France shocked by 1998 World Cup doping claim: “Not to be disturbed” | OneFootball

Barthez, Lilian Thuram, Desailly, Lebouef, Lizarazu; Deschamps, Karembeu, Petit, Djorkaeff, Zinedine Zidane and Guivarc’h. That was the lineup that won the first World Cup title in the history of the French national team. In 1998, in the tournament hosted by the European country, there was a memorable final between Les Bleus and Brazil that ended in a historic 3-0 at the Stade de France in Paris. Today, nearly 30 years after that feat for Les Bleus, news emerged that caused a stir in French football.

France’s former sports minister Marie-George Buffet acknowledged that she suspended the surprise anti-doping tests being carried out on the French national team before the 1998 World Cup, a decision that contradicts what she herself had declared under oath before a Senate commission in 2013, reopening the debate over the preparation of the team coached by Aimé Jacquet before the tournament they won as hosts.

The confession became public in statements aired Monday during a documentary broadcast by BFMTV, and was reinforced by the testimony of Alain Garnier, the team’s former doctor sent by the Sports Ministry to carry out the tests. According to his account, he was ordered not to intervene again until after the World Cup. Major outlets such as L’Equipe described the episode as “controversial”, while Le Parisien opened its article with a blunt line: “After denying it for 28 years, she admits it”.

The episode took place during a training camp in Tignes in the year before (1997) FIFA’s top tournament, when a surprise doping test on the squad’s players sparked outrage within the team. All the urine tests conducted on the called-up players at the time came back negative, but the internal backlash led to those tests not being repeated during the preparation period.

The former French sports minister made that admission in the documentary “Zidane, the Making of a Legend”, focused on the new France coach and World Cup-winning player from that tournament. There, when confronted with the recollection of the then national team coach, she was blunt in her response: “If Dr. Garnier says so, then yes, it must be true”. Buffet also added that she did not remember the exact words used, but accepted the substance of the instruction: “We didn’t say it like that, but it amounts to the same thing”. She also acknowledged the implications of that measure: “It was a step backward” for her in the fight against doping.

The former French sports minister made that admission in the documentary “Zidane, the Making of a Legend”, focused on the new France coach and World Cup-winning player from that tournament. There, when confronted with the recollection of the then national team coach, she was blunt in her response: “If Dr. Garnier says so, then yes, it must be true”. Buffet also added that she did not remember the exact words used, but accepted the substance of the instruction: “We didn’t say it like that, but it amounts to the same thing”. She also acknowledged the implications of that measure: “It was a step backward” for her in the fight against doping.

During the segment, Garnier himself said the instruction was clear: “I was not to bother the French national team anymore until the World Cup. In other words, no surprise tests”. According to him, that instruction was communicated to him only verbally. Buffet, who oversaw sports in France from 1997 to 2002, said that once the competition was over, “we resumed the fight” against doping. The political figure, now 77, was the driving force behind the first law organizing that policy in France in 1999.

The political and sporting shock generated in France is explained by the fact that Buffet had denied for years ever giving such an order. “We never gave any directive in that sense”, she said under oath before a Senate commission in 2013. Now, when asked about the origin of the decision, she suggested the instruction may have come from higher levels of the state. “We must have received instructions from the ministries,” she said, while the former doctor maintained that the order came from the prime minister’s office.

After missing the 1990 and 1994 editions, France qualified automatically and assembled a squad that combined experience and youth, in a generation of players who were stars in the world’s top leagues. In its debut, it beat South Africa 3-0 with goals from Christophe Dugarry, an own goal by Pierre Issa, and a strike from Thierry Henry. The team kept up the momentum by thrashing Saudi Arabia 4-0 thanks to two goals from Henry, one from David Trezeguet and another from Bixente Lizarazu. The group stage ended with a 2-1 victory over Denmark, which secured first place in the group.

In the round of 16, the host nation faced a tough challenge against Paraguay. The match was decided in extra time by the first golden goal in World Cup history, scored by defender Laurent Blanc after a play by Robert Pirès. After that, it beat Italy in the quarterfinals in a penalty shootout after a 0-0 draw. France advanced 4-3 after Luigi Di Biagio’s miss. The semifinal against Croatia had dramatic moments. Davor Suker put his team ahead, and Thuram turned the score around with two goals, the only ones of his international career. Les Bleus finished that match with one man less after Blanc’s red card, but held the lead until the end.

The final, played against Brazil, marked a milestone for French football. Zidane opened the scoring with two headers in the first half, both from corner-kick plays. With the match almost decided, Emmanuel Petit scored the third goal in stoppage time, sealing the result and unleashing national celebration. More than a million people gathered on the Champs-Élysées on a historic night for French sport.

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇪🇸 here.