Released on January 31, this 32-page newspaper, whose front page features five delightful toddlers wearing the jerseys of the department’s major clubs (the cynics will say that it was Actufoot’s front page for the 5th anniversary of their newspaper), offers all the local news starting with, in all due respect, professional clubs and then moving down to lower categories before concluding with an overview of international football. Additionally, it includes complete results tables, a slideshow of local amateur players, and various reports on the local soccer scene.
The first issue was generously offered for free upon its release, but from every Wednesday onwards, it will cost €0.70 to read future issues.
A lively reaction within the Actufoot team who certainly did not expect to encounter such a well-resourced competitor. After the storm, calm has returned to the North African Combatants Street, the headquarters of Actufoot, and a special issue appeared on the stands from Thursday, February 1. This issue can be freely accessed online on Actufoot’s website.
Nice Premium met with two of the main players in this new distinctly Niçoise saga. Cédric Messina (Associate Director of Actufoot) and Stéphane Tardy (Head of Sports at Nice Matin) explain the reasons behind a controversy that is widely discussed in local stadiums and on the official forum of OGC Nice where a poll was even organized to gauge reader intentions.
And you, do you lean more towards Actufoot or Foot 06?
Nice Premium: You just released a special issue of Actufoot. Can you tell us more about it?
Cédric Messina: The process speaks for itself. A big group wants our place, and we’re letting them have it. We won’t be their driving force. It’s as simple as that. The market for the “Azuréen football weekly” is so limited that it cannot support two competitors on an advertising basis. Once the financial aspects and various pressures are reviewed, action must be taken unless we want to slowly perish. No one had dared to do it this way before. We are not afraid. Money has never been our driving force. They are fully realizing it now.
NP: “Pink, like the future of Actufoot.” Can you tell us about this future?
CM: When you have no doubts, nothing can go wrong. We’ve always avoided self-satisfaction, which is why I don’t like to discuss upcoming directions. Just one certainty: those who love Actufoot.06, the Azuréen football journal, will find their place. For my part, I remember the strength that emanates from the team. We’re the underdogs, but ours are the heads held high. Today, I wouldn’t enjoy being in the shoes of someone working opposite. Deep down, he knows perfectly well that his paper never contributed anything to the department’s football. There’s a clear feeling of unease. From this point on, the battle is already won. The regrets are behind us, they wake up with them. Would you be proud to go onto the fields wearing the jersey of the giant?
NP: How did you perceive the arrival of Foot06 and how were you informed of its release?
CM: When I learned of the launch, I felt for the thousands of young basketball, rugby, and handball players who don’t interest Nice-Matin. Don’t they also need media coverage? Why plunge into a market that’s already occupied when a weekly covering all sports in Azur could have filled a clear gap? Then, we had to boost morale. The battle is won internally. Psychologically, that’s the greatest battle. I learned about it on December 1 from a leak in their board of directors. That same day, I lost my grandfather. Not the best day. That was when a young intern took me in his arms and whispered, “don’t worry, we’d rather die than work with them.” Then, I knew we couldn’t lose. Solidarity is priceless.
What, in your opinion, are the reasons that prompted Nice Matin to launch this new publication?
Our aim was never to find out what was wrong with the others…
NP: “We prefer to die standing than live on our knees. The battle is just beginning.” Any message to your opponent?
CM: We have no opponents. The difference is too vast. Our only battle is legal. It has already started. We’ll know more in the coming weeks. To return to the message, it’s simply a quote from the Mexican revolutionary Zapata, which fits our situation perfectly. Personally, I have nothing against Nice-Matin. I grew up with it. The newspaper even cradled my adolescence. Unfortunately, I no longer recognize myself in it like many people from Nice. They have disrespected us in their approach. Today, the decision-makers of the group have blood on their hands. That of a dozen young people who simply want to live and thrive from their passion. They didn’t need this. The popular discomfort should soon further crack the edifice, with or without us.
NP: Give us your reasons to believe?
CM: You can’t experience a situation more difficult than on the launch day. We are immersed in joy and good humor. There are worse work atmospheres. Also, add that Nice-Matin’s move is a recognition of the work carried out over 6 years. We will forever be grateful to them. We have reversed the trend. Now, they are the small ones. From there, we only have reasons for hope.
NP: And finally, what do you have to say to your readership?
CM: They are hostages of a declining empire. It’s unfortunate, but also wonderful to see the various reactions that land on our desks. We can never thank the red and black supporters and readers enough for their support. Actufoot is their newspaper. The difference is there. They can only understand us. We are alike. They are us…
Nice Premium: Stéphane Tardy, Nice Matin has launched a new weekly on Azuréen football, Foot06. Can you give us the reasons for this launch?
Stéphane Tardy: Nice-Matin has always had a mission of proximity. Amateur football has always been one of its priorities, but it was scattered across the sports pages of each edition, concentrated, with little space, on Mondays and Tuesdays in the Alpes-Maritimes sports section. For more coherence, we created this weekly, at the insistent request of our readers.
NP: Why was it not done before?
ST: Our newspaper evolved last year: change of layout, change of format, creation of supplements… This year, priority is given to amateur football. All the better. The sports team is thrilled.
NP: What is the editorial line of Foot 06?
ST: To cover all football in the Alpes-Maritimes. Amateur football, the young, the seniors, the women, the businesses, the futsal. The spectacle of our major clubs, like Nice, Monaco, and Cannes. We also reserve a section at the end of the issue dedicated to national football and foreign championships. When you love football, you cannot be indifferent to Serie A or La Liga.
NP: Let’s move on to the controversy with Actufoot. What do you think about it?
ST: For us, there is no controversy. Everyone has the right to exist.
Football is not a reserved domain for some. The sports world is governed by fair-play. We will always respect this rule and remain professional journalists who understand what ethics mean.
NP: “We prefer to die standing than live on our knees. The battle is just beginning.” These phrases are from last Thursday’s special issue of Actufoot. What would you respond?
ST: Nothing.
NP: Finally, what will we find in the next issue of Foot 06?
ST: Our now usual chronicles of amateur football, the big PHB match between La Bocca and Cros de Cagnes, US Mandelieu La Napoule as the club of the week, behind the scenes of Piquionne’s transfer, an unconventional portrait of Vikash Dhorasoo, the retrospective of Charly Loubet…
