Clubs from French overseas departments have been playing in the Coupe de France for some time now. With almost bizarre consequences
16 outfield players and two goalkeepers made up the group that boarded the TGV to Paris. From there, they continued by plane to Singapore and then to New Caledonia. A total distance of 16,315 kilometers. Simple.
Geography: Thionville’s cup opponents are based in Hienghene, in the north of New Caledonia and therefore almost 400 kilometers away from the airport of the capital Noumea. New Caledonia, located to the east of Australia in the Pacific, is in turn one of the French overseas departments, along with Guadeloupe, French Guiana, Martinique and Tahiti.
Former Fritz Walter Club
When the amateur footballers from the small Moselle town near Metz – DFB honorary captain Fritz Walter also played briefly for one of US Thionville’s predecessor clubs in 1943 – arrived at their destination at 30 degrees Celsius, it wasn’t exactly white beaches and cool drinks that awaited them. Rather, perhaps the most curious competitive match they will play in their careers on Saturday
The employers also get their employees back quickly after the game, Thionville don’t have time for sightseeing even after the final whistle, as the away game at ES Troyes AC 2 awaits on the following Wednesday.
Nearly missing the world record
However, the long-distance trip is not an isolated case – and Thionville could not be forced into it. On the one hand, since the overseas department clubs were admitted to the Coupe de France in 1961, this kind of travel has been a regular occurrence, and on the other hand, 15 clubs have declared their willingness to make this kind of cup trip in the run-up to the competition. Incidentally, the costs are borne by the association.
Thionville did not set the world record for a competitive match at club level. FC Trelissac from the Dordogne also competed in New Caledonia in 2014 – and had to cover 17,142 kilometers “one way”.
“This won’t be a vacation – we want to go through to the next round,” said coach Julien Francois ahead of the match against the 2019 Oceanian Champions League winners and former Club World Cup participants. “Fortunately, all the employers have played along and given the players time off,” added his club boss Francois Ventrici in an interview with the newspaper “Le Republicain Lorrain.”