“Too many Black and Muslim players”: PSG coach Christophe Galtier is charged and faces trial in a racism probe.

• PSG Coach Galtier and his son John Valovic-Galtier were taken into custody on Friday morning and were formally charged in the evening.

• In a leaked email it was alleged that Galtier said there were too many black and Muslim players in the squad.

Facing a court hearing on December 15, Paris Saint-Germain’s head, Christophe Galtier stands accused of racism and discrimination against black and Muslim players during his tenure as the manager of Nice in 2021.

At 8:45 am on Friday morning, both Galtier and his son, John Valovic-Galtier, who works as an agent, were taken into custody and subsequently charged later that evening.

The chief prosecutor of Nice confirmed last night that Galtier will be “tried on charges of moral harassment and discrimination on the basis of belonging or non-membership, true or supposed, to a specific ethnic group, nation, alleged race or religion”.

The head coach of PSG, who’s tenure draws to a close this summer, is accused of making remarks to director of football Julien Fournier, complaining that there were too many black players in the squad. Additionally, he reportedly tried to hinder Muslims from observing Ramadan and even declined to sign a player solely based on his religious affiliation.

In April, the allegations initially surfaced when French outlet RMC Sport disclosed leaked emails from Julien Fournier, the former director of football at Nice. In the leaked emails Fournier accuses Galtier of saying that there were “too many Black and Muslim players” in the Nice squad.

“He [Galtier] told me that I should take account of the reality of the city and that in effect we should not have as many blacks and Muslims in the team,” alleges Fournier. 

“He told me he wanted to profoundly change the team’s make-up and limit the maximum number of Muslims.”

Following the revelation of these leaked emails in April, Galtier released a statement to the French press via his lawyer in which he expressed that he was “amazed to learn of the insulting and defamatory” allegation.

“Given the seriousness of the accusations against him, and which he firmly denies, Christophe Galtier has asked his lawyer to begin without delay the judicial proceedings which are all the more necessary given that, since this came out, he has been the target of intolerable threats and harassment,” the statement said.

In response, Galtier initiated a defamation lawsuit against both Fournier and the journalist responsible for publishing his allegations.

The allegations have triggered a furious response from fans, prompting Galtier to reportedly engage private security for protection. Thus far, both PSG and Nice have refrained from offering any comments regarding the accusations of discrimination.