Gilbert Brisbois accuses TF1 and L'Équipe of plagiarizing his RMC show

Gilbert Brisbois is furious since the announcement of “Téléfoot l’After”. The RMC journalist, who has presented L’After Foot for twenty years, publicly challenged L’Équipe Channel on X with a terse: “Are you serious?”

The source of his anger: the new Sunday talk-show co-produced by TF1 and L’Équipe Channel, set to launch on Sunday, September 6. Hosted by Grégoire Margotton and Bixente Lizarazu, the programme will also feature journalists from channel 21 of the TNT, including Giovani Castaldi and Virginie Sainsily. The format — analysis, debate and reports around football — bears a striking resemblance to Brisbois’s show, commonly called simply “L’After” by its listeners.

The question of plagiarism arises on two levels: the name first, nearly identical to that of the RMC show; the concept next, which covers the same editorial territory. Brisbois did not specify whether he was considering legal action, but the question is worth raising.

Under French law, however, the answer is complex. Television formats are very difficult to protect by copyright, which makes any potential dispute uncertain. Only a court decision could determine whether the name or concept constitutes infringement.

From TF1 and L’Équipe Channel’s side, no public reaction had been communicated at the time of publication of this article. “Téléfoot l’After” follows in the footsteps of Téléfoot, TF1’s historic Sunday show founded in 1977, whose disappearance had been considered last season before ultimately being ruled out.