André Billy (footballer)

André Billy
Billy in 1900
Personal information
Birth name André Billy
Date of birth (1877-05-13)13 May 1877
Place of birth Bazeilles, Ardennes, France
Date of death 9 August 1913(1913-08-09) (aged 36)
Place of death Saint-Gervais, France
Position(s) Midfielder
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1902–1903 Olympique Lillois
Managerial career
1906–1908 Northern France
1906–1908 France (1)
Vice-president of the USFSA
In office
1906–1909
President of Olympique Lillois
In office
1907–1911
Preceded byAndré Nicodème
Succeeded byHenri Jooris
Secretary of UIAFA
In office
1909–1911
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

André Billy (13 May 1877 – 9 August 1913) was a French footballer and sports leader, who is widely regarded as one of the most important figures in the amateur beginnings of Olympique Lillois, being one of its founders in 1902, and then serving the club as its first captain from 1902 to 1903 and later as president from 1907 to 1911.

He also served as the vice president of the Northern Committee of the USFSA (1906–08), and was the president of the central commission of Football Association (1906–08), and as such, he co-managed the matches of the French national team between 1906 and 1908. However, he is best known for being the main responsible behind the separation of the USFSA, which had governed football in France since 1894, from FIFA, in 1908, due to his intransigence on international amateurism.