Football is not for them. But who listens to them in France amid the general enthusiasm?

"I don't understand this enthusiasm for football, it's a detestable sport," says Raphael, a 32-year-old Parisian, whose arguments are the astronomical salaries of the players, the frenetic atmosphere in the stands, and the "theater" of the footballers on the field.

"It surpasses understanding and it is difficult to maintain reasoned conversations" about it, deplores this young man who, after staying away from all the World Cup matches, does not exclude watching the final this Sunday between France and Croatia.

Unthinkable activity for Marie, 50 years old. "I can't stand football. Especially the fans, it is infinitely violent," reacts this woman, who takes advantage of these days to watch the plays of the Avignon International Theater Festival.

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Being anti-football is a "French specificity," says historian Fabien Archambault, a specialist in the construction of national identities through football. Due to its popular dimension, this sport fails to "achieve a status of legitimacy in public space," he adds.

"In the other major countries, England, Germany, Italy, football has been accepted throughout society for a long time because all classes really like it," according to this university professor.

"Football is very rudimentary." "It is mainly working class fans who have given it its status; then there is the beer culture...," highlights sociologist Anthony Mahé, from the Eranos firm.

"What anti-football critics criticize are the attributes of the celebration, the crowd, the spectacle... Instead of seeing the problems (of society), we let ourselves be made foolish," Mahé adds.

Relief on the internet

"Is this living together? A square in the final? A moment to forget our misfortunes as if (a match) could erase them?" wrote Philippe Poutou, a French far-left politician, on Twitter after France's victory over Belgium in the semi-finals, which led fans to take to the streets in large numbers.

In the face of media frenzy, anti-football fans vent on social media, gathered under hashtags like #jaimepaslefoot (I don't like football).

But the anti discourse is "increasingly difficult to maintain," Archambault estimates. Especially since France became champion in the 1998 World Cup. "The elites saw that they could use (the victory) to enhance the country's image," especially the political class, he adds.

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Among the entertainment personalities, few speak of adversity towards football.

"If I defended my indifference to this ball sport, I would be giving too much importance to this event," commented actor Denis Lavant to AFP.

Others prefer to remain anonymous.

Criticize football? "During the World Cup? Do you take me for an idiot?" confessed a comedian.

For Arnaud Séité, owner of a floating bar on the Seine in Paris, the important thing is to be able to choose. "I don't like football. What I like is organizing concerts and having people listen to good music," he explains in his establishment, without a television screen. (D)