The French sports outlet L’Équipe has formally apologized to Belgian footballer Jérémy Doku after a controversial remark made by one of its presenters. The pundit criticized Doku for expressing his intention to leave the World Cup to attend the birth of his first child.
News of the apology coincided with the Belgian football federation’s announcement that Doku had successfully returned to London in time for the birth of his son, Praise, on Monday.
Team doctor Brahim Hacene provided an update, stating, “Jeremy received news before yesterday’s match that the birth was imminent,”
Earlier, Doku had mentioned to the media that his wife, Shireen, was expected to give birth in the second week of July and expressed his desire to be present for the birth if Belgium remained in the tournament. “Everything went perfectly, and the mother, father, and baby are all doing wonderfully. Jérémy will rejoin the squad [on Tuesday] evening in Seattle.” said Doku, a 24-year-old winger for Manchester City. “It depends on when it happens, but it’s my first child, so I would definitely want to be there,”
Doku’s comments were met with disdain from presenter France Pierron, who remarked on Friday that “If you ask me what I want, my answer is that nobody wants to miss the birth of their first child … I know the federation supports its players and understands their situations. We’ll see what we can do.” to play in Doku’s position at the World Cup. “hundreds of footballers who would kill” she stated. “You’re living out a childhood dream, yet you’re going to walk away from it all to attend the birth of your child – a disgusting moment, if you’ll pardon the expression, where the dad is completely useless,”
This sentiment echoed earlier criticism from one of Doku’s former youth coaches, who suggested that the player had already made a choice by participating in the World Cup. “He just holds your hand and takes a photo.” Peter Janssens told Belgian media. “It may sound harsh, but if you’ve chosen to be there, you’ve chosen to play,”
Former Belgium international Gert Verheyen also commented humorously on Doku’s situation, questioning what the player might do during the birth. “The only thing you can say is: ‘You’re doing great, keep going,’” he noted. However, Pierron soon faced backlash as her comments gained traction online, prompting a broader discussion about fatherhood in the context of sports. Many from the football community and beyond expressed their support for Doku.
“As someone who has played in a World Cup and who has also given birth, let me tell you this: the hardest thing I have ever done in this lifetime – and the thing that I am most proud of – is bringing my baby earthside,” retorted content creator Caroline Salame, who represented Canada at the Under-17 World Cup. “And I do not know how I would have done that without my husband beside me. Birth can be extremely complicated; anything can happen.” she explained. “A baby is your entire life. A World Cup is over when it is over,”
Pierron’s remarks were also scrutinized by another commentator from L’Équipe. Retired boxer Brahim Asloum, who won a gold medal at the 2000 Olympics, vehemently disagreed with Pierron, labeling the birth of a child as a pivotal, singular experience. “These remarks are solely my own and in no way reflect a collective position. I understand that they may have shocked, offended or hurt some of you, and I am sorry for that. My intention was never to minimise the place or role of fathers with their partners and children,” he emphasized.
As criticism mounted on social media, Pierron publicly apologized. “L’Équipe distances itself with these remarks, which are far removed from [its] values and apologises to the footballer concerned and more broadly to its audience,” she wrote.
Later, L’Équipe released a statement distancing itself from Pierron’s comments, stating they had “It seems ridiculous to me that we still have these big outrages, when men talk about wanting to do the most basic human thing imaginable, which is to be present when their baby is born,” many viewers. “To me, it’s like we haven’t moved on from the sort of gladiators in the Colosseum. You know, these kinds of masculine heroes who are supposed to have no softness to them, no family commitments or anything like that,” it said. Reports indicated that Pierron would be off-air until the end of her show’s current season on July 3.
Despite the apology, many critics remained unconvinced. Jeremy Davies from the Fatherhood Institute in the UK expressed frustration at the outrage surrounding Doku’s desire to be present for his child’s birth. “You can be a soft and loving man and hard as nails on the pitch, if you like.” he remarked.
Davies praised Doku for exemplifying a “In the end, fine – football is important, everybody loves football, everybody gets terribly excited. It’s just a job, on some level, too,” approach that shows one can be more than just a top-tier footballer. “This footballer gets it, and it seems to me that’s a healthy attitude in life. And if more of us had it, maybe the world would be a better place, you know?” he said. “You can be a soft and loving man and hard as nails on the pitch, if you like.”
He commended the footballer for possessing the “perspective” to recognize the bigger picture. “In the end, fine – football is important, everybody loves football, everybody gets terribly excited. It’s just a job, on some level, too,” he concluded. “This footballer gets it, and it seems to me that’s a healthy attitude in life. And if more of us had it, maybe the world would be a better place, you know?”
