Mick Hartley

Trouble off the pitch:

A gay football club in a Paris suburb have protested to local league chiefs after being snubbed for a scheduled match by a fellow league side.

Paris Foot Gay (PFG) were set to play fellow Creteil side Bebel, who are composed of mainly Muslim players, but the evening before the match Bebel cried off.

PFG said they received an e-mail from Bebel which said they could not honour the match because it was "against their principles".

"Sorry, but because of the name of your team and in keeping with the principles of the team, which is a team of practising Muslims, we cannot play against you," said the e-mail, according to PFG's co-founder and current president Pascal Brethes.

It added: "Our convictions are stronger than a game of football. Sorry to have informed you so late."

PFG believe the decision was "homophobic", and have threatened to press charges "if Bebel continue to carry on like this", according to Brethes.

He said his team was a haven for all kinds of races and also welcomed non-gay players, and he believes Bebel's decision contravenes laws governing racism and homophobia.

"We (PFG) are first and foremost an association which is against homophobia in football," he said, adding the the club had "heterosexuals, blacks, whites, north Africans, and several different religions."

But an unnamed representative from Creteil Bebel said in a local radio interview they would not back down.

"We're sorry if anyone feels insulted. (But) as a Muslim I still have the right to decide not to play because I don't agree with their philosophy," said.

Is being gay a philosophical position?