Paris Saint-Germain enter a new era without Kylian Mbappé, but remain the big favorites in Ligue 1.
The period between seasons in France was dominated by discussions about the new TV contract. The league wanted to sell the rights for one billion euros per year, but in the end only got half of that. The €500 million negotiated is causing club presidents to worry and is likely to shift the league's focus even more towards the development of young players. In July, 18-year-old Ruben Londja, a Swiss junior international, moved from Lausanne-Sport to Le Havre.
Londja is unlikely to come to the fore this season. On the other hand, we can expect a lot from other Swiss players. In Monaco, Breel Embolo, Denis Zakaria and Philipp Köhn, who has been demoted to backup goalkeeper, could be the first challengers to Paris Saint-Germain with their team-mates.
Vincent Sierro at Toulouse and Becir Omeragic at Montpellier were among the highly rated players last season, even if their clubs are not in contention for the top places in the table. Meanwhile, full-backs Jordan Lotomba (Nice) and Ulisses Garcia (Marseille) are no longer wanted at their clubs.
Paris Saint-Germain are hard to beat in the race for the league title, even if it will be the first season without Mbappé for the Parisians in six years. The difference in quality between coach Luis Enrique's team and the rest remains huge. In addition to Monaco, Marseille, newly coached by Roberto De Zerbi, as well as Lille and Lyon are most likely to provide excitement at the top of the table.
Program and review:
1st round. Friday, August 16: Le Havre - Paris Saint-Germain. - Saturday, August 17: Brest - Marseille, Reims - Lille, Monaco - Saint-Etienne. - Sunday, August 18: Auxerre - Nice, Montpellier - Strasbourg, Angers - Lens, Toulouse - Nantes, Rennes - Lyon.
The Swiss Ligue 1 players (10): Gabriel Barès (Montpellier), Breel Embolo (Monaco), Ulisses Garcia (Marseille), Philipp Köhn (Monaco), Ruben Londja (Le Havre), Jordan Lotomba (Nice), Becir Omeragic (Montpellier), Vincent Sierro (Toulouse), Denis Zakaria (Monaco).
How it was in 2023/24. Champions: Paris Saint-Germain. - Champions League: Monaco (2nd), Brest (3rd), Lille (4th). - Europa League: Nice (5th), Lyon (6th) - Conference League: Lens (7th) - Relegated: Metz (17th/barrage), Lorient (19th), Clermont (20th). - Promoted: Auxerre (1st), Angers (2nd), Saint-Etienne (3rd/promotion play-off). - Top scorer: Kylian Mbappé (Paris Saint-Germain) 27 goals - Cup winners: Paris Saint-Germain.
SDA
