The reversal of the PSG-Rennes match, counting for the first day of Ligue 1, continues to be talked about. Yesterday evening, the LFP confirmed that the match, which was to be played at the Parc des Princes, will finally be held at Roazhon Park next Sunday at 8:45 p.m., due to the deplorable state of the Parisian pitch. Information which surprised more than one since the capital club has one of the most beautiful lawns in Europe and devotes a huge budget to its maintenance.
To justify itself, PSG explained yesterday that the summer heatwave “strongly accelerated the deterioration of the pitch at the Parc des Princes, which is now particularly damaged a few days before the match between Paris Saint-Germain and Stade Rennais”before thanking the effort made by the SRFC to urgently organize the match in its stadium, with all the logistics (ticketing, VIP boxes, security, catering, etc.) to be completed in just four days. “The Club regrets this exceptional situation and will communicate to ticket holders all information relating to the applicable terms and conditions as soon as possible. Paris Saint-Germain thanks Stade Rennais, Rennes town hall and the Ille-et-Vilaine Prefecture for making the match possible. »
Following the latest heat wave, PSG warned the LFP last Saturday that the pitch was impassable. A delegate came to see the situation at the Parc des Princes on Monday, and the competitions commission on Tuesday. Subsequently, the LFP organized the meeting with the clubs on Wednesday. The regulations provide for three possibilities: the use of an alternative stadium, the organization of the meeting by the visiting club or a postponement. This is why PSG studied three possibilities concerning neighboring stadiums, Jean-Bouin, Charlety and the Stade de France, none however obtained the green light (lawn not yet ready or concert layout). Since it was not possible to find a stadium, Rennes immediately agreed to organize the meeting. PSG did not oppose it, even if it was rather in favor of a postponement. If the Breton club refused, the match would have been postponed. The fate of the Parisian and Rennes supporters who had reserved seats, hotel and transport for the match at the Parc remains unresolved.
Rennes relies on the LFP regulations but…
For its part, Rennes relies on the LFP regulations which stipulate that “the return match must take place on the ground initially planned, except in exceptional circumstances. » This regulation provides that this change does not impact the rest of the calendar except in exceptional circumstances. And according to PSG, this is indeed an exceptional circumstance. If this is the case, the LFP should therefore communicate by confirming the reversal of the return match. Otherwise, this would create unfairness, Rennes would have one more home match than all the other Ligue 1 clubs and one more than PSG.
A precedent exists in Ligue 1. The last comparable case dates back to the 2014-2015 season. Following the violent bad weather and flooding that occurred on the night of October 6 to 7, 2014, the Mosson stadium suffered significant damage. However, Montpellier was to host Olympique Lyonnais on October 19, 2014 for the 10th day of Ligue 1. In a context of solidarity, OL accepted the reversal of the match: the match initially planned in Montpellier was finally played at Gerland. The return was then rescheduled at La Mosson for the 28th day, the weekend of March 7 and 8, 2015, thus restoring the balance between the two teams.
