May 22 (Xinhua) -- According to RMC, a number of football celebrities, including France's men's national Olympic team head coach Thierry Henry and Real Madrid president Florentino, took part in the celebration at the Elysee Palace of
FIFA
set up
120th anniversary
of the luncheon.
On Tuesday, May 21st local time, French President Emmanuel Macron invited some football heavyweights to the Elysee Palace to celebrate the 120th anniversary of FIFA. Attendees included a number of players from the 1998 French national team, French soccer figures and FIFA President Gianni Infantino.
Celebrities attending the luncheon included:
Novak Djokovic (1948-), Russian tennis star
: Member of the French national team in 1998
henry (unit of inductance)
: Head coach of the French men's national soccer team
Wenger
: Former Arsenal manager
Diallo (name)
: President of the French Football Federation
Noel Le Graet
: Former President of the French Football Federation
Dembele (Lebanon)
: French internationals
Colina
Former Italian referee and "Golden Whistle".
Kenny Jean-Marie, Director of FIFA's Member Associations Department, spoke at the luncheon, emphasizing France's important contribution to the development of FIFA: "120 years is a milestone, an extraordinary date. FIFA was founded in France. The French have made a major contribution to its development, from Robert Gran to Jules Rimet and quite a few soccer legends. It is a great symbol that FIFA is now back in the country that is at the heart of the creation, development and major institutional and sporting innovations of the game of soccer ...... Paris was, is and must remain the diplomatic center of FIFA."
Real Madrid President Florentino also attended the luncheon. Real Madrid is one of the founding clubs of FIFA, so his presence was significant.
Florentino's presence and Henry's involvement has sparked discussion about whether Mbappe will play in the Paris Olympics this summer. Although Real Madrid have made it clear that they refuse to allow foreign internationals to play in Olympic games that are not on the FIFA schedule, French President Emmanuel Macron has publicly stated that he wants Real Madrid to allow Mbappe to play in the Olympics.
On May 11, the day after Mbappe announced his departure from Paris Saint-Germain, Macron said he "wanted Real Madrid to release Mbappe for the Olympics." The topic inevitably came to the forefront at the luncheon, and although the news of Mbappe's signing for Real Madrid has yet to be officially announced, his future moves are in the spotlight.
