High-flying PSG make green gesture with bus trip to Reims

Paris, Oct 7, 2022 (AFP) - Paris Saint-Germain will travel to Reims by bus, manager Christophe Galtier said on Friday, a month after provoking controversy by mocking a suggestion his team should stop taking short-haul flights.

"We will travel by bus, even if the bodies are tired. It is close to home, we will be very comfortable on our bus," Galtier told PSG TV ahead of the visit to Reims for a Ligue 1 game on Saturday evening.

Last season, PSG went to Reims, 150 kilometres (93 miles) from the capital, by plane.

On September 5, Galtier was asked why PSG had flown to Nantes which is 380km west of Paris but located on a high-speed train line.

The side -- owned by an investment fund of major gas producer Qatar -- boasted on social media after the game that they had made the round trip with shirt sponsors Qatar Airways.

Asked whether the club was taking its carbon footprint seriously, Galtier replied with sarcasm.

"We had a chat with our travel organisers earlier to see if we can travel by sand-yacht," he said, referring to sail-powered buggies that are popular on some French beaches.

He later pleaded "misplaced humour" but insisted that he was personally "very conscientious" personally to favoured trains over planes when travelling.