Football comes into play

With just over a year to go before the start of the Paris 2024 Olympic Games (from July 26th to August 11th), the FFF plans to mobilise the entire French football family for this exceptional event.

In 412 days, France will vibrate to the rhythm of the Olympic Games. The official kick off for the games will take place on Friday July 26th during an unprecedented opening ceremony in the Parisian capital, which will see the athletes of each competing nation taking part in a parade along the Seine.

Two days beforehand, the football tournaments will have already begun in one of seven stadiums selected, featuring the French Men’s and Women's Olympic Teams (see box below). Football will be the only of all the 46 Olympic sports on the program to take place in five different regions.

At the end of the Federal Assembly, which was held on Saturday June 10th 2023 in Paris, the president of the FFF, Philippe Diallo spoke strongly about the ambition of the federation for 2024 through its football teams in France: "Usually, when we talk about the Olympic Games, we don't immediately think of football, but this time the games are taking place in France and Paris. French football must answer the call,” he said. “I can state now that football and our national teams will be major players of these Olympics. Our Olympic football teams will be committed to this exceptional competition. Concerning the men, we will have some work to do, it is not a FIFA event and if we want to avoid what we experienced during the previous games in Tokyo, we will have to respond accordingly and to show progression This is the work that we are going to undertake with Marc Keller (member of the Executive Committee) and the Professional Football League in order to bring French professional clubs together. We must field the best team because it is in the general interest of football and of France, who will host the Olympic Games.”

This is an ambition embodied by the slogan "Football Comes Into Play", created by Laura Georges, Secretary General of the FFF, which illustrates the commitment to the cause from all of the football family that the federation will bring to this global event.

The FFF will announce and deploy its plan for the 2024 Olympics in the coming weeks. “The whole federation will be associated with this major event of the Olympic Games,” concluded Philippe Diallo. “The energy of these Olympic Games must spread throughout our territories. This must be an opportunity for our young people to come to our clubs.”