The north/ further north divide in France has never been more apparent

Everyone in the UK has been getting their knickers in a twist about the lack of respect shown by fans and officials in football, but we are not the only country dealing with controversy in the game.

Paris Saint-Germain fans kicked up a storm by unfurling a huge banner reading ‘Paedophiles, Unemployed, Inbreeding, Welcome to the North’, during a cup game with Lens on Saturday. The message mimics the name of a film currently out in France, and the Parisians were deemed to have gone too far in insulting their friends from the north (slightly further north than them, that is).

French football chief Frederic Thiriez has promised to lay the smackdown on the ‘imbeciles’ who marred the Coupe de la Ligue final, and much like Gordon Brown wading into the respect debate in today’s papers (”Footballers have a greater responsibility than anyone else to set the right example for young people,” he says - that should do the trick), French President Nicolas Sarkozy - who attended the game and asked for the banner to be taken down - has spoken out:

The president wishes that this intolerable behaviour will have the follow-up it deserves and will follow with great attention how the investigation progresses.

Lens officials have asked for the game to be replayed (PSG won after 2-1 after a late controversial penalty decision) and those who are guilty will find themselves picking up the soap in prison if they are identified.

PSG are currently second bottom in Ligue One at present, and could find themselves up discrimination creek without a paddle if an inquiry to be held on Thursday decides to dock league points.