‘The dice were loaded from the start’ – Corrine Diacre a year on from ‘orchestrated’ France sacking

In two days, it’ll be a year since Corinne Diacre was sacked from her role as the manager of the French women’s team. 

It was an end brought about by infighting and a team rebellion against a manager who had grown increasingly unpopular with key figures in the team. Wendie Renard (33), Marie-Antoinette Katoto (25), and Kadidiatou Diani (28) all threatened to step away from the team ahead of last summer’s World Cup. 

In the context, of what the French Football Federation referred to as a “ significant divide ,” Diacre was released from her duties, and in her place, Hervé Renard was brought in where he led France to the quarter-finals where they were beaten by co-hosts Australia on penalties. 

Diacre at the time was angered by what she called a “ smear campaign ” against her, and it is a position that has not softened in the time since. 

Speaking to L’Équipe , the former manager detailed that she was notified by a phone call by the then interim president for the FFF Philippe Diallo, “ He tells me it’s over. I suspected it a little because I had been interviewed by a commission made up of members of the executive committee who had not given me much hope .” 

The problem for Diacre is that she believes she had lost support within the federation when Diallo took over after Noël Le Graët stepped down due to accusations of bullying and sexual harassment. Diallo’s position meant that Jean-Michel Aulas was now a more prominent influence in the federation, and his relationship with Diacre was already strained . 

Auals at the time was the then president for Olympique Lyonnais, a position he relinquished in May of that year, and at the end of 2023, he was made the vice president of the FFF. 

“ I didn’t do what [Aulas] wanted, what