For 90 minutes, they will be opponents in a very friendly match. Martine Aubry and Anne Hidalgo, respectively mayors of Lille and Paris, will together attend the clash of the 23rd day at the Pierre-Mauroy stadium between Losc and PSG. But the opposition between the two city councilors will only be sporting. Because politically, if the presidential campaign of Anne Hidalgo does not necessarily arouse unanimity within the Socialist Party, the mayor of Paris can count on the support of her Lille counterpart.
She is actively involved in his campaign and has also publicly announced that she is giving him his sponsorship to start the race for the Élysée. Martine Aubry and Anne Hidalgo will also take advantage of the match to campaign together. After an intervention on the set of France 3 at midday, Anne Hidalgo will join the capital of Flanders by train. In the afternoon, the two women will visit an exhibition before meeting local actors to promote the candidacy of Anne Hidalgo. In the early evening, they will then join the Lille enclosure to watch the match next to each other in the presidential stand.
“The elimination of PSG in the Cup saddened her a little”
There, for 90 minutes, everyone will choose their colors. “They did not go to bed before the match, smiles Pierre Rabadan, the Paris sports assistant. It’s not really their style. But hey, if Martine Aubry recalled that the defending champion is still Lille, that wouldn’t surprise me. Because Anne Hidalgo is very proud of the titles of PSG. So this may be an opportunity to remember that Lille was the strongest last year. We talked about PSG again this week. For example, the elimination in the Coupe de France, last Monday against Nice, saddened her a little. »
The two women are in any case true supporters of their club. “Anne Hidalgo cannot go as much as she would like to the Parc des Princes because of the presidential campaign, but she lives intensely the results of PSG, we confide in her entourage. And she has long noted the meeting against Real Madrid on February 15. »
Martine Aubry, according to her relatives, is however even more attached to her own club. A story of family atavism. His father Jacques Delors, already supported Olympique Lillois, the ancestor of Losc. “She has been soaked in Lille football since birth,” we confide. Martine Aubry also makes it known that she regularly exchanges on the phone with former Lille residents such as Vahid Halilhodzic, Rio Mavuba, Rudi Garcia or Christophe Galtier.
And that she also converses with Olivier Létang, the current president. But she too cannot go to the stadium for all the matches. Before this Sunday, she had not been there since Lille-Lyon (0-0) on December 12. In Pierre-Mauroy’s ballot box, she will therefore slip a “Losc” ballot before voting, a few weeks later, for her Parisian counterpart.
