A football fan has died and another is in intensive care after widespread riots erupted across France following Paris Saint-Germain's Champions League victory over Arsenal. The unrest led to the arrest of 400 people, with extraordinary scenes of chaos and disorder in Paris, Rennes, Strasbourg, and Grenoble.
One supporter was confirmed dead, and another remains in intensive care. Football fans set off fires and vandalized shops, while a small group even attempted to storm a Paris police station. A police investigation has been launched into the stabbing of an unidentified 17-year-old man who suffered multiple wounds near the Champs Élysées. He is in intensive care, and another man, aged 23, died after crashing his motorbike into a concrete block.
The Paris prosecutors' office stated that 277 people have been formally placed in police custody, including 82 minors, for alleged offences. Most were charged with assaulting police officers, while other allegations include theft, vandalism, and disturbing public order. One serious accident involved a driver losing control of a car that rammed into a restaurant's terrace, leaving two people wounded, one seriously.
Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez confirmed that 57 officers were wounded in total and noted violence in 15 cities across France. Nuñez said that planned celebrations for the team's win on Sunday afternoon at the Champ de Mars, near the Eiffel Tower, would proceed as scheduled. He warned that police would respond with "firmness and determination" to any potential violence. The PSG team will then be hosted by French President Emmanuel Macron at the Élysée presidential palace.
Fans began celebrating in Paris after the final whistle on Saturday evening in Budapest, Hungary, where Paris Saint-Germain won by defeating Arsenal on penalties in a dramatic final. Fans marched along the avenues near Paris' Arc de Triomphe monument, with some setting off flares and blaring car horns. Around 20,000 people gathered on the Champs-Élysées, where police worked to contain the crowd.
The Paris police prefecture reported that smaller groups caused disturbances in various locations, vandalizing shops and setting fires to garbage and self-service bicycles in the streets. Cars were also set ablaze. Those who attempted to storm a police station in the upscale 8th Arrondissement neighbourhood were dispersed by police.
Football-related violence is a growing problem in France, with similar scenes occurring last year after PSG won their first Champions League title. On that occasion, 201 people were injured in the French capital, and police made more than 500 arrests across France.
