L’Equipe and the French press are cheering on West Ham in the Europa Conference League

French newspapers are cheering on West Ham in the Europa Conference League, as France could lose a Champions League qualifying spot to the Netherlands if AZ Alkmaar win the tournament. 

David Moyes’ side booked their place in the semi-finals against AZ Alkmaar on Thursday thanks to a convincing 5-2 aggregate win over Gent and are now just three matches away from lifting the European trophy.

Meanwhile, AZ Alkmaar, who beat Anderlecht 4-1 on penalties in the quarter-finals, could launch the Netherlands above France in UEFA’s coefficient table and thus steal an automatic Champions League qualifying spot away from Ligue 1 next season – if they win the competition altogether.

As a result, French newspaper L’Equipe took up an English allegiance on Friday, leading with the headline ‘Come on West Ham’.

Either Serie A club Fiorentina or Swiss side Basel, who face off in the other Europa Conference League semi-final, will take on the winners of West Ham against AZ Alkmaar in Prague in June.

‘Come on West Ham!’: Leading French newspaper L’Equipe are supporting the English club – France will lose a Champions League spot to the Netherlands if AZ Alkmaar lift the trophy

France sit fifth in the UEFA coefficient table as it stands behind England, Spain, Germany and Italy with 61.164 points as of April 21.

The Netherlands, meanwhile, sit in sixth place on 59.9 points and would move into the top five with Europa Conference League glory, taking advantage of France’s poor showing in European competitions this campaign.

Paris Saint-Germain crashed out of the Champions League in the last-16 against serial Bundesliga winners Bayern Munich, while Marseille finished bottom of their group.

Monaco, Ligue 1’s third and final team to qualify for the Champions League, lost to PSV in their qualifier last August and crashed out early in the knockout stages of the Europa League, alongside fellow French clubs Nantes and Rennes.

AZ Alkmaar progressed to the semi-finals with a 4-1 victory on penalties against Anderlecht

Success for AZ Alkmaar would earn the Eredivisie an additional place in the Champions League, meaning three Dutch clubs would be in with a chance of playing in Europe’s top competition next season.

In that scenario, only the French champions would automatically make it into the Champions League, and the Ligue 1 runners-up would enter the qualifiers. 

Therefore, league leaders PSG and Champions League chasers Marseille, Lens, Monaco and Lille could all be fighting over just two places rather than three. 

West Ham’s success will not have any effect on England’s fate in the UEFA coefficient rankings.