Jacques Georges (30 May 1916 – 25 February 2004) was the president of the
French Football Federation
The French Football Federation ( FFF; french: Fédération Française de Football) is the governing body of football in France. It also includes the overseas departments ( Guadeloupe, French Guiana, Martinique, Mayotte and Réunion), the over ...
(FFF) from 1968 until 1972 and the 4th president of
UEFA
Union of European Football Associations (UEFA ; french: Union des associations européennes de football; german: Union der europäischen Fußballverbände) is one of six continental bodies of governance in association football. It governs f ...
(1983–1990).
Biography
In April 1989, he caused controversy by describing a minority of
Liverpool F.C.
Liverpool Football Club is a professional football club based in Liverpool, England. The club competes in the Premier League, the top tier of English football. Founded in 1892, the club joined the Football League the following year and has p ...
supporters as "beasts", wrongly believing that
hooliganism
Hooliganism is disruptive or unlawful behavior such as rioting, bullying and vandalism, usually in connection with crowds at sporting events.
Etymology
There are several theories regarding the origin of the word ''hooliganism,'' which is a d ...
was the cause of the
Hillsborough disaster
The Hillsborough disaster was a fatal human crush during a football match at Hillsborough Stadium in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England, on 15 April 1989. It occurred during an FA Cup semi-final between Liverpool and Nottingham Forest in the ...
which ultimately resulted in the deaths of 97 of the
English
English usually refers to:
* English language
* English people
English may also refer to:
Peoples, culture, and language
* ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England
** English national ide ...
club's fans.
He issued a swift apology for his comments upon discovering that hooliganism did not cause the tragedy.
He died in February 2004 at the age of 88.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Georges, Jacques
1916 births
2004 deaths
HEC Paris alumni
Presidents of UEFA
Sportspeople from Vosges (department)
Presidents of the French Football Federation