Former Manchester United left-back Patrice Evra’s court case for allegedly making homophobic insults was on Monday adjourned until December 15.
Evra, 41, who retired from playing three years ago after also winning 81 caps for France, faced charges brought by two charities “for public insults towards a group of people based on their sexual orientation”.
On Monday, the court granted the adjournment request of Evra’s lawyer Jerome Boursican who argued he had been appointed “recently” and learned of the elements of the case a few days before the hearing.
“It’s intolerable,” lamented Julien Pontes, spokesperson for the anti-homophobia group Rouge Direct, at the end of the hearing.
“A few weeks before the World Cup in Qatar, we were waiting a judicial message,” he said, believing that the conviction of a former France captain would be “a strong symbol”.
Absent from court on Monday, Evra is being judged for comments he made on social media after United’s Champions League win over Paris Saint-Germain in March 2019.
“Paris, you are gays… Here, it’s men that talk,” Evra said.
In May, an investigating judge said Evra had spoken in a “private sphere for the production of a video which was then published on Snapchat”.
Evra faces a potential fine of 1,500 euros (1,450 dollars).
