| November 1997 – N° 30 |
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CITIES
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MARSEILLE
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We talk to the mayor of Marseille
“We’ve got it: we’ll flaunt it!”
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| Population: |
807,000 |
| Urban area: |
1,000,000 |
| Club: |
Olympique de Marseille |
| Stadium: |
Stade Vélodrome |
| Capacity: |
60,000 |
| Schedule: |
4 first-round matches on 12, 15, 20, 23 June; a round of sixteen match on 27 June; aquarter final on 4 July and a semi-final on July 1998.
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Jean-Claude GAUDIN
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| Hosting the final group draw in a stadium still under construction is a great challenge for your city. How are you preparing for this event? |
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To make sure that the Draw is a complete success, the city of Marseille has made considerable efforts, in terms both of people, in assembling all the personnel, and finance, with a sum of FF 389 million, a large percentage of which has been provided by the city itself, going into the renovation of the Stade Vélodrome. There is also the FF 180 million being spent on giving the stadium outskirts a facelift. Naturally we would have preferred work on the stadium to be entirely finished in order to host the Draw, but I can assure you that nothing will prevent the 36,000 young people who are to be present from enjoying the festive atmosphere so dear to Michel Platini’s heart.
Another preoccupation was to ensure that the people of Marseille really feel that this event is “their show.” For this reason a huge “procession-parade” was organised for 3 December involving 2,500 children from all the city’s neighbourhoods. Another value which I hold dear is solidarity, and it was for this reason that I wanted the “Blé de l’Espérance” organisation to be closely linked with the event. For nine years now, this organisation has been selling packets of wheat and giving the proceeds to children in hospital. And that’s exactly what the World Cup is about too, ensuring that nobody is forgotten.
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Marseille and its Old Port: seven matches in FRANCE 98 including a semi-final are on the programme.
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| You have stated that the World Cup will be the occasion to reveal “the new Marseille” to the world. What is this new Marseille? |
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That’s right. The World Cup is a tremendous shop window for our city and a wonderful and unique opportunity to show the world how Marseille has altered, with its new city centre, its reinforced sense of being a link between the North and the South, and its economic dynamic embodied in the Euroméditerranée project, which confirms Marseille’s position as a major European centre.
With all this potential, Marseille will, I know, be equal to the challenge of showing off the city’s charms and know-how to their best advantage. Just as it will be equal to the task of introducing visitors to its wealth of natural beauty, its artistic achievements and its sense of hospitality.
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| Throughout the competition Marseille will be “having a ball”. What sort of entertainment is in store for tourists and supporters in the Summer of 98? |
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While the tournament is on, thousands of visitors will be discovering Marseille and enjoying the entertainments we have planned. It would be impossible to give you a complete run-down of everything we have lined up. Suffice it to say, however, that the celebrations, drawing on the city’s diversity and richness, will go on day and night. I can say with total confidence that those who come to Marseille during the tournament will hardly have time to get bored…
