FFF puts emphasis on first aid training

Who could forget that terrible moment when Marc-Vivien Foé collapsed on the pitch after suffering a heart attack in June 2003?

Although such tragic events are rare in the context of the estimated 1 million matches played in France each season, they at least help to raise awareness in football of the health risks attached. Consequently, the French Football Federation (FFF) is keen that as many of its 2.6 million members as possible receive first aid training.

A national campaign, supported by the ministry of health and sport, was launched for the 2009/10 campaign, with the aim of training one coach, one player, one referee and one director from every club.

The whole football family, amateurs and professionals alike, is committed to the success of the initiative, which is being promoted by the dedicated website foot-gestespourunevie.fr. The French refereeing body is also involved through the courses that are being organised by the FFF's training institute and supervised by the Red Cross.

All 295 FFF referees will attend a 90-minute introductory course run by the Red Cross, making them "able to provide the necessary first aid in an emergency", as Marc Batta, the federation's refereeing director, explained.

The 23 Ligue 1 referees were first to complete this assignment at their mid-season training course in Dinard, and by 31 July all registered match officials will have had first aid training.