André Préaud, LFP Competitions Commission President for 28 Years, Dies at 79

André Préaud, who chaired the Professional Football League (LFP) competitions commission for twenty-eight years, from 1996 to 2024, died on Monday, June 29 at the age of 79. The LFP paid tribute to what it describes as an “engaged and recognized figure in French football.”

“The Professional Football League learned with great sadness of André Préaud’s death,” the body wrote in a statement released Thursday. It salutes a man “appreciated for his rigor, his sense of dialogue and his knowledge of football’s challenges,” who “contributed, over the years, to the proper functioning and development of our competitions.”

Alongside his responsibilities within the LFP, André Préaud, nicknamed “Dédé,” served as vice-president and then delegate president of US Orléans. His attachment to the Orléans club was unwavering: according to USO, “he carried USO in his heart and never missed a match of the first team at Stade de la Source.”

“His presence in the stands was part of the landscape, and his absence will be sorely felt,” the club added in its own tribute. The LFP extended its condolences to the family, close ones of André Préaud as well as members and supporters of US Orléans. His funeral will be held on Friday, July 10.