Patrice Haddad, president of the Parisian club Red Star FC, praises Athletic Club’s football culture in an exclusive interview with the Foundation during his appearance at Thinking, Letrak eta Futbola
The Athletic Club Foundation had the opportunity to interview Patrice Haddad, the president of the historic Parisian club Red Star, when he took part in the latest edition of Thinking, Letrak eta Futbola. The festival programmed a special screening of the documentary “Nous sommes le Red Star” (We Are Red Star), directed by Christian Paureihe and Mónica Regàs, based on the legendary French club, a historic, special rival of Athletic Club.
In the interview, Patrice Haddad talks in depth about the admirable idiosyncrasies of the Red Star. The Parisian president also praised Athletic Club’s football culture: “You are proof that a sense of belonging to a club is fundamental. Attitude makes a difference to technique. Spirit, belonging, drive. You have that shared drive between club, supporters and players. It’s incredible”.
Red Star is a very special and beloved club for Athletic Club. The Parisians played against Athletic Club on five occasions between 1919 and 1932, although on one of those occasions they played as part of a combined team with Racing de Paris. The Lions also visited the French capital to play Red Star twice (once also as a combined team with Racing Paris). Interestingly, it was a match between Red Star and Athletic Club that reopened the famous Parc des Princes as a football ground on October 9, 1932. Athletic lost 4-2, but recovered in the second leg at San Mamés, beating the Parisians 6-2 in December.
Athletic Club also took part in the events commemorating Red Star’s birth by participating in a three-match tournament alongside AS Saint-Etienne and ASEC Mimosas from the Ivory Coast.
