Hundreds arrested as PSG fans celebrate historic Champions League win with flares and fireworks

Independent

5 days ago

Hundreds of arrests were made as Paris was awash with celebrations on Saturday as Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) fans marked their team's first Champions League title.
Flares and fireworks lit up the city, car horns blared, and the Eiffel Tower was illuminated in blue and red.
The final in Munich was widely watched across Paris, including inside PSG's Parc des Princes stadium, where the match was broadcast on a giant screen.
However, the 5-0 victory over Inter Milan also led to some unrest, with flashpoints and arrests occurring even during the game.
Outside the stadium, a brief clash erupted during the first half between celebrating PSG fans letting off flares and riot police, who responded with tear gas to disperse the crowd.
At the top of the Champs-Élysées avenue, a water cannon was deployed to protect the Place de l'Étoile, near the Arc de Triomphe. Police reported that a large crowd, not watching the match, attempted to breach a barrier to confront the police.
By 2am on Sunday, authorities had made a total of 294 arrests, including 30 individuals who broke into a shoe shop on the Champs-Élysées. Additionally, two cars were set on fire near Parc des Princes, according to police reports.
Mindful of any celebrations getting out of hand, as has often been the case in Paris during high-profile soccer matches, PSG forward Ousmane Dembélé urged fans after the final to show restraint amid their euphoria.
'Let's celebrate but without breaking everything in Paris," he told broadcaster Canal Plus.
It was hoped PSG's rout of seasoned campaigner Inter — a three-time Champions League winner — would grab the headlines.
'I don't have words," said 19-year-old PSG forward Désiré Doué, who scored twice and set up one goal in a mesmerising performance. "But what I can say is 'Thank you Paris,' we did it.'
At the Place de la Bastille, there were joyous scenes as fans climbed onto the base of the famous column, singing, dancing and letting off flares, while those around joined in.
At one point, motorbikes loudly revved their engines and the crowd cheered as they did laps around the column. There were no police nearby and, by 1am, the atmosphere was upbeat with no tensions and plenty of singing.
Security was tightened up in anticipation of potential post-match violence and 5,400 police officers were deployed on the Champs-Élysées, other key parts of Paris, and its nearby suburbs.
Two hours before the 9pm kickoff, the Champs-Élysées was already teeming with fans singing and letting off flares, while the 49,000-capacity Parc des Princes had a heavy police presence outside.
At around 11:30 pm police said they were expecting a mass arrival of fans onto the the Champs-Élysées.
There were outbreaks of violence around three weeks ago after PSG eliminated Arsenal to reach the final. One car rammed into supporters and was later set on fire, while shop windows were smashed. Riot police were still dispersing rowdy fans at 3am and there were more than 40 arrests in the city.
Five years ago, disgruntled fans clashed with riot police on the avenue after their team lost to Bayern Munich in the Champions League final in Lisbon.
When PSG won the French title in 2013 — ending a wait of 19 years — celebrations were cut short on Monday following violent scenes in which fans fought with riot police for several hours, leaving 30 people injured.
There were also incidents on the Champs-Élysées following Algeria's African Cup of Nations win in 2019, and in 2021 following a match between Morocco and Algeria in the Arab Cup, and in 2022 after France and Morocco both qualified for the World Cup semifinals on the same day.