Even during the Champions League final match in Budapest, skirmishes began in Paris between riot police and groups of fans – or mere troublemakers – on the Champs-Élysées and near the Parc des Princes, the stadium where PSG usually plays. The clashes escalated as the hours passed and spread to other cities such as Clermont-Ferrand, Limoges, Dieppe, Valenciennes, Grenoble, and Bordeaux. The toll was 780 arrests across France. Of these, 457 arrests were made under police custody. This figure represents a 32% increase in arrests compared to last year, according to Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez in a press conference.
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Additionally, the Paris Prosecutor’s Office announced the death of a 24-year-old man who was riding a motocross motorcycle on the Paris ring road and crashed into concrete blocks installed by municipal services to close access to Porte Maillot during the night of celebrations. An investigation has been opened to clarify the circumstances of the accident.
In Paris, police charges, including the use of tear gas, were carried out to disperse the crowd and respond to the use of smoke bombs, the burning of municipal service bicycles, and other acts of vandalism against shops and vehicles. Seven police officers were injured. At least two other people were injured in the capital, one by a stabbing and another by a fall into the Seine. The rioters invaded the périphérique (equivalent to the ring roads of Barcelona), blocking traffic, and some of them started playing football on the roadway until they were cleared out.
The Interior Ministry deployed 8,000 officers in the capital in anticipation of incidents like those that occurred last year. The drastic measure was taken regardless of the outcome of the match against Arsenal. Many of the people causing trouble did not even watch the game. It was just an excuse for excesses. Their sole objective was to provoke the police, challenge the authority of the State, and cause indiscriminate damage, a ritual that repeats on the occasion of other matches – it already happened after the victorious semifinal – or on dates such as July 14, the national holiday, or New Year’s Eve. The burning of vehicles and street furniture and vandalism are constant elements of these riots. In the most serious cases, there is breaking of shop windows and looting of stores, as happened yesterday.
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Fear of riots partly overshadowed media attention on the match, broadcast by two channels, but other news outlets had teams on the street. On the Champs-Élysées, taken over by the police with a large display of resources, demonstrations were prohibited, but still about 20,000 people showed up. The intense heatwave that has been ongoing for days may have contributed to agitating tempers and uncivil behavior.
Exceptional security measures are expected this Sunday afternoon for the reception of the champions at the Champ de Mars, under the Eiffel Tower, where about 100,000 people could gather. The PSG entourage is to be received at the Élysée Palace.
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