The long-running soap opera over whether footballer David Beckham will play for Paris' PSG team has ended with the former England captain rejecting a move to the French capital.

"/> The long-running soap opera over whether footballer David Beckham will play for Paris' PSG team has ended with the former England captain rejecting a move to the French capital.

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Beckham decides against Paris move

The long-running soap opera over whether footballer David Beckham will play for Paris' PSG team has ended with the former England captain rejecting a move to the French capital.

Published: 4 January 2012 07:02 CET
Beckham decides against Paris move
Regular Daddy

The club’s president Nasser Al Khelaifi confirmed the decision at a press conference in Doha on Tuesday.

“We are a bit disappointed that he won’t be coming, of course,” he told journalists. “But we are all agreed that it’s preferable for everyone this way.”

The club’s sporting director, Leonardo, said on Tuesday that family reasons had led to the footballer’s decision, reported sporting daily L’Equipe.

“It’s over. It’s a shame,” said Leonardo. “David really wanted to come to Paris, but the welfare of his family in LA, the wish not to change everything in his life, weighed heavily,” he said.

The BBC reported that Beckham is more likely to extend his stay with US club Los Angeles Galaxy, which he helped to take to victory in the Major League Soccer Cup in November.

The decision ends months of rumours that fuelled speculation Beckham was on his way to France. These included reports that T-shirts with Beckham’s name were already being produced.

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PARIS

Fluffy nuisance: Outcry as Paris sends Invalides rabbits into exile

Efforts to relocate wild rabbits that are a common sight on the lawns of the historic Invalides memorial complex have provoked criticism from animal rights groups.

Published: 14 February 2024 13:01 CET
Fluffy nuisance: Outcry as Paris sends Invalides rabbits into exile

Tourists and Parisians have long been accustomed to the sight of wild rabbits frolicking around the lawns of Les Invalides, one of the French capital’s great landmarks.

But efforts are underway to relocate the fluffy animals, accused of damaging the gardens and drains around the giant edifice that houses Napoleon’s tomb, authorities said.

Police said that several dozen bunnies had been captured since late January and relocated to the private estate of Breau in the Seine-et-Marne region outside Paris, a move that has prompted an outcry from animal rights activists.

“Two operations have taken place since 25 January,” the police prefecture told AFP.

“Twenty-four healthy rabbits were captured on each occasion and released after vaccination” in Seine-et-Marne, the prefecture said.

Six more operations are scheduled to take place in the coming weeks.

Around 300 wild rabbits live around Les Invalides, according to estimates.

“The overpopulation on the site is leading to deteriorating living conditions and health risks,” the prefecture said.

Authorities estimate the cost of restoring the site, which has been damaged by the proliferation of underground galleries and the deterioration of gardens, pipes and flora, at €366,000.

Animal rights groups denounced the operation.

The Paris Animaux Zoopolis group said the rabbits were being subjected to “intense stress” or could be killed “under the guise of relocation”.

“A number of rabbits will die during capture and potentially during transport,” said the group, accusing authorities of being “opaque” about their methods.

The animal rights group also noted that Breau was home to the headquarters of the Seine-et-Marne hunting federation.

The police prefecture insisted that the animals would not be hunted.

In 2021, authorities classified the rabbits living in Paris as a nuisance but the order was reversed following an outcry from animal groups who have been pushing for a peaceful cohabitation with the animals.

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