PARIS (AP) — France coach Laurent Blanc says he will quit before the end of his contract if France fails to qualify for the 2012 European Championships.
Blanc took over from the unpopular Raymond Domenech after France’s World Cup struggles, and has vowed to step down if he fails.
In an interview with sports daily L’Equipe on Wednesday, Blanc says “it’s Euro 2012 or I’m going.”
Blanc’s two-year contract would normally take him well past France’s last qualifier against Bosnia-Herzegovina in October next year, but Blanc says “it’s not my thing to keep going when I’ve failed.”
Blanc has inherited a team in disarray after the whole squad went on strike during a World Cup training session. Those players are suspended for Blanc’s first game in next month’s friendly against Norway.
