Movie icon Clint Eastwood swapped Hollywood for central France this weekend, when he was made an honorary mascot for soccer team Olympique Lyon.

The 79-year-old Oscar winner was invited to receive an award at the first ever Lyon Film Festival - prompting bosses at the country's top soccer squad to try and turn Eastwood into a good luck charm.

The screen legend was marched onto the pitch ahead of the team's game against Sochaux on Saturday and conducted a ceremonial kick-off in heavy rain - after being presented with a Lyon jersey with his name on the back.

But the Dirty Harry star's presence failed to inspire Lyon, who stumbled to their first defeat of the season.

Eastwood picked up an award for his contribution to film at the festival, being held in the birthplace of Augusto and Louis Lumiere - who invented cinema in the 19th century.