The announced disappearance of Téléfoot The cancellation of TF1's Sunday schedule has provoked strong emotions in Jean-Michel Larqué. The former AS Saint-Étienne midfielder, former presenter, and former pundit for the show, reacted with bitterness to the program's cancellation, with its final broadcast scheduled for June 14, 2026. TF1 confirmed that Téléfoot would end in its current form at the start of the new academic year and would be replaced by a new multi-sport program on Sunday mornings.
A historic French football program is about to go off the air.
Created 1977, Téléfoot It belongs to the heritage of French sports television. The INA archives place its first broadcast on September 16, 1977, on TF1, confirming the program's exceptional longevity. Over the decades, the show established itself as one of the iconic football programs on television, before being hosted in recent seasons by Grégoire Margotton. The show, which began in 1977, has welcomed numerous figures from French football to its studio, including Jean-Michel Larqué.
Jean-Michel Larqué speaks of a disappearance that he experiences as an agony.
Guest of the show Rothen ignites On RMC, Jean-Michel Larqué revealed that Téléfoot was part of his life. He describes the end of the program as a "slow agony"explaining that witnessing this gradual disappearance is not something to be happy about.
Jean-Michel Larqué also defended a particular vision of televised football. In his remarks, he argued that modern football has turned its back on grassroots football. He recalled the work of Didier Roustan, praising the creativity of his documentaries and the unique nature of his portraits, which he described as true works of journalism.
Why Jean-Michel Larqué speaks of a catastrophic editorial choice
The core of Jean-Michel Larqué's criticism targets TF1's strategy. He believes the channel has turned its back on its best ratings by gradually distancing itself from football, even though the sport once held a central place in the channel's biggest successes. Larqué also regrets that TF1 has relinquished certain rights and chosen to give less prominence to football, while other sports, particularly rugby, now appear to be receiving more support from management. It is within this context that he characterizes the decision to "A catastrophic editorial choice."
For its part, TF1's sports department announced the cancellation of Téléfoot as a repositioning intended to make more room for other disciplines within the group, with the arrival of a multisport magazine from the start of the academic year in September.
An end on the shelf, but not necessarily a total disappearance of the brand.
The cancellation of Téléfoot does not automatically mean the complete disappearance of the name. The brand Téléfoot The show could continue to exist on the group's digital platforms, notably on TF1+, with football content whose format has not yet been finalized. The channel has thus confirmed the cancellation of the program on television in its current format, while leaving open the possibility of continuing it in a digital version.
