Friday about the competitiveness of the French top-flight after Paris Saint-Germain advanced into the UEFA Champions League final.
The Ligue 1 has been widely criticised as a farmers league for just being a hunting ground for top talents over the years but Di Zerbi, in his defence, shifted blame to football authorities in France.
PSG are set to face Inter Milan in the Champions League final in Munich on May 31 after seeing off Premier League heavyweights including Arsenal, Aston Villa and champions Liverpool.
With just two games left before the end of his debut season in Marseille, Di Zerbi rates the French Ligue 1 as a championship to top world coaches but it is not managed well.
Di Zerbi told Sports Talk Florida: “The Ligue 1 is a real championship, with strong coaches, very lively stadiums.
“In my opinion it is not managed in the best way, it is not sponsored, nobody knows in depth how many quality players there are in France.
“Nobody knows how many good coaches are in France, nobody knows the stadiums or only a few people outside France know the love and passion of the French for football, that’s because it is probably badly managed by those who govern football in France.”
Football administration in France
French football has been under the radar in recent times with broadcasting rights dispute between the Ligue de Football Professionnel (LFP) and global sports streaming platform, DAZN which has affected the visibility of the Ligue 1.
DAZN bought the Ligue 1 broadcasting rights in 2024 on a five-year deal but their relationship with the LFP turned sour due to piracy issues and challenging operational conditions on the part of the broadcaster.
The streaming platform subsequently defaulted in its instalment payment of the rights deal in January and in February, the LFP announced legal actions against their broadcast partners.
In April, the French league board comprising of the presidents of Ligue 1 clubs voted to terminate their contract with DAZN at the end of the season.
The decision is expected to bring French football back to square one as they seek a new broadcast rights holder in the summer to stream the match.
Marseille in tight race for UCL return
The Olympians are second in the Ligue 1 table, but they are battling AS Monaco, OGC Nice, Lille and Strasbourg in the qualification race for Champions League football next season with just two points separating the teams.
Marseille will travel to face Le Havre on Saturday, May 10 and then conclude their 2024-25 season with against Rennes at the Orange Velodrome on May 17.
