French Football Federation president Philippe Diallo condemned former Paraguay goalkeeper Jose Luis Chilavert on Saturday after he described France’s national team as “a squad from Africa” in comments made ahead of the countries’ World Cup Round of 16 meeting.
Diallo labeled the remarks racist and said they ran counter to the values represented by French football.
“I condemn in the strongest possible terms the racist remarks made by Jose Luis Chilavert against the French national team, which undermine the values of respect, fraternity and diversity in our football,” Diallo wrote on social media. “If he was once a great goalkeeper, this man has now fallen into disgrace.”
Chilavert, widely regarded as one of Paraguay’s greatest footballers, made the comments before Saturday’s knockout match against France. The 60-year-old shared a screenshot on social media of comments he attributed to former France striker Christophe Dugarry, who reportedly said Paraguay had little chance of defeating Les Bleus.
Responding to those remarks, Chilavert wrote: “Christophe, you’re right. In 1998 we faced the French and now Paraguay will face a squad from Africa.”
France’s national team has long been recognized for its multicultural makeup, with several players, including Kylian Mbappe and Ousmane Dembele, born in France to families with African heritage.
Dugarry was part of the France squad that won the 1998 World Cup, defeating Chilavert’s Paraguay 1-0 in the Round of 16 before going on to lift the trophy on home soil.
History repeated itself on Saturday as France again defeated Paraguay 1-0 to advance to the World Cup quarterfinals.
