Lyon manager Paulo Fonseca has received a substantial suspension from all matchday duties until November 30th, following an angry confrontation with referee Benoit Millot during Lyon’s 2-1 victory over Brest on March 2nd. The French Professional Football League (LFP) announced the sanction on Wednesday.
Fonseca, 52, was sent off during the match for “intimidating attitude” and for pushing his face towards Millot after a VAR review of a potential penalty for Brest, which was ultimately not awarded.
The LFP’s statement specified that Fonseca is barred from accessing the team bench, the officials’ dressing rooms, and performing any official functions before, during, or after matches until November 30th. Furthermore, he is prohibited from entering the team dressing room, pitch, tunnel, and connecting corridors until September 15th.
Lyon Teknik Direktörü Paulo Fonseca’nın futboldan 9 ay men almasına sebep olan görüntüler.
Fiziksel temasa rağmen bir santim bile geri gitmeyen hakemi örnek almak lazım.pic.twitter.com/YcEtltXOIA— Tartışmalı Pozisyonlar (@Tartismalar) March 5, 2025
Lyon issued a statement acknowledging the “extreme severity of the unprecedented sanction” and expressing concern over the swiftness of the decision. The club stated they were disappointed that Fonseca was “not judged on his actions alone, an emotional reaction, without any clear intention of physically attacking the referee,” and that they are “studying all possible avenues of appeal.”
Fonseca, who apologized for the incident after the match, only took charge of Lyon on January 31st, having left AC Milan the previous month.
The suspension will impact Lyon’s upcoming matches, including Thursday’s Europa League fixture against FCSB (17:45 GMT). Lyon are currently sixth in Ligue 1. The lengthy ban represents a significant setback for Fonseca and his team. Lyon Manager Paulo Fonseca
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