Tour de France gets under way on home soil for first time in five years
05/07/2025
Title contenders Pogacar, Vingegaard eye Yellow Jersey
France
05/07/2025
French cognac brands sales to China fell 70%
France
05/07/2025
Seine reopens to Paris swimmers after century-long ban
France
05/07/2025
Pogacar and Vingegaard looking to repeat their victory at the Tour de France
France
05/07/2025
Riders gear up for Tour de France 2025 opener in Lille
France
05/07/2025
French police may be allowed to intercept boats offshore
France
05/07/2025
2025 Tour de France sets off in Lille, with Tadej Pogacar a firm favourite
France
02/07/2025
'Horrific': Ailing author Sansal 'caught up' in ever-escalating Franco-Algerian diplomatic fallout
Africa
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France 24
2 hours ago
- France 24
'Brilliant artist': Provocateur Demna takes on slumping Gucci
The 44-year-old, who fled the war-wracked Georgian region of Abkhazia as a child and dropped his surname "Gvasalia" in 2021, will bow out with a last show for Balenciaga on Wednesday before switching to Gucci -- both firms owned by France's luxury giant Kering. "Demna's contribution to the industry, to Balenciaga, and to the group's success has been tremendous," Kering chairman and CEO Francois-Henri Pinault said at the time. "His creative power is exactly what Gucci needs." Investors were not so convinced and shares in Kering, which counts on Gucci as its main profit generator, fell around 12 percent on the day of the announcement before slumping even further. Other more established and mainstream designers from Hedi Slimane, Maria Grazia Chiuri or Pierpaolo Piccioli had been linked to the vacancy. Some analysts have questioned whether Demna's recipe for success at Balenciaga -- which leant heavily on provocative, streetwear-influenced design and showmanship -- can be replicated at the more classic Italian house. "He is iconoclast and ironic, which is good to attract attention toward a small brand like Balenciaga," Luca Solca, a luxury analyst at the Bernstein brokerage, wrote afterwards. "However, we are not sure the strategy would work as well for a bigger brand." - 'Absolutely uncompromising' - Demna's final show for Balenciaga will take place on Wednesday during Haute Couture fashion week in Paris and he will join the Italian label the very next day. During a decade at the Spanish-born but Paris-based brand, he drove sales and attention sharply higher with a mix of headline-grabbing creations as well as personal publicity -- not always positive. He achieved notoriety with his $2,000 "Ikea" bag, a luxury leather version of the 99-cent original. He followed it up with an $1,800 garbage bag -- the so-called "trash pouch" -- in a show in March 2022 that was dedicated to Ukrainian refugees. Other daring designs included a head-to-toe black shroud that US reality television star Kim Kardashian -- a personal friend -- wore to the Met Gala in 2021. A-list celebrity endorsements have been plentiful, but have not always worked out. Kanye West —- Kardashian's ex and another friend -- opened Balenciaga's show in October 2022 shortly before the first of several anti-Semitic outbursts, and the group had to cut ties with the rapper. Demna's lowest point came in February 2023 when he was forced to apologise for an ad campaign that appeared to reference child abuse and had underage models in what looked like bondage gear. He has plenty of fans among Gen Z tastemakers, however. "I've always gravitated toward Balenciaga, because I love Demna's vision," British pop sensation Charli XCX told British Vogue last year. "He feels like he's speaking his own language, which is absolutely uncompromising, and to me, that's what makes a brilliant artist." - 'Aggression and darkness' - Annual sales at Balenciaga were estimated to be $350 million when he arrived and had surged to about $2 billion in 2022, according to GQ magazine. Gucci's fortunes have headed in the other direction: they slid 23 percent last year, prompting Kering to fire creative director Sabato de Sarno after only two years in the job. Demna is a graduate of the Royal Academy of Fine Arts in Antwerp in Belgium and went on to work at Maison Margiela and Vuitton. He co-founded the label Vetements with his brother in 2014, a year before he was named to the top job at Balenciaga. For many years, his childhood trauma fleeing pro-Russian separatists in his homeland affected his work, but he told Vanity Fair in 2021 that counselling, meditation and exercise had helped exorcise some demons. "Fashion used to feel like a battle for me. That is why there was a lot of aggression and darkness in what I did. Today I feel at peace with the system," he said. © 2025 AFP
France 24
10 hours ago
- France 24
France beat England at Euro 2025 as Miedema completes Dutch century
Marie-Antoinette Katoto and Sandy Baltimore netted within three minutes of each other towards the end of the first half as Les Bleues deservedly defeated England in Zurich. Laurent Bonadei's team are level on three points with leaders the Dutch, who cruised past Wales 3-0 earlier on Saturday, after striking a big blow in the battle to qualify from possibly the hardest group at the tournament. France face underdogs Wales next on Wednesday while England have a huge clash with the Netherlands, again at the Letzigrund Stadium. The French were better all over the pitch, driven by the sparkling wing play of Baltimore and Delphine Cascarino, while Keira Walsh's lovely strike with three minutes remaining made the scoreline flatter unconvincing England. Not even Lauren James' return to the starting XI could inspire England, the Chelsea star way below her best as the Lionesses struggled to put any pressure on France until it was too late. Alessia Russo thought she had given England the lead in the 16th minute when she prodded home on the rebound after Pauline Peyraud-Magnin kept out Lauren Hemp's shot, only for the goal to be ruled out for a razor-thin offside