"Even today it can be hard for some parents to see their girls wanting to play football, but here they don't play football: they play for Marseille. It's seen as completely different. Diacre is happy and relaxed. The rebranded and independent Marseille women's team, still owned by the American businessman Frank McCourt, through the investment arm McCourt Global, after his purchase of the wider Marseille club in 2016, are being given an injection of resource and energy while maintaining strategic ties."
"This is the 51-year-old's first head coach role since her contract as manager of the France women's team was terminated in 2023 because of what the French Football Federation described as a very significant divide with the players that reached the point of no return. Diacre was ready to return to management after some time away and some work for Fifa and Uefa."
"Before coming to Marseille I was without a job for a long time but it was also an important time to rest, to do other things and to spend time with friends and family, Diacre says. So, it was a good, good break for me, an important break to be completely ready for when an opportunity came along that I liked."
Corinne Diacre manages Les Marseillaises, where club identity runs deeper than football itself—supporters' blood runs blue. The rebranded, independent Marseille women's team, owned by American businessman Frank McCourt through McCourt Global, receives significant resource investment while maintaining strategic ties. Diacre's appointment last October marked her return to head coaching after her France national team contract ended in 2023 due to player conflicts. She brings substantial credentials as France's first woman to achieve the senior BEPF coaching licence and first woman to manage a men's professional competitive match with Clermont Foot 63 in 2014. After a restorative break involving FIFA and UEFA work, Diacre embraced the opportunity to develop Marseille's women's academy, returning to grassroots coaching principles while strengthening the local football ecosystem.
Read at www.theguardian.com
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