Football: France Pull out of Fifa Event

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FRANCE HAVE pulled out of the controversial Confederations' Cup against the wishes of Fifa, world football's ruling body, but to the delight of leading European clubs.

"We decided to pull out of this competition because we did not want to send to Mexico a team which would not have been the one which won the world title," the French Football Federation president, Claude Simonet, said. He suggested that France would instead play a friendly against "an English team" some time in February.

The eight-nation Fifa-organised competition has been heavily criticised by both clubs and a number of countries because of its timing in the middle of the European league season. "I …