in the build-up. From there, France took the initiative, pushing England back into their own half and dominating possession, and they had a deserved lead through Katoto in the 36th minute when the Lyon forward guided home Cascarino's low cross. And three minutes later Baltimore made the scoreline accurately represent the balance of play with a wonderful individual goal, easily skipping around Lucy Bronze and Leah Williamson before rifling her finish into the top corner. Walsh found the top corner with England's first strike on target and Sarina Wiegman's team almost snatched a point in the dying moments when Selma Bacha cleared Michelle Agyemang's shot off the line and saved the result for France. Miedema's century Vivianne Miedema scored her 100th international goal as the Netherlands swept past Wales to take the initiative in the group. Manchester City striker Miedema opened the scoring on the stroke of half-time in Lucerne with a beautiful curling strike, completing her century of goals for her country. Victoria Pelova and Esmee Brugts netted the other goals after the break to give Wales a rude awakening in their major tournament debut. "They defended really well and I'm glad my goal helped to start it all up," said Miedema. "In the second half, you saw that we can play a bit more, and eventually we also scored two really good goals." Andries Jonker's team are top on goal difference while Wales already have their work cut out to qualify. Rhian Wilkinson's side could easily have been behind before Miedema, who was a doubt for the tournament after suffering a hamstring injury in April, struck, as Jill Roord crashed a rocket of a shot off the post in the 35th minute. Pelova doubled the Oranje's lead two minutes after the break when she rifled home from Danielle van de Donk's pass, and the Arsenal midfielder set up Brugts to make absolutely sure of the points in the 57th minute with a perfect deep cross. © 2025 AFP
France 24
13 hours ago
- France 24
Nine-man PSG beat Bayern to reach Club World Cup semis
The French treble winners had Willian Pacho and Lucas Hernandez sent off in the final stages but managed to oust the German giants in Atlanta. Bundesliga champions Bayern, who lost Jamal Musiala just before half-time with a horror ankle injury, shared an intense and even battle with the Parisians. Bayern had won their last four matches straight against PSG, including a 1-0 Champions League victory last November, before Luis Enrique's side hit their peak. Players and nearly 67,000 spectators observed a minute of silence in honour of Liverpool forward Diogo Jota and his brother Andre Silva, who tragically died in a car crash on Thursday. It was an emotional moment, especially for a PSG side with five Portuguese players in the squad, including starters Vitinha, Joao Neves and Nuno Mendes. Luis Enrique began with leading Ballon d'Or candidate Dembele on the bench, as he continues his comeback from a quadriceps injury, but Bayern playmaker Musiala was fit to start after a calf issue. It was FIFA's expanded tournament's biggest heavyweight clash thus far and Bayern coach Vincent Kompany said on the eve of the game he would pay to watch a match he described as a "perfect storm", because of the teams' similar high-pressing, attacking styles. The air-conditioned Mercedes-Benz Stadium also produced the perfect conditions for a pulsating game, lit up by supremely talented dribblers on both sides, as well as two elite goalkeepers in Gianluigi Donnarumma and Manuel Neuer. Both sides exchanged early blows as Desire Doue fired narrowly wide and Donnarumma saved Michael Olise's low effort. Khvicha Kvaratskhelia hit the side netting after a razor-sharp PSG counter before Donnarumma produced a fine save at full stretch to tip away another Olise effort. Georgia international Kvaratskhelia forced Neuer into an excellent stop from close range after the effervescent Bradley Barcola floated a ball out to him on the left and the winger surged inside at pace. Donnarumma was called into action as Aleksandar Pavlovic's low cross for Musiala eluded the German and nearly found the bottom corner, but for a swift reaction from the Italian. The goalkeeper could do nothing about Dayot Upamecano's header from Olise's free-kick in first-half stoppage time but the French defender had strayed offside and it was disallowed. England captain Harry Kane also came close for Bayern with a header that flew narrowly off target after fine work by Kingsley Coman. Musiala horror injury Unfortunately Musiala suffered a gruesome ankle injury before half-time as he fell following a collision with Donnarumma, with the goalkeeper appearing distraught in the aftermath. Bayern's 39-year-old stopper Neuer produced a sensational save to deny Barcola early in the second half, as the French winger ran through on goal and tried to bend the ball into the far corner. With 20 minutes remaining, Luis Enrique sent on Dembele to try and make the difference and avoid extra-time, which neither side needed at the end of a gruelling season. Dembele came inches from doing just that when Neuer gave the ball away outside his area and the Frenchman lunged to try and roll into the empty net, but it trickled just wide of the post. Eventually 20-year-old Doue found the breakthrough as Kane gave the ball away and PSG attacked in numbers. Doue, who burst into the limelight in PSG's run to Champions League glory, worked some space on the edge of the box and flashed a low strike home at the near post. Bayern were given hope as they hunted for an equaliser when PSG defender Pacho was sent off for a high tackle on Leon Goretzka after 83 minutes. Kane headed home from an offside position before PSG substitute Hernandez was dismissed for an elbow. Dembele hit the crossbar on the break as Luis Enrique's side clung on before sealing their victory through the French forward, who tucked home after Achraf Hakimi's run through and paid tribute to Jota by copying his video-gaming celebration. © 2025 AFP
